Official Website of Ahrar Party

Liberal prime minister candidate calls for independence, unity in Iraq

(AXcess News) Washington - Ayad Jamal Aldin, Islamic cleric and leader of Iraq's liberal Ahrar Party, renewed his calls Thursday for a secular and united Iraq free of foreign influence.

Speaking at the National Press Club, Aldin called for an end to the sectarianism and violence that have been present in Iraq since the U.S. invasion in 2003.

Aldin, 48, who will run for prime minister in March, said Iraq must free itself from corruption and unite its diverse peoples under a powerful, central and secular government.

"This election, we hope, will be the turning point for Iraq," Aldin said through an interpreter. "We have a future to build."

Aldin became involved in politics at age 16 when he protested Saddam Hussein's attempts to bar Shia Muslims from making pilgrimages to Karbala, a holy city near Baghdad. Aldin was exiled to Syria and later Iran for his protest.

Aldin studied religion in Iran and became an imam in the United Arab Emirates. After the fall of Saddam Hussein's government, Aldin returned to Iraq and was elected to parliament in 2005. Aldin has defied radical Islamists by preaching secularism and non-violence. He has survived four assassination attempts.

Aldin formed the Ahrar Party in October in response to what he saw as political negligence. He and his supporters have denounced violence and called for an

end to sectarianism. They have campaigned on a platform of social reform, independence and economic recovery.

He said he was disappointed that more than 500 candidates, mostly Sunnis with ties to the Ba'ath Party, have been banned from the parliamentary elections but that his party will participate in the elections.

The Ahrar Party claims the Iraqi government has done little to curb violence or improve Iraq's infrastructure. Aldin has said the government divides the people to serve its own political needs. He has also accused Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki of turning "a blind eye to corruption and foreign meddling in Iraq."

Aldin said the Ahrar Party would create an inclusive government that protects and provides for all Iraqis, including women.

"We don't believe in a weak federal system based on ethnics or religion," Aldin said in response to a question. "Let it be based on administration, management and not on ethnics."

Aldin said a government mired by ethnic differences would cause further damage and "weaken the whole country." Iraq should follow of the example of the U.S., which has a system based on equality, he said.

If elected, the party also plans to separate Islam from the government. Aldin said a secular state would keep religion from being used as a political tool.

Among the party's goals is Iraq's independence from foreign interests, especially those of Iran.

Iran has been accused of funding violent militias in Iraq to destabilize the government. In December, a unit of the Iranian Revolutionary Guard briefly occupied the al-Fakkah oil field near Baghdad.

Aldin has called Iran the "great evil in Iraq politics" and demanded that it no longer interfere in Iraq.

Although the Iraqi military is weak and lacks an air force, Aldin said he is confident in Iraq's ability to defend itself.

"Iraq can stand alone as it managed to stand for more than 8,000 years," Aldin said. "We have to stand up and defend our land, our rights and our people."

That also means standing up to the U.S., Aldin said. U.S. involvement will be welcome in Iraq if the U.S. helps rebuild the country and empower its people, Aldin said. It will not be welcome if it continues to support the status quo.

President Barack Obama has vowed to end all U.S. combat operations in Iraq by the end of August.

Ahrar will run more than 200 of its candidates in Iraqi elections on March 7. Aldin said he believes the elections will go well for his party, although it faces more than a dozen other parties.

Thursday's talk was one of many stops for Aldin during a week-long visit to the U.S. He met with members of Congress and left Friday for Iraq.

Source: Scripps Howard Foundation Wire