| Description |
In divided communities such as Iraq, many factors contribute to the formation of individual and communal identities. Other factors also affect the politics in divided communities, including gender and political ideology. Iraq, a divided community, serves as a case study to understand the effects of sectarian and tribal affiliations on politics and how these affiliations shape the decision-making process of the political elites. This study aims to fill the gap in analyzing the impact of these factors on Iraqi parliamentary laws passed between 2006 and 2015, the post-Saddam era. This study focuses on the major Sunni and Shi‘i affiliations. Furthermore, this study evaluates the decision-making process in the Iraqi Parliament when legislating decisions. This study hypothesizes that sectarian and tribal identities have a strong presence in the Iraqi parliament. This study also aims to understand the tendency of the current regime's attempt to deconstruct the Ba'athi ideology. The study also hypothesizes that this deconstruction is rooted in the victimhood of those within the current regime. It is also noteworthy that there is a paradox in that the current opposition regimes have tended to behave similarly to the preceding regimes. Thus, the emerging regimes have tended to govern in a sectarian manner, embrace authoritarianism, and use nepotism to centralize power. This study aims to analyze the dynamics of politics inside the Iraqi parliament. It explores issues that impact of laws passed by parliament during political transition. The focus of the study is to show that different identity affiliations, such as tribal and religious affiliation, have a significant impact on the process of decision making, determining the broader narrative affecting these laws. |
