Postwar Iraq (2003-2016): a Postcolonial Grassroots Approach to the Failure of “Democratic Nation-Building”

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Postwar Iraq (2003-2016): a Postcolonial Grassroots Approach to the Failure of “Democratic Nation-Building” Postwar Iraq (2003-2016): A Postcolonial Grassroots Approach to the Failure of “Democratic Nation-Building” By Mariam Georgis A thesis submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy Department of Political Science University of Alberta © Mariam Georgis, 2017 Abstract The “democratic nation-building” project implemented in Iraq after the American-led invasion and occupation in 2003 has failed by any measure of the concept. The country is unstable; the central government does not provide social services or security. The Islamic State of Iraq and al-Sham (ISIS) destroyed Mosul, Iraq’s second largest city, endangering the very existence of Iraq as a sovereign state. Even worse, Iraqis not only seem to have little to no faith in their governing elites, but increasingly find them culpable in the violence, which has taken over their lives since the invasion of 2003. Iraqi national identity is fragmented along tribal, ethnic, and religious lines due to the sectarianization of the state, which began under the occupation. Finally, the violence has resulted in a refugee crisis but also drastically changed the demographics of Iraq, homogenizing neighbourhoods that were once diverse. This reality on the ground facilitates the question that underlines this study: why has the “democratic nation- building” project in Iraq failed since the US-led regime change in 2003 until 2016? Much of the conventional literature on post-invasion Iraq has focused on the twin concepts of “democratization” and “nation-building.” Specifically, this literature sought solutions for the problem of re-building Iraq – as opposed to the problem of the invasion and occupation – and largely focused on endogenous factors such as power-sharing, consociational democracy, “ethnically divided societies,” and “sectarianism.” In contrast, this dissertation identifies and seeks to address two underdeveloped elements in the literature; first, analyses of post-2003 Iraq have broadly focused on the problem of sectarianism as an impediment to the democratization of Iraq, which implies that Iraqis are inherently unable to live together in one state. This literature has largely, aside from some critical voices, ignored the role played by the invasion, occupation, international and regional politics. Second, these studies on nation-building ii have predominantly focused on unrepresentative elites and a top-down approach to democratization. This is problematic because there has not been enough attention paid to Iraqi voices and their visions of democracy. There is also not much attention paid to the fact that US nation-building efforts in 2003, much like their British predecessors following the First World War, have largely excluded representative Iraqis from forging their own political future. Subsequently, this research uses critical postcolonial/decolonial, “history from below,” and subaltern approaches. It does so, in part, to demonstrate a reciprocal and dialectical relationship between international and domestic politics in Iraq by problematizing the invasion and occupation. This is achieved through using critical discourse analysis to challenge the top-down, elite-driven model of “democratic” nation-building imposed on post-2003 Iraq. In addition, this research seeks to explore the potential for democratization “from below” by examining Iraqi articulations of the state. To that end, I accessed the Hizb al-Ba’th al- ‘Arabi al-Ishtiraki (Ba’ath Party of Iraq) Collection at the Hoover Institution, Stanford University. I also conducted nine semi-structured interviews with Iraqis experts and civil society practitioners in March and April of 2016. These research participants were selected due to their expertise in democratization, Iraq and their direct or indirect involvement with the state-building project in post-2003 Iraq. In addition, I consciously used the work of critical Iraqi scholars to discuss post-2003 Iraq, especially with regards to the violence, the occupation and its legacies and sectarianism to provide a counter-story to the conventional narrative on post-2003 Iraq. Together, this data not only strongly challenges the dominant narrative on post-2003 Iraq but also offers a more nuanced and comprehensive understanding of Iraqi society, sectarian relations, and politics. The major contribution of this research is the inclusion of Iraqi voices and primary materials to understand what went wrong in post-2003 Iraq. One of the biggest lessons Iraq iii teaches us is the limitations of a top-down, unrepresentative model of democratization imposed through a foreign invasion and occupation. This affirms the importance of research that examines the potential for a bottom-up, grassroots model of democratization. iv Preface This thesis is an original work by Mariam Georgis. The research project, of which this thesis is a part, received research ethics approval from the University of Alberta Research Ethics Board, Project Name “2Postwar Iraq (2003-2014)”, No. 00056969, 5/4/15 and Project Name “Postwar Iraq”, No. 00060960, 2/3/16. v “You know, as an Iraqi from the time you open your eyes coming into the world until you die, you see wars.” Rahma Abdul Kareem Abbas, Voices from Iraq, 2011 For the everyday Iraqis who have borne the brunt of endless wars and who struggle for a better future vi Acknowledgements Completing this degree has been a long-held personal goal, which I could not have accomplished without the support, encouragement and knowledge of so many people across different places and spaces throughout my life. I have been fortunate and privileged to think and write about such an important topic to me in a challenging, critical and stimulating environment. I am tremendously grateful for my supervisor, Dr. Mojtaba Mahdavi, for the endless thought- provoking conversations, countless reassurances and support, and for the invaluable feedback during this process. Your critical thought and steadfast commitment to disrupting conventional analysis of the Middle East through your teaching, scholarship and community engagement are inspiring. My supervisory committee members, Dr. Yasmeen Abu-Laban and Dr. Roger Epp, have offered vital guidance throughout this process, both academically and personally. Yasmeen, I thank you for seriously engaging with my work for the last five years and for strengthening this study with your insightful comments and challenging questions. You pushed me to think more critically and more carefully, which strengthened my work immeasurably. Most importantly, thank you for helping me to navigate the many small and big steps this process necessitates. Roger, thank you for validating my questions and encouraging me to write from my perspective. This helped me write a state-of-the field in IR that served as the foundation for positioning myself in this field as a scholar and for finding my voice. Our many conversations and your feedback and questions were essential to thinking through each stage of this process. Thank you for your generosity, including me in your family celebrations, and for teaching me about stuffing! This process was made undoubtedly more enriching with the mentorship of my supervisory committee. Thank you, Dr. Rob Aitken, for always pushing me to think critically and for encouraging me to step outside the boundaries of “IR.” You created an environment that allowed me to ask hard questions and think out loud – I cannot express how meaningful this was. Your engagement with my thoughts and work have been incredibly important to me. Finally, I owe great thanks to my external examiner, Dr. Sabah Alnasseri whose work I have learned from immensely and relied on to think through and write about Iraq. Thank you for reading my work so thoughtfully and critically and for your expert feedback. I am consistently in awe of your dedication and commitment to student mentorship and thank you for your generosity. A great thank you to the administrative team at the Department of Political Science, Caroline Kinyua, Donna Coombs-Montrose, and Cindy Anderson, who have been generous with their time and support. Your kind words and friendly faces were more meaningful than you know. This research has been generously funded by the Province of Alberta, Faculty of Graduate Studies and Research, the Department of Political Science at the University of Alberta, Middle Eastern and Islamic Studies, International Studies Association and Middle East Studies Association. vii Thank you to the Hoover Institute at Stanford University for allowing me to access Hizb al-Ba’th al- ‘Arabi al-Ishtiraki in Iraq (Ba’th Party) Records 1968-2003 and Mu’assasat al-dhakirah al- ‘Iraqiyah [Iraq Memory Foundation] records. Thank you to my colleagues and peers – whether it was through conversations, encouragement or for acting as sounding boards, you helped me get here. A special thank you to Nykki Lugosi, Hajar Amidian, and Kristjana Lopston for the many coffee dates, laughs, and instrumental support as we made our way through this program. This journey would have been remarkably lonely and more difficult without you! Thank you to Angelica Quesada, Dr. Siavash Saffari, Anya Kuteleva, Chad Cowie, Dr. Nermin Allam, Elim Ng, Maya Seshia, Dr. Fadi Dawood, Dr. Alda Benjamen, Sherly Kyorkis, and Nora Dikho. To my friends, Mariam Ibrahim, Dr. Nisha Nath, and Ashley Hunka. Without your support, encouragement that most of the time bordered on unabashed cheerleading, love, and daily reminders that my anger can be productive, I could not have reached the finish line. To Jennifer Fortino, Ashley Bonaventura, and Nancy Sada – thank you for always being there and pushing me to keep going when I didn’t think I could. I stumbled quite a few times during this journey and each one of you reminded me that I am capable, to be kind to myself, and that my work matters. For that, I am forever grateful to have you all in my life. I grew up in a home that instilled a love of learning and curiosity, even through turbulent times in Iraq. Unable to attend school as a refugee in Turkey, my father took it upon himself to teach me and my siblings English to prepare us for success in our future home, wherever that might have been.
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