What Iraqi political party do you support?

[furt]

Not really a debate, but I found this interesting:

http://www.niqash.org/wahlomat/wahlstart.php

Its a political test for Iraqis.

Some of the questions presumed a familiarity with the issues there that I don’t have, but nonetheless my top two were the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan (PUK) and the Iraqi Communist Party (ICP) (!)

You?

[Kid_A_1]

I got the Iraqi National Accord (INA) as my first choice and the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan (PUK) as my second.

Very interesting…

[BrainGlutton]

Does the Monster Raving Loony Party have an Iraqi branch?

[waits for flood of cheap shots]

[Squink]

Kurdistan Democratic Party (KDP), which is odd because I’m not in favor of establishing more federal regions. I don’t even like the one the Kurds have.

[tomndebb]

Polls, particularly polls with no particular debate associated with them, are better suited to IMHO, so this thread is leaving GD for that more appropriate Forum.

[ /Moderator Mode ]

[Larry_Borgia]

All the way with the PUK, baby!

My #2 is the Islamic virtue party, for some reason. My last was the communist party, which is odd, because I think I’m less anti-communist than furt

[clairobscur]

I give a significant support to…ahem… to the Islamic virtue party…

Searching for a rock to crawl under…

(I checked out, and actually, the only points I completely disagree with them, by opposition to simply be neutral on the issue are women rights, the death penalty and the relations with Israel)

[Governor_Quinn]

Top three: ICP, INA, and PUK

Bottom three: IIP, ITF, and IDP.

Interestingly, the highest score I gave any party was 60%, and the lowest score I gave was 32%.

[furt]

@BrainGlutton

Does the Monster Raving Loony Party have an Iraqi branch?

[waits for flood of cheap shots]

Go with the commies, it’s the same thing.

[Captain_Amazing]

72% for the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan and the Iraqi National Accord.
68% for the Islamic Virtue Party and 64% for the Islamic Dawa Party.

[Sal_Ammoniac]

@clairobscur

I give a significant support to…ahem… to the Islamic virtue party…

Don’t feel bad, I’m on their bandwagon as well. We may have to form local chapters.

That said, I feel like I was answering the questions in a schizophrenic way, abetted by lack of knowledge. “The competences of the Iraqi Prime Minister should be expanded”? Yeah, sure, whatever.

[toadspittle]

I came up with Islamic Virtue Party (only 48%, tho). Let me see their stated platform:

Goals of the party:

• Guaranteeing freedom and prosperity to the Iraqi society in accordance with Shari’a standards
• Spreading intellectual and political awareness among the Iraqis and deepening awareness of their religion and homeland
• Leading the Iraqis toward an integration of consciousness and belief on their way to a better moral and material future, in a society enjoying freedom, justice, and independence

Well, I like the “in a society enjoying freedom, justice, and independence” bit.

System of governance:
A constitutional, parliamentary, pluralistic system that is founded on elections, and limited by Shari’a. Federalism is not preferred but might be the best solution at this time.

Hmm.

Liberties & civil rights:
“The constitution must guarantee human rights and the basic freedoms, which do not contradict the Islamic Shari’a and common customs.” Human rights should be guaranteed “in a manner that does not distort the nature of Iraqi society and the commandments of Islam, the true religion.”

um, maybe?

Minorities’s rights:
The party does not like to use the term “minority”. All are Iraqis and have equal rights and obligations. The party “believes in the cultural and national rights of the Kurds in a way that harmonizes with their circumstances and fits into the framework of a unified Iraq, in which Arabs and Kurds live in brotherhood and share equal rights of citizenship and equal and equivalent obligations.”

sounds ok.

Law & judiciary: The source of laws is the Shari’a, or at least the laws should not contradict it.

not so good

Distribution of wealth:
“The entirety of natural resources belongs to the public sector. […] All movable assets attained from natural resources can be acquired only through labor. They can also be acquired through inheritance, indemnity for damages, and other forms of acquisition.”

sounds good

Iraq’s identity:
“The land and people of Iraq must remain unified. […] Iraq belongs to all Iraqis. […] The constitution must emphasize the Islamic identity of the country.”

meh … neutral on Iraq remaining unified

De-Ba’thification:
Ba’thists who committed crimes against the Iraqi people must be prosecuted by law and justly penalized. Ba’thists who did not commit any crime against the Iraqi people should be slowly re-integrated into Iraq’s political life.

I like that

Occupation:
“[It] is a comprehensive project of Western civilizing procedures aimed at changing ways of thinking and the present culture, in Iraq in particular and in the whole Middle East in general.” It needs to be unmasked and resisted, but in a planned and scientific manner. Both violent and non-violent resistance are important.

Gotta say I agree, even though my country’s doing the occupying.

Terrorism:
“[The] terrorism that broke out in Iraqi society was not a product of current confessional or intellectual preconditions in Iraq. It is rather a phenomenon that grew up outside Iraq and crept into Iraq within the range of regional and international interests. […] The Shari’a forbids terrorism.”

I think I agree … confusing wording …

Regional/International relations:

• Foreign policy should be based on the Arabic and Islamic affiliation of Iraq.
• Especially friendly relations should be established with Iraq’s neighbors.
• Relations should be maintained with all countries except Israel.

Had me up to Israel. I think you should always retain relations with your enemies. That’s how you know what they’re thinking if they try to pull something, and also how you maybe wind up not being enemies.