Revolutionary Command Council (Iraq) - The Power and Controversies of The RCC

The Power and Controversies of The RCC

There is a debate among scholars regarding the true power of Hassan al-Bakr and Saddam Husain in their relation to the Revolutionary Command Council. Some scholars argue that early on the RCC “functioned as a genuine collective decision-making body, and was often the arena for heated debates.” Many argue it was Saddam Hussein who greatly changed and controlled the RCC by eliminating any manifestations of pluralism. The government under Hussein was often seen as a brutal dictatorship. In 1979, Hussein “accused dozens of party officers and party officials, including five of the RCC’s twenty-two members, of taking part in a Syrian plot against the regime. The accused were put on trial and sent to death. Hussein’s actions at the beginning of his presidency greatly limited the plurality in the RCC with his accusations against the Syrian plot “conspirators.” This action consolidated his power in the RCC. The Revolutionary Command Council passed a multitude of controversial legislation that advanced only the interests of the Ba’ath Party in Iraq. For example, “Article 200, and the Penal Code of 1969 and its various amendments, provide the death penalty for anyone joining the Ba’ath Party while concealing any previous political affiliation, or who resigns from it to join another party.” During the Iraq-Iran War, Saddam Hussein used the Revolutionary Command Council as his personal headquarters; Hussein maintained tight control of war operations. Saddam Hussein’s tight control limited the power of field commanders and this resulted in an intense conflict between the highest command and the commanders fighting the war. The military showed signs of discontent in 1982, and Hussein responded by executing some three hundred high-ranking officers. Subsequently in the 1990s, “reports in the BMJ drew attention to a series of decrees of the RCC introducing amputation of the right hand as judicial punishment for theft, with amputation of the left foot for a second offence, amputation of one ear for evasion of the draft, military desertion, or harbouring deserters.” Amnesty International received reports that confirmed the governmental judicial acts of amputation. After the Gulf War, the United Nations Special Commission (UNSCOM) was created to ensure Iraq’s compliance with policies regarding the production of WMDs. The commission conducted weapons inspections in Iraq. The U.S. used Iraq’s failure to comply with weapons inspections to prompt the American-led invasion of Iraq in 2003. In the end, Husain’s regime as the U.S. invaded and captured Saddam. Many scholars such Charles Tripp argue that Saddam Hussein’s complete control of both the executive and legislative components of the government led to the rise of a brutal dictatorship that crushed any forms of opposition. Husain used his vast powers to strengthen the Ba’ath Party and his control. Groups in opposition to the Ba’ath Party increasingly became disconnected from the political process and victimized for their differences.