Freedom in the World 1998 - Iraq

1998 Scores

Status: Not Free
Freedom Rating: 7.0
Civil Liberties: 7
Political Rights: 7

Overview

The Iraqi government began and ended 1998 in confrontation with the international community over UN-mandated weapons inspections and trade sanctions. Throughout the year, President Saddam Hussein exploited divisions among the states that were allied against him in the 1990 Persian Gulf War and reached out for support from his Arab neighbors. He also maintained domestic control by executing political prisoners and opponents while easing some restrictions on the Iraqi people, who suffered through their eighth year of sanctions.

Iraq gained formal independence in 1932, though the British maintained influence over the Hashemite monarchy. In 1958, the monarchy was overthrown in a military coup. A 1968 coup established a government under the Arab Ba'ath (Renaissance) Socialist Party, which has kept power since. The frequently amended 1968 provisional constitution designated the Revolutionary Command Council (RCC) as the country's highest power, and granted it virtually unlimited and unchecked authority. In 1979, Saddam Hussein, long considered the strongman of the regime, formally assumed the titles of state president and RCC chairman.

In 1980, Iraq attacked Iran, touching off an eight-year war of attrition during which the economy suffered extensively and at least 150,000 Iraqis died. In August 1990, Iraq invaded Kuwait. At least 100,000 Iraqi troops were killed in the Persian Gulf War before a 22-nation coalition liberated Kuwait in February 1991. In April, the UN Security Council passed Resolution 687, which called on Iraq to destroy its weapons of mass destruction, to accept long-term monitoring of its weapons facilities, and to recognize Kuwait's sovereignty. The UN also imposed an oil embargo on Iraq, which may be lifted when the government complies with the terms of Resolution 687.

Iraq barred United Nations Special Commision (UNSCOM) weapons inspectors from dozens of presidential palaces in January 1998. Inspectors suspected that the palaces were used as storage sites for weapons and military materials. Iraq denied this and claimed that inspection teams were spying for the U.S. Britain; the U.S. responded by preparing to take military action. Other UN Security Council members such as France, Russia, and China, increasingly eager to renew economic ties with Iraq, called for diplomacy and expressed concern about the ineffectiveness of and suffering caused by sanctions.

As Iraq gained sympathy from some Security Council members, it also improved relations with Arab neighbors by releasing Egyptians, Jordanians, and Palestinians from its jails. Diplomatic ties with Iran, severed since 1988, were renewed in January, when the two countries held discussions that led to prisoner exchanges and the opening of Holy sites in Iraq to Iranian religious pilgrims and tourists.

Military strikes by the U.S. and Britain were averted in February when UN General Secretary Kofi Annan negotiated an agreement that allowed for inspections of some palaces. It also subjected inspection teams to greater international oversight and provided Iraq with assurances that the easing or complete lifting of sanctions would be reviewed every six months.

Chief weapons inspector Richard Butler's April progress report to the Security Council recommended that sanctions remain in place. According to Butler, Iraq had provided much information about its nuclear and chemical weapons programs, but was less forthcoming about biological weapons. Iraq maintained that it was in compliance with Resolution 687 and demanded an end to sanctions.

Iraq's claims of compliance were undercut in June when traces of a nerve agent were found on missile fragments in an Iraqi weapons dump. The discovery prompted a protracted standoff. In September, the Security Council voted 15-0 to suspend sanction reviews, and thus guaranteed no chance of relief for Iraq until it fully complied with UN resolutions. By October, Iraq had ended all cooperation with UNSCOM, and the U.S. began building up its forces in the Gulf. Britain and the U.S. launched airstrikes against military and potential weapons production sites in December. Other Gulf War coalition partners had advocated a diplomatic solution and did not participate in the strikes. Although Iraq's regional neighbors had warned Saddam to cooperate with the UN, only Kuwait fully supported the use of force against Iraq.

Iraqi citizens continued to suffer in 1998. A population that was considered overweight before 1991 was barely receiving the UN's recommended minimum daily calorie intake in 1998. One-quarter of all Iraqi children under five years old suffered from malnutrition. In February, the UN increased the amount of oil that Iraq could sell for food from $2 to $5.2 billion every six months. Yet Iraq could only sell $1.6 billion from May to November because of falling oil prices, deteriorating production facilities, and delays in receiving replacement parts. The UN also allowed Iraq to increase medical imports from $220 million in 1997 to $770 million in 1998, but shortages of basic medicines continued. Meanwhile, black markets thrived, and, according to one high level defector, officials used revenues from oil smuggling to build up Iraq's security forces.

In January 1998, rival Kurdish factions continued talks which started in November 1997 over re-establishing joint governance of the territory they control in northern Iraq. The Kurdistan Democratic Party (KDP) and the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan (PUK) have been at odds since 1994 over the administration of territory and revenues from cross-border trade with Turkey. In September, the two sides signed a formal peace agreement brokered by the U.S. Throughout 1998, Kurdish leaders expressed hopes for negotiation with Saddam and emphasized that they sought autonomy within a united Iraq, not full independence.

Political Rights and Civil Liberties

The Iraqi government began and ended 1998 in confrontation with the international community over UN-mandated weapons inspections and trade sanctions. Throughout the year, President Saddam Hussein exploited divisions among the states that were allied against him in the 1990 Persian Gulf War and reached out for support from his Arab neighbors. He also maintained domestic control by executing political prisoners and opponents while easing some restrictions on the Iraqi people, who suffered through their eighth year of sanctions.

Iraq gained formal independence in 1932, though the British maintained influence over the Hashemite monarchy. In 1958, the monarchy was overthrown in a military coup. A 1968 coup established a government under the Arab Ba'ath (Renaissance) Socialist Party, which has kept power since. The frequently amended 1968 provisional constitution designated the Revolutionary Command Council (RCC) as the country's highest power, and granted it virtually unlimited and unchecked authority. In 1979, Saddam Hussein, long considered the strongman of the regime, formally assumed the titles of state president and RCC chairman.

In 1980, Iraq attacked Iran, touching off an eight-year war of attrition during which the economy suffered extensively and at least 150,000 Iraqis died. In August 1990, Iraq invaded Kuwait. At least 100,000 Iraqi troops were killed in the Persian Gulf War before a 22-nation coalition liberated Kuwait in February 1991. In April, the UN Security Council passed Resolution 687, which called on Iraq to destroy its weapons of mass destruction, to accept long-term monitoring of its weapons facilities, and to recognize Kuwait's sovereignty. The UN also imposed an oil embargo on Iraq, which may be lifted when the government complies with the terms of Resolution 687.

Iraq barred United Nations Special Commision (UNSCOM) weapons inspectors from dozens of presidential palaces in January 1998. Inspectors suspected that the palaces were used as storage sites for weapons and military materials. Iraq denied this and claimed that inspection teams were spying for the U.S. Britain; the U.S. responded by preparing to take military action. Other UN Security Council members such as France, Russia, and China, increasingly eager to renew economic ties with Iraq, called for diplomacy and expressed concern about the ineffectiveness of and suffering caused by sanctions.

As Iraq gained sympathy from some Security Council members, it also improved relations with Arab neighbors by releasing Egyptians, Jordanians, and Palestinians from its jails. Diplomatic ties with Iran, severed since 1988, were renewed in January, when the two countries held discussions that led to prisoner exchanges and the opening of Holy sites in Iraq to Iranian religious pilgrims and tourists.

Military strikes by the U.S. and Britain were averted in February when UN General Secretary Kofi Annan negotiated an agreement that allowed for inspections of some palaces. It also subjected inspection teams to greater international oversight and provided Iraq with assurances that the easing or complete lifting of sanctions would be reviewed every six months.

Chief weapons inspector Richard Butler's April progress report to the Security Council recommended that sanctions remain in place. According to Butler, Iraq had provided much information about its nuclear and chemical weapons programs, but was less forthcoming about biological weapons. Iraq maintained that it was in compliance with Resolution 687 and demanded an end to sanctions.

Iraq's claims of compliance were undercut in June when traces of a nerve agent were found on missile fragments in an Iraqi weapons dump. The discovery prompted a protracted standoff. In September, the Security Council voted 15-0 to suspend sanction reviews, and thus guaranteed no chance of relief for Iraq until it fully complied with UN resolutions. By October, Iraq had ended all cooperation with UNSCOM, and the U.S. began building up its forces in the Gulf. Britain and the U.S. launched airstrikes against military and potential weapons production sites in December. Other Gulf War coalition partners had advocated a diplomatic solution and did not participate in the strikes. Although Iraq's regional neighbors had warned Saddam to cooperate with the UN, only Kuwait fully supported the use of force against Iraq.

Iraqi citizens continued to suffer in 1998. A population that was considered overweight before 1991 was barely receiving the UN's recommended minimum daily calorie intake in 1998. One-quarter of all Iraqi children under five years old suffered from malnutrition. In February, the UN increased the amount of oil that Iraq could sell for food from $2 to $5.2 billion every six months. Yet Iraq could only sell $1.6 billion from May to November because of falling oil prices, deteriorating production facilities, and delays in receiving replacement parts. The UN also allowed Iraq to increase medical imports from $220 million in 1997 to $770 million in 1998, but shortages of basic medicines continued. Meanwhile, black markets thrived, and, according to one high level defector, officials used revenues from oil smuggling to build up Iraq's security forces.

In January 1998, rival Kurdish factions continued talks which started in November 1997 over re-establishing joint governance of the territory they control in northern Iraq. The Kurdistan Democratic Party (KDP) and the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan (PUK) have been at odds since 1994 over the administration of territory and revenues from cross-border trade with Turkey. In September, the two sides signed a formal peace agreement brokered by the U.S. Throughout 1998, Kurdish leaders expressed hopes for negotiation with Saddam and emphasized that they sought autonomy within a united Iraq, not full independence.