INDEPTH: IRAQ
Handover of power
CBC News Online | Updated June 28, 2004
The U.S. got out of the business of running Iraq's day-to-day affairs on June 28, 2004, when it handed power to an interim government two days ahead of schedule.
The final pieces of that government came together on June 1 when the Governing Council – set up by the U.S. in July 2003 – agreed that 46-year-old Ghazi Mashal Ajil al-Yawer would serve as president.
The interim government's duties will be mainly administrative. It will focus on drawing up a budget and preparing for elections, which are expected to be held early in 2005.
But the U.S. will still maintain a strong economic and political grip on the country from the U.S. Embassy in Iraq. It will also leave 110,000 troops in the country.
"We're still here. We'll be paying a lot of attention and we'll have a lot of influence," a top U.S. official told the Associated Press on condition of anonymity.
Moments after agreeing on al-Yawer as president, the Governing Council voted to disband itself, giving the interim government time to find its direction before the handover of power.
FAQs
Who runs the interim government?
A president, two vice-presidents, a prime minister and a cabinet of 30 ministers are now in charge. The government has limited legislative power and will serve for only about seven months. The role of president is largely ceremonial. Most of the real power lies with the prime minister. Elections are planned for January 2005.
Who are the key figures?
- President - Ghazi Mashal Ajil al-Yawer
- Vice-President Ibrahim al-Jaafari, of the Shia Muslim Dawa party
- Vice-President Rowsch Shaways, speaker of parliament in the Kurdish autonomous region in Irbil.
- Prime Minister Ayad Allawi – former member of Saddam Hussein's Baathist Party. Fled Iraq in 1971 and established the opposition Iraqi National Accord in 1990 with the help of British intelligence and the CIA.
- Foreign Minister - Hoshiyar Zebari
Has held this post since September 2003. He was born in the northern Kurdish town of Aqra in 1953. Studied political science in Jordan and earned a master's degree in sociology from Britain's Essex University in 1979. Joined the central committee of the Kurdistan Democratic Party and lobbied for the rights of Iraq's oppressed Kurdish minority. Returned to Iraq after overthrow of Saddam.
- Minister of Defence - Hazem Shaalan
Earned degrees in economics and management from Baghdad University in the early 1970s and then managed several branches of the Iraqi Real Estate Bank across southern Iraq. Left Iraq in 1985 because of his opposition to the regime. Moved to Britain, where he oversaw a real estate company. Returned to Iraq in April 2003 and was appointed governor of Diwaniya, in the Shia-dominated south.
- Minister of the Interior - Falah al-Nakib
From the Sunni-dominated town of Samarra, north of Baghdad. His father was a chief of staff in the 1960s. Trained as a civil engineer. Falah al-Nakib was a member of Ahmed Chalabi's Iraqi National Congress movement in exile, spending time in Syria, before joining the Iraqi National Movement, a Sunni offshoot of the INC headed by al-Nakib's father. Was appointed governor of Salahaddin province – after the U.S.-led administration removed the first governor it had appointed.
- Oil Minister - Thamir Ghadhban
Earned a degree in geology from University College London and a master's in petroleum reservoir engineering from London's Imperial College. Returned to Iraq after his studies and worked as an oil ministry reservoir engineer. For three decades he headed ministry departments and he was named its chief executive officer after last year's invasion. Earlier in his career, he was detained and demoted for supporting democratic reforms. Is considered the foremost oil expert in the country.
The rest of the cabinet:
- Justice - Malik Dohan al-Hassan
- Human Rights - Bakhityar Amin
- Electricity - Ayham al-Samarie
- Finance - Adil Abdel-Mahdi
- Health - Alaa Alwan
- Communication - Mohammed Ali Hakim
- Housing - Omar Farouk
- Public Works - Nesreen Mustafa Berwari
- Science and Technology - Rashad Mandan Omar
- Planning - Mahdi al-Hafidh
- Trade - Mohammed al-Joubri
- Sport and Youth - Ali Faik Alghaban
- Transportation - Louei Hatim Sultan al-Aris
- Provincial Affairs - Waeil Abdel-Latif
- Women's Affairs - Nermin Othman
- Immigration and Refugees - Bascal Essue
- Irrigation - Abdul-Latif Rasheed
- Labour - Leila Abdul-Latif
- Education - Sami Mudahfa
- Higher Education - Tahir al-Bakaa
- Agriculture - Sawsan Sherif
- Culture - Mufeed al-Jazaeri
- Industry - Hajim al-Hassani
- Ministers of State - Qassim Dawoud, Mahmoud Farhad Othman, Adnan al-Janabi
What role does the U.S. have?
The U.S. government's role is widespread, deeply rooted and symbolically powerful. It operates out of Saddam Hussein's former Republican Palace and the ambassador has major control over $8 billion of the $18.4-billion aid package from the U.S.
Before the handover the U.S. announced restrictions on border crossing that won't be fully implemented until a year after the handover. Also in March 2004, then U.S. administrator Paul Bremer began appointing inspectors general for Iraq's ministries, which cannot be replaced by a future Iraqi government.
The U.S. is establishing a Committee on Public Integrity to fight corruption, appointing a commissioner for a five-year term, as well as an Iraqi broadcasting authority, much like the Federal Communications Commission in the U.S. or the Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission in Canada.
What role will the UN play?
The UN held several meetings with the Iraqi Governing Council. Technical experts have been providing advice on holding elections, conducting a census and assembling a provisional government. The U.S. asked for the UN to help after its plan to choose a government through caucus-style meetings met with widespread opposition. The political delegation is headed by UN special envoy Lakhdar Brahimi, who said in February 2004 that it would be impossible to hold elections before a handover because of time constraints.
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