“Justice and Security Needs in Iraq after ISIL“, by Khitam Alkhaykanee of the United States Institute of Peace (USIP), discusses concerns facing the three-and-a-half million internally displaced persons (IDPs) in Iraq; research was conducted through interviews and surveys of locals. Currently, as ISIL strongholds become liberated, IDPs face the opportunity to return to areas, yet few pursue this option, due to various concerns regarding safe return and living conditions in liberated areas.
Safe Return
Concerns remain amongst IDPs about the journey back and initial resettlement in liberated areas. The financial burden of travel remains high, and security during travel is not guaranteed, due to existing ISIL forces, militias, and rival tribes. In response to these concerns, Alkhaykanee recommends allowances for travel in protected transportation organized by hosting and local provinces. In addition, conditions in liberated areas promote a variety of fears. For example, disease can be introduced by IDPs in liberated areas, ISIL-built tunnels and booby traps allow violence to reenter liberated areas, and potential for violence between IDPs and those who remained could escalate. A rehabilitation of services provided by the government in liberated areas, such as health care for IDPs and removal of tunnels and explosives, would assure safety in those areas.
Security Restoration
The problems facing security restoration fall into two main categories: a lack of trust in security forces, and tensions between contesting security forces. First, IDPs retain little confidence in security forces, specifically in border protection. Alkhaykanee recommends increased entry screening and technology within liberated areas. However, the greater problem remains that conflict within the security forces impairs the overall functioning of security. This conflict has further fueled the mistrust in security forces by the community, leading to a rise in community militias and military factions and allowing for extremist ideology to prosper. Alkhaykanee recommends that authorities take into account which authorities IDPs’trust most when deciding who should be granted the responsibility of security operations in a particular region. In addition, the inclusion of youth and displaced police officers in these ranks could allow better detection of visitors and returnees, while encouraging trust in the process of security restoration.
Justice Restoration
Justice restoration concerns stem largely from extrajudicial proceedings and corruption within the government, conditions which contributed to the initial ISIL-takeover. Due to a lack of faith in the justice sector, community based, informal justice proceedings have been conducted by community leaders. This has exacerbated community disputes, as revenge attacks based on rulings by tribal authorities have increased. Priority on rebuilding courts should be emphasized to stop informal justice proceedings. Within the formal justice sector, many IDPs have witnessed releases and executions without due process and manipulation of justice by security forces. Greater efforts are needed to implement a transitional justice process with greater accountability for officials by the national government.