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The jokes going around Iraq these days about the new "government" are numerous. Iraqis have invented new names for the new "government" . The most commonly used is "the darlings’ government", while others call it "the son’s uncles government" or "the government of today like yesterday" in a reference to the similar methods of nepotism of the former regime.. The new Foreign Minister, Hoshyar Zibari, is the maternal uncle of Masoud Barzani, member of the IGC. The Minister for water resources, Latif Rashid, is married to the sister of Jalal Talbani’s wife; the daughters of Ibrahim Ahmad, the secretary general of the DPK in the 1950s. Talbani is also a member of the IGC. The Minister of Interior, Nouri Badran is married to the sister of Iyad Allawi, member of the IGC. Badran joined the Ba’th Party after the 1968 July coup; an act that helped him get transferred from the Ministry of Social Affairs to the Foreign Ministry, where he worked as a diplomat until the 1990s, when he joined the opposition.. The Minsiter of Trade, Ali Allawi, has it even better. He is the nephew of Ahmad al-Chalabi, member of the IGC, from his mother’s side, and his cousin is Iyad Allawi.. Furthermore, Ali’s father, Abdul-Amir Allawi, is married to the sister of Ahmad Al-Chalabi.. Ibrahim Bahrul-Ulum, the Minister of Oil, and the former member of the Da’wa Party, is the son of Muhammad Bahrul-Ulum, member of the IGC.. Rumour has it that the reason Bahrul-Ulum Senir suspended his membership in the IGC three days before the assassination of Sayyid Baqir Al-Hakim was to blackmail the IGC to appoint his son as Minister for Oil. He used the assassination of Sayyid Baqir Al-Hakim to announce his decision and give it another face... The Minister of Justice, Hashim Al-Shibli, is related to Nasir Al-Chadirchi, member of the IGC, through his wife, who is a cousin of Al-Chadirchi’s wife.. And finally, the Minister for Human Rights, Abdul-Basit Turki, is a far cousin of Ghazi Al-Yawir, member of the IGC, belonging to the same sub-branch of the Shammar tribe.. Is there a more democratic and "representative" government than this?? Isn't that what we all wanted?? HZ __________________________________ Do you Yahoo!? Yahoo! SiteBuilder - Free, easy-to-use web site design software http://sitebuilder.yahoo.com _______________________________________________ Sent via the discussion list of the Campaign Against Sanctions on Iraq. To unsubscribe, visit http://lists.casi.org.uk/mailman/listinfo/casi-discuss To contact the list manager, email casi-discuss-admin@lists.casi.org.uk All postings are archived on CASI's website: http://www.casi.org.uk