The process of creating a sustainable election monitoring agency, with a full-time staff, regulations and jurisdictional powers has occurred in 2007-2008. According to a GAO testimony as of September 2007, a national election commission (IHEC) had been established but it had not yet been supplemented with supporting laws regulating local level elections.

References: The Election Commission established by the CPA and the subsequent Independent High Electoral Commission.

GAO Testimony presented to the U.S. Committee on Foreign Relations. September 4, 2007 [ LINK ]

Independent High Electoral Commission Regulation No. 1 of 2007. Rules and Procedures of the Board of Commissioners. [ LINK ]

References: The Election Commission Law.

Iraqi Constitution, Article 102.

IHEC Employee Code of Conduct. Adopted July 2007. [ LINK ]

References: Elaph.com, www.iraqupdates.com/p_articles.php/article/3935.

Report of IHEC Commissioner Nomination Process: Observations and Conclusions. Prepared by UNAMI. April 2007. [ LINK ]

In an article in April 2008, Iraqi newspaper Voices of Iraq reported: "UN representative for Iraq Staffan Di Mistura on Saturday welcomed submitting candidate names for electoral office directors in provinces, conceding a delay in submitting candidates to Baghdad two major bureaus chiefs despite an extension to the deadline." This delay is one of the reasons that the Iraqi regional elections had to be pushed back to January 2009.

References: Report about selections of local directors for the election commission, Asharqalawsat newspaper, [ LINK ].

Iraqi Council of Representatives.

"UNAMI chief urges Parliament to select Baghdad electoral office directors." Voices of Iraq. April 2008. [ LINK ]

References: Reported on investigations about misuse of funds by the Commission, The Election Commission, [ LINK ].

Report about provincial election, [ LINK ].

BBC Arabic report, [ LINK ] (Feb. 7, 2005).

References: Law No. (36) of 2008 [ LINK ]

The Iraqi press.

Press publications of Al Wifaq party.

Press publications of the parliamentary group of Al Iraqia list.

Interviews with representatives of the above list:

Mr Usama Nujaifi, member of parliament, (Amman, June 2008).

Interview with Dr Salih Mutlak, head of Al-Hiwar Party.

In the 2005 election, there was an attempt to include Iraqis living outside Iraq in the election, but no similar effort has been made for the provincial election that should take place before January 2009.

All Iraqis can take part in the elections provided they present the relevant personal documents, but some did not register, both out of fear and to boycott the process.

Only Iraqis living inside Iraq can register and take part in the provincial elections scheduled to take place before January 2009.

A voter has the right to object about the registrar of voters.

Voters' registrars were burned and looted in the City of Mosul.

It was reported that 100 thousand non-Iraqi names were deleted from the 2005 election registrars.

References: Iraqi Independent High Electoral Commission.

[ LINK ]).

[ LINK ]. [ LINK ].

[ LINK ]).

[ LINK ]. [ LINK ] (Aug. 15, 2008).

Peer Review Comments: A lot of Iraqis do not like to participate in the election process. Therefore, many of them neglect to update their names in the election records.

Peer Review Comments: There is no clear voter registration system. Especially in Kirkuk, Kurds have destroyed the Population Registration Records of Arabs and Turcomans and have moved voters from outside of the city in order to overrule the city.

References: Independent High Electoral Commission website and laws.

[ LINK ].

Independent High Electoral Commission, Order 18, disciplinary code for the Electoral Commission (June 19, 2004).

[ LINK ].

Independent High Electoral Commission Order 2, [ LINK ] (2008).

References: Elaph.com.

Several western media outlets.

Recently, the new provincial election law stated that the armed forces would have separate places to vote. They will be influenced by their commanders and will tend to abide by their wishes.

The first website article states that in regards to the forthcoming provincial elections to take place January 31, 2009, members of the election commission complained on August 16 that the Iraqi armed forces are interfering with government parties.

According to the second article, the Armed forces were neutral in the 2005 elections.

Arabic.people.com article states that spokesman from the Independent Election Commission confirmed the positive role of the armed forces in preparing for the 2005 elections.

The final report states that the Electoral Commission also confirmed the neutrality of the armed forces in 2005 elections.

References: [ LINK ].

[ LINK ].

[ LINK ].

[ LINK ].

But the final decision remains in the hands of the Independent High Commission (IHEC), which will decide who can monitor. The monitors can report to the commission, but they are not allowed to act independently.

References: Law No. 92, Article 3, section E, Establishment of the Higher Independent Election Commission (May 13, 2004).

www.uniiraq.org/aboutus/electoralsupport.usp.

[ LINK ].

However, a lack of security renders it almost impossible for outside observers to monitor the elections.

References: [ LINK ].

"62 days separate Iraq from the crucial provincial elections on 31 January 2009" Press Release from the IHEC and UNAMI. November 30, 2008. [ LINK ]

Peer Review Comments: Sometimes they cannot.

Peer Review Comments: Despite government assurance, there is no safety in the countryside and, due to security reasons, most observers don't have access to the electoral areas.