Iraqi Communist Party releases a statement and shares an open letter on July 14 commemoration

An open letter addressed to the President and signed by many has been shared by the Iraqi Communist Party. The message starts with defining the importance of this date.

“On this immortal national occasion, the anniversary of July 14, which witnessed the declaration of the republican system in Iraq in 1958, we recall together the profound meanings that this historic moment carried, when the people expressed their will to build a state based on justice, equality and national sovereignty.

This anniversary is not just a milestone in history, but a renewed pledge to protect the gains of the Republic, strengthen national partnership among all segments of the people, and consolidate the principles of democracy and good governance.”

Despite the passage of time, the significance of sovereignty and independence remains, as the letter reminds: 

“The 68th anniversary of the revolution is an opportunity to commemorate this national event and the necessity of restoring the status of July 14 as a national holiday and the day of the founding of the republic, given its national and popular value and acceptance by all segments of the Iraqi people, and its status as a symbol of the national struggle to escape dependency and achieve freedom and independence. The revolution granted Iraq its full national sovereignty and independence, freed it from colonial alliances, ended the presence of foreign military bases in Habbaniyah and Shaiba, and liberated our country from the shackles of sterling. Is not ending the foreign military presence what almost all political groups agree on today, and strive to achieve, in accordance with the declared position of the government?

Despite all the difficulties and challenges it faced, and the shortcomings and flaws that accompanied it—as is the case with major events and revolutions throughout history—the July 14th Revolution's significant achievements remain evident to this day, testifying to its authenticity, the nobility of its goals, and its genuine expression of the will of millions of Iraqis who welcomed it with overwhelming joy that swept the country from north to south and from west to east. It is firmly rooted in the hearts and minds of millions of Iraqis, so why would anyone seek to erase its glorious memory and the power of its inspiring example?

The memory of the July 14 Revolution remains alive and firmly rooted in the conscience of the people, and for all the above reasons, we look forward to your generous initiative to amend the official holidays law and establish July 14 as a national holiday.”

Speaking to Al-Haqiqa newspaper, Raed Fahmi, Secretary of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of Iraq, stressed that the cancellation of July 14 as a national holiday is a deliberate attempt to erase the facts of history. Fahmi said the July 14, 1958 revolution was an important turning point for true political independence, the establishment of a republic and the enactment of agricultural and personal reform laws that led Iraq forward.

The Secretary of the Central Committee of the Iraqi Communist Party called the decision to cancel the July 14 holiday as revenge and underestimation of history and said that this day should be restored as a national symbol. Fahmi warned that Iraq is facing great danger due to corruption and the quota system, so the national forces must unite in the spirit of the 1958 union to protect the country's independence and achieve social justice.

The Iraqi Communist Party has also released a statement on July 14 which reads as it follows:

Today, our Iraqi people celebrate the sixty-eighth anniversary of their glorious victory on July 14, 1958, and their achievement of one of the greatest feats in their long struggle, on the day when tens of thousands of their sons and daughters in all governorates came out to support their armed forces, which overthrew a regime that lacked a unifying Iraqi national identity, practiced ethnic and religious discrimination, was content with representing the exploitative classes and deprived the majority of workers, peasants, middle classes, and the national bourgeoisie of their right to wealth and political participation, tightened the country’s dependence on colonial circles with slave-owning treaties, wasted energies and money, and failed to secure freedoms and services, and to achieve development.

And quickly, the revolutionary change that took place acquired the characteristics of a popular revolution, as the broad masses contributed to it under the leadership of the allied national forces in the National Unity Front. Moreover, the great achievements of the July 14 Revolution proved that this historical event deserved to be a national day for Iraq because it was a day of liberation from British colonialism, from dependency, and from the yoke of colonial alliances, such as the Baghdad Pact, and a day for the release of public and trade union freedoms, the liberation of prisoners, the return of exiles, and the liberation of the national currency from dependency on the sterling bloc, and the oil wealth from the hegemony of colonial monopoly companies.

July 14th was also a day of justice, as it provided services to all citizens, such as increasing wages, building many neighbourhoods for the working class, reducing the price of bread and rents for housing and small shops, providing free education and school meals for all pupils, agricultural land for deprived farmers, ensuring free health care for all, and women’s rights to equality, education, and protection from domestic violence. 

July 14th deserved to be a national day because it ensured the unity of Iraqis based on belonging to the country, equal participation in power and wealth, involved millions in political, social and cultural life, recognized the partnership of Arabs and Kurds in the homeland, and worked to meet many of the legitimate aspirations of various national and religious groups.

While our Iraqi Communist Party takes pride in its distinguished role in planning, executing, participating in, defending, and protecting the revolution, it adopts a bold and scientific analysis of all the internal and external factors that preceded the revolution, accompanied its course, and then played a dangerous role in its abortion. In this context, it recalls its important lessons, foremost among them the close link between the unity of the national and democratic forces of the people and the success in achieving independence, protecting sovereignty, and building a society that enjoys freedom and justice, especially after history has proven that the fragmentation and infighting among these forces have always provided the best opportunities for imperialist powers and their local allies, enabling them to suppress the rights of the people, enslave the country, and plunder its resources.

The setback of the revolution also confirmed the importance of the dialectical relationship between political democracy and social justice, and that the ability to achieve development, prosperity, and stability will decline sharply without the balanced development of these two factors, and without abandoning tendencies toward monopolizing power, weak reliance on the masses, or the elites delegating themselves to the role of society in securing or defending rights.

Our party, while commemorating the glorious July 14th Revolution and demanding its reinstatement as a national holiday for the Republic of Iraq, draws inspiration from its experience to ignite the spirit of struggle to bring about comprehensive change in the country, through dismantling the quota system, freeing the country from political and economic dependency, combating corruption, and embarking on a comprehensive development process that guarantees public and private freedoms and redistributes wealth more fairly.

It is an opportune moment to call upon all forces that believe in change to elevate their work and coordinate their efforts in a broad popular political front that leads our people’s struggle towards building a prosperous, federal, democratic Iraq.