The Iraqi Governing Council (IGC) was the provisional government of Iraq from 13 July 2003 to 1 June 2004. It was established by and served under the United States-led Coalition Provisional Authority (CPA). The IGC consisted of various Iraqi political and tribal leaders who were appointed by the CPA to provide advice and leadership of the country until the June 2004 transfer of sovereignty to the Iraqi Interim Government (which was replaced in May 2005 by the Iraqi Transitional Government, which was then replaced the following year by the first permanent government).
The Council consisted of 25 members. Its ethnic and religious breakdown included 13 Shias, five Sunnis, five Kurds (also Sunnis), one Turkmen and an Assyrian. Three of its members were women.
In September 2003, the Iraqi Governing Council gained regional recognition from the Arab League, which agreed to seat its representative in Iraq's chair at its meetings. On 1 June 2004, the Council dissolved after choosing member Ghazi Mashal Ajil al-Yawer as the president of the new Iraq interim government. Full sovereignty was transferred to the interim government (and the CPA dissolved) on 28 June.
General information Though subject to the authority of the CPA administrator Paul Bremer, the council had several key powers of its own. Their duties included appointing representatives to the United Nations, appointing interim ministers to Iraq's vacant cabinet positions, and drafting a temporary constitution, the Transitional Administrative Law (TAL). The TAL spelled out the provisions which were to govern the Iraqi Interim Government, and the timeline for holding elections to a National Assembly, drafting of a permanent constitution to be voted on by the Iraqi people, and elections to a permanent government.
Despite having to answer to the CPA, different factions took on controversial stands. Religious hardliners won a solid victory when Directive 137 was passed on 29 December 2003. Passed by the council in less than 15 minutes, it replaced Iraq's former secular family law code with Shari'a family law. This move met with wide protest among many Iraqi women fearful of how it will affect their freedom to make their own decisions about marriage, alimony, and many other issues where Iraq used to be a leader in the Arab world for women's rights. Other legislation passed by the council included declaring the day that Baghdad fell to be a national holiday, voting to establish a tribunal to try former government leaders, and banning television stations which are deemed to be supportive of the resistance. A new flag chosen by the council for post-Saddam Iraq created much controversy, in part because of the similarity of color and design with the flag of Israel, and the flag was not adopted.
According to the Law of Administration for the State of Iraq for the Transitional Period, the interim constitution that the Council approved, the council would cease to function after 30 June 2004, at which point full sovereignty would return to Iraq, and the government will be handed over to a new, sovereign interim government. Instead, the council chose to dissolve itself prematurely.
Presidents of the Iraqi Governing Council
Name Took office Left office Political partyMohammed Bahr al-Uloum (1st time, acting) 13 July 2003 31 July 2003 Independent Ibrahim al-Jaafari 1 August 2003 31 August 2003 Islamic Dawa Party Ahmed Chalabi 1 September 2003 30 September 2003 Iraqi National Congress Iyad Allawi 1 October 2003 31 October 2003 Iraqi National AccordJalal Talabani 1 November 2003 30 November 2003 Patriotic Union of Kurdistan Abdel-Aziz al-Hakim 1 December 2003 31 December 2003 Supreme Council for the Islamic Revolution in Iraq Adnan Pachachi 1 January 2004 31 January 2004 Assembly of Independent Democrats Mohsen Abdel Hamid 1 February 2004 29 February 2004 Iraqi Islamic PartyMohammed Bahr al-Uloum (2nd time) 1 March 2004 31 March 2004 Independent Massoud Barzani 1 April 2004 30 April 2004 Kurdistan Democratic PartyEzzedine Salim 1 May 2004 17 May 2004 Islamic Dawa PartyGhazi Mashal Ajil al-Yawer 17 May 2004 1 June 2004 Independent
Council Members
Name Political Party Religion & Ethnicity Samir Shakir Mahmoud Sumaidaie Independent ArabSondul Chapouk ♀ Independent TurkmenWael Abdul Latif Independent Shiite ArabMowaffak al-Rubaie Independent Shiite ArabDara Nur al-Din Independent Sunni KurdAhmed al-Barak Independent Shiite ArabRaja Habib al-Khuzaai ♀ Independent Shiite ArabMohammad Bahr al-Uloum (p) Independent Shiite ArabAqila al-Hashimi ♀(Died following assassination attack on 25 September 2003)Replaced by Salama al-Khufaji ♀ on 8 December Independent(Ba'ath party pre-2003) Shiite ArabAhmed Chalabi (p) Iraqi National Congress Shiite ArabNaseer al-Chaderchi National Democratic Party Sunni ArabAdnan Pachachi (p) Assembly of Independent Democrats Sunni ArabMassoud Barzani (p) Kurdistan Democratic Party Sunni KurdJalal Talabani (p) – first President of Iraq Patriotic Union of Kurdistan Sunni KurdAbdel-Aziz al-Hakim (p) SCIRI Shiite ArabYonadam Kanna Assyrian Democratic Movement Assyrian ChristianSalaheddine Bahaaeddin Kurdistan Islamic Union Sunni KurdMahmoud Othman KSDP Sunni KurdHamid Majid Mousa Iraqi Communist Party Shiite ArabGhazi Mashal Ajil al-Yawer (p)(Final council president, served as interim President of Iraq) Independent Sunni ArabMohsen Abdel Hamid (p) Iraqi Islamic Party Sunni ArabIyad Allawi (p)(Served as first interim Prime Minister of Iraq) Iraqi National Accord Shiite ArabAbdel-Karim Mahoud al-Mohammedawi Iraqi Hezbollah Shiite ArabIbrahim al-Jaafari (p)(Served as second interim Prime Minister of Iraq) Islamic Dawa Party Shiite ArabEzzedine Salim (p)(died in car bomb on 17 May 2004) Islamic Dawa Party Shiite Arab
The Presidency of the council rotated monthly among eleven of its members. A (p) marks those members above.
Cabinet On 1 September 2003, the council named its first cabinet. Minister of Communications – Haider al-Abadi Minister of Public Works – Nisrin Barwari Minister of Construction and Housing – Baqir Jabr al-Zubeidi Minister of the Environment – Abderrahman Sadik Karim Minister of Trade – Ali Allawi Minister of Planning – Mahdi al-Hafez Minister of Education – Alaa Abdessaheb al-Alwan Minister of Higher Education – Ziad Abderrazzak Mohammad Aswad Minister of Culture – Mufid Mohammad Jawad al-Jazairi Minister of Human Rights – Abdel Basset Turki (resigned April 2004) Minister of Foreign Affairs – Hoshyar Zebari Minister of Interior – Nuri Badran (resigned April 2004 and replaced by Samir Sumaidaie) Minister of Agriculture – Abdel Amir Abbud Rahima Minister of Sport and Youth – Ali Faik al-Ghabban Minister of Health – Dr. Khodayyir Abbas Minister of Industry and Minerals – Mohammad Tofiq Rahim Minister of Justice – Hashim Abderrahman al-Shibli Minister of Science and Technology – Rashad Mandan Omar Minister of Work and Social Affairs – Sami Azara al-Majun Minister of Electricity – Aiham Alsammarae Minister of Finance – Kamel al-Kilani Minister of Immigration and Refugees – Mohammad Jassem Khodayyir Minister of Water Resources – Latif Rashid Minister of Oil – Ibrahim Mohammad Bahr al-Ulloum Minister of Transport – Bahnam Zaya Bulos
The Saddam-era positions of Minister of Defense and Minister of Information were dissolved.
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