Democracy in Iraq: no longer a pipe dream

• Last Updated: November 09. 2009 11:49PM UAE / November 9. 2009 7:49PM GMT

Politics in Iraq is strangely reassuring. Sure, the debate over a revised election law was ugly: it was messy, rife with petty grievances and cynical motivations, it took longer than it ought to have taken, and in the end the parliament barely managed to thrash out a deal. In short, it was democracy in action. Despite having every reason not to, democracy has taken root in Iraq, and that is one reason to believe the country may still be on the road to recovery.

It was never expected to have happened this way. The improved security situation was supposed to keep the country afloat, not the politicians. In fact, they were supposed to have been the greatest barrier to recovery. Not too long ago, the divide between the Sunnis, Shiites and Kurds was such that George Bush’s vision of a modern democracy in Mesopotamia was ridiculed and set aside. The only option thought possible was essentially three states, divided along ethnic and sectarian lines, and loosely bound by a federal government. The victory of nationalist parties in the most recent provincial elections proved that notion false.

Iraq is moving towards the creation of an effective national government as quickly as a democracy possibly can, and the new election law will only help that goal. It will allow Iraqis to vote for individual politicians rather than for political parties, encouraging greater accountability to the voters and greater transparency in Iraq’s often murky party politicking.

Of most significance was the deal to include Kirkuk in the national elections. The turf war between Irbil and Baghdad for control of the oil-rich province was swiftly becoming a genuine threat to Iraq’s national ambitions. The Kurds claim it as part of historic Kurdistan, and attach particular emotional value to the city and its eponymous province, since it represents their suffering under Saddam Hussein. Baghdad wants it for the billions of barrels of oil it contains.

A census and referendum were due to be held in the province to determine who would control it. Several deadlines for those have passed and the Kurds are growing increasingly impatient, using their seats in parliament and presidential veto to try to force concessions from the Arabs. The effect has to been to impede progress on a number of vital issues, including the election law. The problem remains unresolved and debate on the issue has been postponed for at least a year. But it is encouraging that the parliament found a way around the logjam.

This is mostly thanks to advice, encouragement and cajoling from the Americans. Christopher Hill, the US envoy to Iraq, pleaded, intimidated and herded the MPs into casting their votes. It seems that the US has finally realised that it cannot ignore Iraq’s political development. For years it left that to the UN, with predictable results. Its attention to resolving grievances productively has begun to pay dividends, and it could not be more relieved. Statements from both Mr Hill and Barack Obama emphasised how this would allow the US to get out of Iraq as planned.

Iraq’s progress towards recovery has and will be painfully slow. The worsening security situation remains a concern, and what political progress has been made is just as reversible. But holding another, more successful national election will help to cement those gains. The election law will help that to happen, and, hopefully, lead to a government more capable of solving the myriad outstanding issues, Kirkuk included.