The American Bar Association May 1 said it anticipates it will soon send a postconflict team to Iraq to make an independent legal assessment of what needs to be done to attract investment and protect civil liberties.
"We want to make a difference in Iraq," said Alfred Carlton, ABA president.
A binding rule of law must be established before investors will consider any kind of investment, ABA officials and oil analysts said.
US officials earlier said they hope to have an Iraqi-led interim government in place by mid-May. But whether those individuals will have the legal standing to negotiate oil contracts is still a matter of debate. The US has asked the United Nations to remove existing sanctions against Iraq and relinquish control over an aid program funded through oil revenues. Some key members of the UN's Security Council, including Russia, want the UN to continue overseeing the oil-for-aid program.
Site visit
ABA officials said they intend to spend 3 weeks in Iraq as soon as next month. But this schedule will depend on when the US government will allow civilians groups like the ABA to travel to Iraq. ABA plans to gather information for specific projects. Reform initiatives will seek to promote the rule of law, such as development of constitutions, independent judiciaries, and strong bar associations. Other postconflict situations ABA wants to address in cooperation with an Iraqi interim authority include the design and implementation of domestic accountability mechanisms, resolutions of missing persons issues, war crimes documentation, support of international tribunals, assessments of transitional legal and judicial systems, and the drafting of new legislation.
ABA officials said the US government has not commented officially on their proposal, but the group did consult with several agencies, including the departments of Defense and State and the US Agency for International Development before the war on Iraq began.
Defense update
Meanwhile, senior US defense officials, speaking on condition of anonymity, told reporters May 2 that a military commission is ready to prosecute war criminals. But the White House has not decided yet who, if anyone, will be brought up for trial.
"We have been reviewing different cases" that might be suitable for prosecution by a military commission. While legal authorities have "some thoughts about who would be appropriate to bring before a military commission," one official said, adding, "No final decisions have been made yet."
The commissions are designed to deal with foreign nationals and not US citizens, officials said.
Crimes that may be subject to prosecution include: using civilians to shield a military objective, torturing people, using a white flag of truce to pretend to negotiate, surrender, or end hostilities, and conducting terrorist acts.
