Law 10 of the Supreme National Commission for Accountability and Justice

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Year: 2008
Country: Iraq
Language: English
Document Type: Domestic Law or Regulation
Topic: Counterterrorism and Money Laundering,CSO Accountability and Transparency,Defending Civil Society

In conformity with the provisions of the Constitution and in accordance with Article 7 First,
Article 60 Second, Article 61 First and Article 73 Thirdand Article 135, and pursuant to what
has been adopted by the Parliament and ratified by the Presidency Council, the following law has
been enacted:

No. ( ) of 2008

(LAW OF THE SUPREME NATIONAL COMMISSION FOR
ACCOUNTIBILITY AND JUSTICE)

CHAPTER I

DEFINITIONS

Article 1

For the purposes of this law, the following terms shall have the meanings assigned to them
hereunder:

First: “The Commission”: The Supreme National Commission for Accountability and
Justice.

Second: “The Commission Prosecutor”: is in charge of supervising crime investigations
and collecting evidence, as well as taking all necessary steps to uncover crimes

Third: “The Cassation Chamber”: is the competent body of the cassation court in charge
of applying the law of The Supreme National Commission for Accountability and
Justice.

Fourth: “De-Ba’athification”: The procedures taken by the Commission in accordance
with the provisions of this Law in order to intellectually, administratively,
politically, culturally and economically dismantle the Ba’ath Party system in Iraqi
society , state institutions, and civil society instituions.

Fifth: “Ba’ath Party”: The Arab Ba’ath Socialist Party” which took power on
17/07/1968 and [was] prohibited by article (7) of the Iraqi constitution.

Sixth: “Member”: Any individual who joined the Ba’ath Party and gave an oath of
allegiance to it.

Seventh: “The defunct regime”: The ruling regime in Iraq from 17 July, 1968 to 9 April,
2003.

Unofficial Translation of Iraq’s Accountability and Justice Law as passed on 20080117 by the International Center
for Transitional Justice. Please send comments/corrections to msissons@ictj.org
– 2 – Eighth: “The security (repressive) agencies”: The following agencies during the the
defunct regime: General Security [al-amn al-‘aam], Intelligence [mukhabarat],
Special Security [al-amn al-khas], Special Guards [al-hamayat al-khassa],
National Security [al-amn al-qawmy], Military Security [al-amn al-‘askary],
Military Intelligence [al-istikhbarat al-askariyya] and Feda’iyee Saddam.

Ninth: “Collaborators of the regime”: are the members of the Ba’ath Party , the members
of the Repressive Agencies, those cooperating with them, or those who benefited
from the plunder of the wealth of the country; and were used by the defunct
regime to kill, oppress and persecute people.

Tenth: “Security ministries and agencies”: (Ministries of Defence, Interior and National
Security, the Intelligence Agency and the National Security Advisor and all the
other security agencies).

CHAPTER II
ESTABLISHMENT AND OBJECTIVES

Article 2

First: In accordance with this law, the designation Supreme National Commission for
Accountability and Justice shall replace the designation Supreme National
Council for De-Ba’athification. It shall be a financially and administratively
independent body that has all the constitutional prerogatives and enjoys the same
legal personality as the previous body. It is linked to the Council of
Representatives and shall pursue its works in coordination with the judicial
authority and the executive agencies.

Second: The Commission is in charge of revealing those who are included in the
procedures stipulated in Chapter IV of this Law.

Third: The Chairperson of the Commission shall be responsible for the execution of its
policies and tasks, and the supervision and follow up of its works. He shall have
the right to adopt the necessary decisions, directives and instructions to enforce
the work of the Commission and achieve its goals. The Chairperson shall practice
all the powers vested in him and shall be at the rank of a minister. He shall be
entitled to delegate part of his powers that can be delegated in accordance with the
law to his deputy, who shall be at the level of a Deputy Minister.

Fourth: The Commission shall be made up of seven politically and legally experienced
members who will have the rank of Director General. The components of the Iraqi
society should be represented in the Commission to ensure a balanced
composition. This shall be conducted through a proposal from the Council of
Ministers, a simple majority approval by the Council of the Representatives and
ratification by the Presidency Council.

Unofficial Translation of Iraq’s Accountability and Justice Law as passed on 20080117 by the International Center
for Transitional Justice. Please send comments/corrections to msissons@ictj.org
– 3 –
Fifth: The Commission shall adopt its decisions in accordance with this law by a
majority of four votes and decisions shall have immediate effect.

Sixth: The Commission shall elect, from among its members, by a direct secret ballot, a
Chairperson and a Deputy to be approved by absolute majority of the Council of
Representatives.

Seventh: The Council of Representatives by absolute majority may remove “its
confidence” from the Chairperson of the Commission according to the
constitutional mechanism.

Eighth: Members of the Commission must:

a- be an Iraqi citizen, legally competent and residing in Iraq;
b- hold a first university degree;
c- not be less than 35-year old;
d- not have been convicted of an offence “prejudicial to honour”;
e- not be included in the De-Ba’athification procedures.
f- not be one of the collaborators of the defunct regime or proven to have
enriched himself at the expense of public funds.
g- To be honest, of good reputation and integrity.

Ninth: A cassation chamber shall be formed in the court of cassation called “The
Cassation Chamber for Accountability and Justice,” to be comprised of seven
judges nominated by the Higher Judicial Council, ratified by the Council of
Representatives. They shall be headed by the senior judge among them; its
decisions shall be by a majority of four votes.

Tenth: The Cassation Chamber shall consider all the claims filed by those who are
subject to the stipulated procedures in this law.

Eleventh: The Chamber’s headquarters shall be in Baghdad, and the Chamber may open
branches inside Iraq.

Article 3

The Commission shall aim to realize the following:

First: Prevent the return of the Ba’ath Party to power or to the public life in Iraq
whether in its ideas, culture, administration, policies or acts under any name.

Second: Cleanse state institutions, mixed sector institutions, civil society institutions and
Iraqi society from any shape or form of the Ba’ath party system.

Unofficial Translation of Iraq’s Accountability and Justice Law as passed on 20080117 by the International Center
for Transitional Justice. Please send comments/corrections to msissons@ictj.org
– 4 – Third: Refer any member of the dissolved Ba’ath party and repressive agencies, who is
incriminated through investigations of committing criminal acts against the Iraqi
people, to the competent courts to be fairly dealt with.

Fourth: Enable the victims of the dissolved Ba’ath party and the repressive agencies to
claim compensation for the damages that have resulted from such crimes by
referring to the competent authorities.

Fifth: Participate in revealing the assets which were illegally seized by elements of the
former regime whether inside or outside the country and return it back to the
public treasury.

Sixth: Serve the Iraqi memory by documenting all of the crimes and illegal practices
committed by members of the Ba’ath party and its repressive agencies and
provide a database regarding those elements in order to strengthen the future
generations against falling into oppression, tyranny and repression.

CHAPTER THREE
THE TASKS OF THE COMMISSION

Article 4

In order to achieve its goals, the Commission shall adopt the following tasks and means:

First: Apply the provisions of this Law in accordance with the relevant provisions of the
Constitution.

Second: Submit evidence and documents available to the Commission concerning the
crimes committed by the elements of the Ba’ath Party and its repressive agencies
against the citizens to the Iraqi judiciary through the office of the Public
Prosecutor.

Third: Receive complaints from those affected as a result of practices and crimes
committed by elements of the Ba’ath Party and repressive agencies, and to gather
evidence and documents related to the aforementioned crimes and ensure follow-
up.

Fourth: Provide necessary recommendations and studies through coordination with the
relevant bodies in order to amend or abolish legislations adopted by the dissolved
regime which were specifically adopted for the benefit the elements of that regime
excluding other segments of the Iraqi people.

Fifth: Serve the historical memory by documenting the atrocities and suffering during
the defunct regime in order to protect the coming generations from falling again
in the clutches of tyranny and oppression and to disseminate the spirit of

Unofficial Translation of Iraq’s Accountability and Justice Law as passed on 20080117 by the International Center
for Transitional Justice. Please send comments/corrections to msissons@ictj.org
– 5 – coexistence, reconciliation, civic peace, justice, equality and responsible
citizenship among Iraqis. It shall work particularly to achieve the following:

a. Finalize the identification of individuals included in the De-Ba’athification
procedures within the period of the Commission’s work and to publish a list of the
De-Ba’athification procedures stipulated in this Law. The list shall contain names
of all individuals subject to these procedures indicating the rank of each and the
date of issuing the relevant De-Ba’athification order. This list shall be kept in the
dissolved Ba’ath Party archives.

b. All files of the Dissolved Ba’ath Party shall be transferred to the Government in
order to be kept until a permanent Iraqi archive is established pursuant to the law.

c. To contribute to the developing of social and cultural programs that reaffirm
political pluralism, tolerance and equality, and at the same time condemns the
crimes and atrocities committed by the previous regime as well as the culture of
one-party system, marginalization and exclusion.

Article 5

The Commission shall implement its decisions and directions through establishing a specific
mechanism to implement its procedures that includes “investigating the identity”, “written
innocence” [ED: The Arabic text is itself unclear] and the commitment to refrain from resuming
any party-related activity in any shape or form in accordance with the provisions of this Law.

CHAPTER FOUR
“PROCEDURES”

Article 6

The Commission shall follow the following procedures against those who were members of the
Ba’ath Party and the repressive agencies before 09/04/2003 in order to realize the goals of the
Commission and accomplish its mission:

First: Dismiss all employees who were at the rank of section member (????p??) (adw
shu’ba) and refer them to retirement in accordance with the Employment and
Retirement Law.1

Second: All civil servants occupying any of the special levels (equivalent to or above
Director General) who were at the rank of group member in the Ba’ath Party
( ????p?? (adw firqa) shall be referred to retirement in accordance with the
Employment and Retirement Law.

1
Ed: The English terminology referring to Ba’ath Party levels of membership is in accordance with that used by
Coalition Provisional Authority Order Number One: De-ba’athification of Iraqi Society. CPA/ORD/16 May
2003/01. We have preserved Arabic terminology in brackets for the convenience of the bilingual reader, as it is more
exact.

Unofficial Translation of Iraq’s Accountability and Justice Law as passed on 20080117 by the International Center
for Transitional Justice. Please send comments/corrections to msissons@ictj.org
– 6 –
Third: End the service of all the members of the (repressive) security agencies and refer
them to retirement in accordance with the Employment and Retirement Law.

Fourth: Feda’iyee Saddam shall not be allowed to benefit from any pension/retirement
rights that may arise from their service the mentioned agency.

Fifth: All employees who did not occupy “special levels” posts and who were holding
the rank of group member ( ?????p? (adw firqa) or below in the Ba’ath Party,
shall be allowed to return to their previous departments or remain in their jobs.

Sixth: Group members ?????p? (adw firqa) shall not be allowed to return to service or
remain in their service in the three leadership bodies [Ed: literally, “presidential
bodies:” used to refer to the Presidency Office, the Prime Ministerial Office and
associated institutions, and the Office of the Speaker of Parliament and associated
institutions], the Supreme Judicial Council, security ministries and agencies, and
the Ministries of Foreign Affairs, and Finance.

Seventh: Pensions or grants shall not be paid to any person who was a member of the
dissolved Ba’ath party after 3/20/2003, and was granted political or humanitarian
asylum in any country.

Eighth: Any one who occupied the rank of member and above in the Ba’ath party and
enriched himself at the expense of public funds shall not be allowed to hold
special levels posts, equivalent to and above Director General and Director of
Administrative Units [Ed: technical term used to denote district leaders, mayors,
and governors.]

Ninth: All those not covered by the Employment and Retirement Law shall be assigned
to work in government institutions except the three leadership bodies, ministries,
security forces, and the foreign and finance ministries. Excepted from this [Ed:
words missing, presumably “are those covered by”] paragraph 1 of the article
above.

Tenth: Anyone judicially proven to have committed crimes against the Iraqi People and
gained wealth at the expense of public funds will lose all rights stated in the
previous paragraphs

Article 7:

First: All persons eligible for retirement under the provision of Article 6 of this law
shall submit official requests to be referred to retirement during 60 days from date
this law comes into force, for those who are inside Iraq, and 90 days for those
who are abroad, otherwise their pension rights shall become null and void.

Second: All person who are eligible under the provisions of Article 6 of this law for return
to their jobs shall submit official requests to return to their jobs within 60 days
from the date this law comes into force, for those who are inside Iraq, and 90 days

Article 8:

Any former member of the dissolved Ba’ath Party who benefited from this law and was later
found by a judicial decision that he submitted false information, joined or returned to
organizations of the banned parties, provided assistance or promoted these parties; shall be
deprived of all the exceptions and rights and dismissed from service for dishonorable conduct.
He shall be requested before the judiciary to reimburse all the entitlements and money that he
received

Article 9

All the employment ranks, military ranks, decorations and titles enjoyed by the members of
groups??? (furuq), sections (??? (shu’ab) and branches??? , (furu’a) and the national
and regional bureaus of the dissolved Ba’ath Party; shall be forfeited.

Article 10:

Any member (of any ranks) of the Ba’ath Party, the repressive agencies or the armed forces, who
committed crimes against the Iraqi people or gained wealth at the expense of the public money,
shall be referred to the court to be duly prosecuted for their crimes against the Iraqi population.

Article 11:

The dissolved Ba’ath party shall be prosecuted as a party and a system for committing crimes
against the Iraqi people.

Article 12

The Council of Ministers has the right to consider and examine the exceptional cases of re-
appointment for those who are covered by this law and in accordance with the requirements of
the public interest, upon the request of the competent minister and in coordination with the
Commission. The Council of Ministers shall take appropriate decisions on these cases which can
only come into force after the approval of the Council of Representatives.

Article 13:

First: The three leadership bodies, the Supreme Judicial Council, the ministries, the
departments which are not linked with a ministry, the independent bodies and all
civil society organizations, shall be obliged to implement the decisions and
instructions of the Commission established by this law.

Second: The official or competent public servant, who refuses to implement the decisions
and instructions of the Commission, shall be subject to criminal accountability in
accordance with the penal code.

The Public Prosecutor shall receive complaints regarding crimes attributed to the members of the
Ba’ath Party, the repressive agencies and the “collaborators” of the defunct regime and initiate
legal proceeding before the competent courts when probative evidence is available.

CHAPTER FIVE

(OBJECTIONS)

Article 15

All persons covered by the provisions of Article 6 of this law, the departments they have joined,
the Governorate Council and the government of the province in which the department is located
and the office of the public prosecutor of the Commission shall have the right to appeal against
the decisions issued by the Commission before the Cassation Chamber within 30 days from the
notification of the decision to the concerned person or the date on which he/she is considered
notified, in accordance with the notification rules of the Code of Civil Procedure.

Article 16:

Civil servants subject to the procedures of Article 6 of this law by virtue of a decision issued by
the Commission shall be considered on a normal leave with full pay during the period in which
they are entitled to submit an appeal and until the final decision of the Cassation Chamber in
accordance with Article 17 of this Law.

Article 17:

The Cassation Chamber shall issue its final decision on the appeal it receives within a period of
sixty 60 days. The decisions shall be final and definitive.

CHAPTER SIX
COMMISSION STRUCTURE

Article 18:

First: The following Departments are attached to the Chairperson of the Commission:

1) Office of the Chairperson of the Commission: Shall be run by an employee
with the title of Director who shall organize the correspondence, of the
Chairperson, his/her appointments and meetings in addition to any other duties
assigned by the Chairperson of the Commission.

Second: The Commission’s Departments: Each Department of the Commission shall be
chaired by a Director General and consists of:

a. The Public Prosecutor’s Office: it consists of three prosecutors, seconded to
serve in the Commission by the Higher Judicial Council, known for their
integrity, competence and good reputation, and not included in the procedures set
in Article 6 of this Law. This Office shall receive complaints on crimes allegedly
committed by members of the Ba’ath Party and its repressive agencies; collect
relevant evidences and initiate legal proceedings before the competent courts.

b. The Legal Department: Shall be headed by a Director General with at least a
primary university degree in law and no less than ten year of experience. This
Departments shall receive information on those individuals included in De-
Ba’athification procedures and the crimes they committed, conduct investigations
about them and submit relevant recommendations; review return to work requests,
exemption requests and retirement requests; represent the Commission before the
competent courts; notify the Commission’s decisions; review the legislations
enacted by the ousted regime for the particular benefit of its members and
elements and submit the relevant proposals and recommendations in this respect
to ensure justice and equality.

c. The Follow up and Implementation Department: Shall be headed by a Director
General with at least a primary university degree and no less than ten year
experience. This Department shall follow up and implement the decisions of the
De-Ba’athification Commission.

d. The IT Department: Shall be headed by a Director General with at least a
primary university degree and no less than ten year experience. This Department
shall collect and archive available information on members of the Ba’ath Party
and its repressive agencies as well as available information on the crimes they
committed against the people and the money they illegally usurped. It shall
further provide the relevant authorities with this information for appropriate
action.

e. The Administration and Finance Department: Shall be headed by a Director
General with at least a primary university degree and no less than ten year
experience. This Department shall provide administrative services to the staff. It
shall further be responsible for finances, annual budget preparation and financial
report of the Commission.

f. Financial and Economic Legal Proceedings Department: Shall be headed by a
Director General with at least a primary university degree and no less than ten
year experience. This Department shall prepare statistics and assessment of the
financial and economic assets seized by elements of the ousted regime; to locate

Unofficial Translation of Iraq’s Accountability and Justice Law as passed on 20080117 by the International Center
for Transitional Justice. Please send comments/corrections to msissons@ictj.org
– 10 – such properties and assets inside and outside Iraq; and submit recommendations
to the relevant authorities for the purpose of recovery.

g. Information/Communication Department: Shall be headed by a Director
General with at least a primary university degree and no less than ten year
experience. This Department shall cover and highlight the importance of the
activities of the Commission and disseminate it through the media; contribute to
the development of social and educational programs that promote political
pluralism, tolerance and equality and at the same time condemn the crimes and
atrocities committed by the ousted regime as well as the culture of the one-party
system, marginalization and exclusion.

h. Department of the General Inspector: Shall be headed by a Director General
with at least a primary university degree and no less than ten years’ experience. It
will monitor the Commission’s work.

CHAPTER SEVEN
GENERAL AND FINAL PROVISIONS

Article 19:

The Commission shall submit a quarterly report on its activities and measures it has taken to the
Council of Representatives.

Article 20:

Measures taken by the Commission prior to the date of coming into force of this Law shall be
considered as valid as long as they comply with the provisions of the laws in force when they
were taken and do not violate the provisions of this Law.

Article 21:

The provisions of the Civil Service Law No. 24 of 1960 (Amended) and the provisions of State
Employee Disciplinary Law No. 14 of 1991 shall apply to the Commission employees.

Article 22:

The Commission Staff shall be paid hazard allowances equal to fifty (50) percent of their
monthly salaries.

Article 23

The Commission shall publicize through the media the names of those covered by the procedures
of Article 6 of this law, their Party ranks, employment posts and the date the measures [of Article
6] were adopted.

The Commission shall establish an archive that includes all those covered by the procedures of
Article 6 of this law, their Party ranks, employment posts, and dates the measures were adopted.
The mentioned archive shall be referred to the Council of Ministers to be circulated to all
ministries, departments not attached to a ministry, independent institutions and civil society
organizations.

Article 25

The Council of Representatives will dissolve the Commission upon the completion of its task by
an absolute majority vote in accordance with the Constitution. The secondment of judges and
public prosecutors shall end and they shall return to work in the Higher Judicial Council unless
they reach the age of retirement prior to the dissolution of the Commission. The members of the
Commission shall be transferred, at the same level and with the same job titles, to the staff of the
three leadership bodies, the ministries, the security agencies, the Ministry of Justice or the
Ministry of Finance, they shall continue to enjoy their financial allocations which they used to
receive in the institution one year after the transfer.

Article 26

The Chair of the Commission and the General Directors working in it shall be referred to the
ministries or institutions as needed or they shall be referred to retirement according to their
service in the departments of the State.

Article 27

The Chair of the Commission shall issue the policies and procedures rules that regulate the work
in the Commission within 30 days of assuming his position.

Article 28

The designation “Supreme National Commission for Accountability and Justice” shall replace
the designation “Supreme National Council for De-Ba’athification”.

Article 29

Laws that contradict with the provisions of this law shall not be applied.

Article 30

This law shall come into force as of the date of its publication in the Official Gazette.

Necessitating Reasons/Justification of the Law

· The suffering of Iraqis over 35 years during which they were subjected to the worst kinds
of persecution, oppression and deprivation on the hands of the most totalitarian,
aggressive and criminal of regimes.
· The major role that was played by the Ba’athist leadership of that regime and those who
worked in its repressive agencies in oppressing the Iraqi people and attempting to weaken
their sense of citizenship and national identity.
· Taking into consideration the evident sense of serious concern by the Iraqis towards the
risk that is represented by the continuation of the participation of the dissolved Ba’ath
party and its elements in public life.
· Awareness of the pressing necessity to refer elements of the dissolved party who are
proved to have committed crimes against Iraq and its people to the relevant courts to
receive their fair punishment.
· Enable those affected by the Ba’ath party and the repressive agencies to go to relevant
courts to seek compensation for damages that were inflected upon them as a result of
illegal practices by the Party and the mentioned authorities.
· Take into consideration the existence of bogus memberships in the Party of some
segments of the populations who do not believe in the Ba’ath dictatorial ideas and its
oppressive practices.
· Continue the procedures taken by the Supreme National Independent Commission for
De-Ba’athification to cleanse the Iraqi society and the State institutions from the
dissolved Ba’ath party system.
· The desire to document intricate details about groups covered by the De-Ba’athifcation
procedures in order to establish a database that would constitute a historic reference to the
crimes and atrocities of the dissolved party and Saddam’s regime and the extent of the
suffering of the people as a result of the practices of the mentioned party.

THIS LAW WAS ENACTED

ICNL

ICNL

Law 10 of the Supreme National Commission for Accountability and Justice

Document Information: