(From Morning Star - Saturday 11 December 2004)

A FEW minutes into my meeting with Iraqi communist Salam Ali, it's clear that he is annoyed with criticism of his party's strategy from within Britain.

Talking animatedly about the current situation in his country, the central committee member is happy to tackle some of the critical rhetoric with which the Iraqi Communist Party (ICP) has been bombarded since its decision to join the US-appointed governing council last year.

In his eyes, though, the opinion of the British left is of minor importance when compared to the catastrophe that is currently taking place in Iraq following the invasion - and the potential disaster to come if the political process fails.

When it decided at the 11th hour to join the 25-member governing council, which worked with US viceroy Paul Bremer and the occupiers' Coalition Provisional Authority (CPA), the ICP was always going to be attacked from some quarters.

Ali reminds me that his party always saw this as one arena of struggle and argues that the ICP presence, which was based on the idea of combining as many of the democratic forces in Iraq into a united front against the occupation, has had an impact.

He points out that the political situation in his country is much more complicated than it is often portrayed in Britain.

Being in the governing council or even in the government, as the ICP currently is, is a long way from standing with Iraqi Prime Minister Ayad Allawi or Washington, he maintains.

'What we are fighting for is a democratic modern state, which will enshrine political freedoms and rights and also contain democratic institutions and ensure that there is no return to dictatorship or authoritarianism under any guise, whether nationalist or religious,' says Ali.

He points to the party's influence in getting the new free trade unions recognised, where before there had been outright hostility on the part of the CPA, and to successful resistance against Bremer's attempts to flog off the country's oil sector.

He is also proud that the short-term interim constitution, which would be replaced, if elections take place, by a new government, is 'a very democratic constitution.'

However, he acknowledges that there are many forces at work within the political world - some with a very different agenda. 'It is important to understand this,' says Ali.

He portrays the situation within the party political arena as a careful balancing act. 'In this political process, we have to maintain national unity and national consensus vis-a-vis the occupation, to take this process forward to the final objective of removing the foreign military presence in Iraq and restoring full and total national sovereignty.'

Ali argues that the alternative is the return to power of 'those who are supporters of the previous regime and also extremist groups, Islamic or otherwise, who have other agendas - either the return of dictatorship or religious dictatorship - and have nothing to do with the real liberation of Iraq.'

He does, however, agree that there are willing recruits to these groups in a country without an economy and, therefore, crippled by mass unemployment. Plus, of course, there is the entirely understandable response to the brutal actions of Iraq's government and occupation forces in Fallujah and elsewhere, which have seen thousands of the country's citizens slaughtered.

The eagle-eyed among you may spot a seeming contradiction here - after all, the ICP is a member of the government. The country's Minister of Culture Mufeed al-Jazaeri is a representative of the party.

'The participation of our party in the interim government is based on the same principles that we had in the governing council,' maintains Ali. But, he adds, 'the party takes an independent line based on our programme and policy - we don't agree with everything that the government has done, especially in security policy.

'We detected early on the tendency of this government to go ahead without proper consultation. Allawi set up something like a National Security Council, which included the ministry of defence, interior and some deputies with the responsibility for security. This co-ordinates with the so-called multinational force.'

The other ministers, says Ali, are excluded from such decisions.

'This is why we want to head to the elections in January. Unless you have a more legitimate government and an elected transitional assembly in place, this problem will continue - the Americans will continue to pull the strings and hide behind the government and so-called sovereign ministries of defence and security,' he argues.

I pose the question that people in Iraq may find it difficult to see the distinction between Allawi and other US cronies and the other parties in the government.

Ali disagrees. Referring to the assassination of party activists, he replies: 'Some in the West might think that this is the price that these parties are playing for collaboration, but the people don't see our party or those political parties that carried the brunt of repression under dictatorship as in any way a collaborator.

'There is a lot of respect for these political parties. People know and distinguish between these and other groups that fight for money and positions of power in the government and state and collaborate with the Americans,' he argues.

He believes that most Iraqis are sick of the indiscriminate violence carried out by both the US and its allies and the forces who are carrying out 'acts of terrorism.'

But he adds that, when attacks are targeted against US forces specifically, 'people have no problem with that - no political organisation, including those who have been accused as collaborators, condemns attacks on the occupying military forces.

'This is considered acceptable, although the overwhelming majority of political forces in Iraq are against resorting to armed means so long as political means aren't yet exhausted.

'Of course, this avenue is open maybe in the distant future if and when the occupation continues against the will of the people. That would be a different matter,' warns Ali.

He argues that the current bombings, kidnapping and sabotage are playing into the hands of Washington's 'war on terror' agenda and are likely to provide a pretext for continued occupation.

It will 'strengthen the hand of those elements, whether in the government or within the political life of the country, who call for an iron fist policy - it's not difficult to see that these forces are most closely associated with the Americans and also those who, lacking a power base, have a vested interest in maintaining the status quo.

'Many of these forces are former Ba'athists who have joined this process to maintain their privileges, offering their expertise to the Americans.

'Let us not forget that the Americans always had the aim of containing, destabilising and overthrowing the regime, but maintaining the Ba'athist establishment. This idea has not vanished.'

With the continuing violence and instability, the predominantly Sunni parties taking part in the political process have called for a six-month delay to polls to allow them to organise and register voters.

The mainly Shi'ite parties in the poll are happy to continue, as there has been very little trouble in recent times in the south now that firebrand cleric Moqtada al-Sadr has joined the political process.

He has since linked up with convicted fraudster and former Pentagon darling Ahmed Chalabi, who has spent almost his entire life outside Iraq.

'We must move forward to the next stage - not to bring drastic change, but the next stage is crucial to prepare for a permanent constitution and to commit the Americans to a timetable for withdrawal,' says Ali.

'UN resolution 1546 says that the government - not this one, but the next, transitional government - does have the right to terminate the presence of the occupation forces.

'But this all depends on the security situation and the pace of rebuilding Iraq - this is where the terrorist and American agendas meet.'

The communists, in their attempt to maintain a united national front, have adopted a pragmatic approach to the political conflict over the election date, arguing that any decision to postpone must be based on a consensus and be 'part and parcel of an integrated strategy on security matters - not only through military means but a political and socio-economic strategy to bring about stability.'

At a round of multi-party talks in Kurdistan last month, which was attended by 15 political parties from across the spectrum, the interlinked issues of the elections and security were the subject of lively discussion.

These discussions are ongoing, says Ali, but, 'if the security situation has not stabilised in late December, early January in major population centres, then even those who are against postponement will see that something has to be done.'

However, Ali reveals that the Communist Party has just finalised its political programme for the elections.

'Our major themes are to eliminate the legacy of dictatorship and occupation, to build the foundations of a free and unified federal democratic Iraq,' he says.

'On social and economic issues, we are for restoring free and universal education, health services and the social security system and tackling the issue of corruption, because corruption is endemic as a result of the dictatorship and also the occupation.

'Tackling unemployment is also a major issue for us,' he adds. 'There is mass unemployment, although unemployment has officially gone down to 25-30 per cent. The real figure is nearer 50 per cent, if not more, with the consequent impact on security and social issues, the environment and the rest of things.

'So our top priority is to invest heavily to ensure that this sector gets back to work. Definitely, we are against privatisation and neoliberal policies,' he says.

Clearly, Washington will not be happy with this. It has notoriously handed billions of dollars over to big US corporations instead of to Iraqis themselves.

But any future government, says Ali, must take full control of fiscal policy. He angrily points out that '$8 billion of Iraqi money was plundered' under the CPA.

Progress along these lines relies entirely on swift elections. This looks likely to happen only if violence dies down.

Ali says that this will only happen when proper Iraqi security institutions are in place, 'reconstituted on a patriotic basis. Representatives of the old regime must not be recruited, especially in senior positions.'

He restates his party's belief that the people carrying out attacks are being led by former Ba'athists and religious fundamentalists.

'These people want to regain their position. It has nothing to do with liberating the country or achieving progress or a democratic alternative. They are enemies of democracy,' he says.

'The overwhelming majority of the people are against these groups.'

A former Republican Guard general was allowed to run Fallujah by the US, which, says Ali, created a safe haven for groups to organise and attack.

He maintains that much of the money to keep individual Iraqis on side was hoarded before the war for just such a purpose. 'Their plan has been activated thanks to the Americans,' says Ali angrily.

He is also scathing of the way in which the US and its government cronies have resorted to the use of bloody force without first attempting dialogue.

'Even when you resort to armed force - and you need to reinstate a climate of stability - there has to be respect for law.'

Otherwise, says Ali, 'it will alienate the people and push them into negativity, rather than engaging in political life.' The development of civil society in the country is one of the main ways in which a return to dictatorship can be avoided, he argues.

'So far, there is nothing that has prevented organisations and this is very important. There is no suppression by the government or anybody else - we have the right to organise.

'In the West, the media may present this as a symptom of division and fragmentation. We don't see it this way. We see it as healthy and positive. The people have freedom to choose whatever organisation they want to join.'

The alternative to the communists' current strategy is grim, argues Ali. He sends a message to the party's critics.

'The question that I always ask is: 'What if the occupying forces were just to pull out?' To this, they have no answer. It really is a matter of life and death for us,' he says.