Gold9472
04-14-2007, 04:21 PM
In blow to US 'freedom agenda,' democracy group told to shun Iraq
http://rawstory.com/news/afp/In_blow_to_US_freedom_agenda_democr_04132007.html
Published: Friday April 13, 2007
In an embarrassing setback for US efforts to support the embattled government in Baghdad, an international panel charged with selecting countries to attend a prestigious meeting of the world's democracies has deemed Iraq unfit to attend, officials said Friday.
Four years after US-led troops toppled Saddam Hussein with the stated goal of creating a haven of democracy in the Middle East, the blue ribbon committee said Iraq did not meet the criteria to attend the November meeting of the Community of Democracies.
The decision by the advisory committee to the Community marked a step backward for Iraq, which was invited as an observer to the grouping's last biannual meeting in Chile in 2005, with US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice in attendance.
At that conference, Rice hailed recent elections in Iraq and Afghanistan as milestones in the development of global democracy and successes of the so-called "freedom agenda" of President George W. Bush.
Two years later, with both governments struggling to impose their authority, the advisory panel comprising more than a dozen former heads of state, politicians, human rights experts and academics has rendered its judgement.
Iraq should be kept from the next meeting due to its "continuing inability to establish an accountable state," while Afghanistan was downgraded to observer status, according to the committee's coordinator, Ted Piccone, executive director of the Washington-based Democracy Coalition Project.
Russia was also dropped from the invitation list as the committee deemed there had been an "erosion of rights" under President Vladimir Putin.
Thailand and Fiji were also dropped following military takeovers last year, while the "democratic credentials" of Bahrain, East Timor and Armenia were called into question.
The committee recommended withholding judgment on Venezuela "to allow further scrutiny" of the government of President Hugo Chavez, Piccone said.
While the panel judged that presidential elections last year had been largely free and fair, it questioned steps by Chavez to consolidate his power through decrees and other measures.
In all, the panel recommended inviting 100 states as participants to the meeting in Bamako, Mali. Another 18 were suggested as observers while 54 governments were rejected as undemocratic.
The recommendations were sent to the Community's 16-nation Convening Group on March 28, with a final decision on who will be invited expected in June, Piccone said.
The Convening Group, which includes the United States, was expected to follow most of the committee's suggestions even though the initial response from State Department officials was displeasure over the treatment of its two client states.
"They were not happy with the positions the committee took on Iraq and Afghanistan," Piccone said.
http://rawstory.com/news/afp/In_blow_to_US_freedom_agenda_democr_04132007.html
Published: Friday April 13, 2007
In an embarrassing setback for US efforts to support the embattled government in Baghdad, an international panel charged with selecting countries to attend a prestigious meeting of the world's democracies has deemed Iraq unfit to attend, officials said Friday.
Four years after US-led troops toppled Saddam Hussein with the stated goal of creating a haven of democracy in the Middle East, the blue ribbon committee said Iraq did not meet the criteria to attend the November meeting of the Community of Democracies.
The decision by the advisory committee to the Community marked a step backward for Iraq, which was invited as an observer to the grouping's last biannual meeting in Chile in 2005, with US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice in attendance.
At that conference, Rice hailed recent elections in Iraq and Afghanistan as milestones in the development of global democracy and successes of the so-called "freedom agenda" of President George W. Bush.
Two years later, with both governments struggling to impose their authority, the advisory panel comprising more than a dozen former heads of state, politicians, human rights experts and academics has rendered its judgement.
Iraq should be kept from the next meeting due to its "continuing inability to establish an accountable state," while Afghanistan was downgraded to observer status, according to the committee's coordinator, Ted Piccone, executive director of the Washington-based Democracy Coalition Project.
Russia was also dropped from the invitation list as the committee deemed there had been an "erosion of rights" under President Vladimir Putin.
Thailand and Fiji were also dropped following military takeovers last year, while the "democratic credentials" of Bahrain, East Timor and Armenia were called into question.
The committee recommended withholding judgment on Venezuela "to allow further scrutiny" of the government of President Hugo Chavez, Piccone said.
While the panel judged that presidential elections last year had been largely free and fair, it questioned steps by Chavez to consolidate his power through decrees and other measures.
In all, the panel recommended inviting 100 states as participants to the meeting in Bamako, Mali. Another 18 were suggested as observers while 54 governments were rejected as undemocratic.
The recommendations were sent to the Community's 16-nation Convening Group on March 28, with a final decision on who will be invited expected in June, Piccone said.
The Convening Group, which includes the United States, was expected to follow most of the committee's suggestions even though the initial response from State Department officials was displeasure over the treatment of its two client states.
"They were not happy with the positions the committee took on Iraq and Afghanistan," Piccone said.