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A People's History of Iraq: The Iraqi Communist Party, Workers' Movements and the Left 1924-2004
Whether standing up to British occupiers, the monarchy they installed or the brutal dictatorship of Saddam Hussein-who for many years was a friend and ally of the United States-the workers' movement and the Left in Iraq have a rich history of fighting for a more democratic society. This is the only book of its kind on the history of the Left and workers' movements in Iraq. It includes a valuable analysis of the Iraqi Communist Party, which now is part of the discussion about the future of an independent Iraq. The Italian activist and journalist Ilario Salucci has spent years studying the hidden history of resistance in Iraq.
192 pages, Paperback
First published April 1, 2005
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Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews
May 23, 2007
This slim volume focuses almost exclusively on the activities of the Iraq Communist Party (ICP) and is a powerful antidote to the patronizing orientalism many leftists and anti-war activists have towards Iraq. Through the lens of the ICP, Salucci shatters the illusion that Iraq is a backward, undeveloped society dominated exclusively by a reactionary political Islam without any substantial leftist history. Revealed is a society that grows from a British-installed monarchy with an agrarian economy, through a period of communist resistance to the monarchy and colonial exploitation that was interwoven with tribal and peasant uprisings, to the labor struggles of an emerging industrial proletariat centered on the oil industry. Salucci illuminates this with a very useful chronology of events, many statistics regarding land distribution, domestic production, and occupational employment, and a historical narrative of the many strikes and uprisings during the twentieth century. Even with these other details, the text will not serve well as a general history of Iraq, as it is focused almost exclusively on the politics and fluctuations of the ICP. This is both a strength and a weakness of the book.
The book's inclusion of a speech by Qasim Hasan (Nazim) to the Comintern in 1935 alongside a 2003 statement by the Central Committee of the ICP shows how far the ICP has drifted in its revolutionary commitments. This drift has included opportunistically joining the U.S.-propped-up governing council, a collaborationist gambit which has not led to any sort of gains for the ICP in the most recent elections.
Salucci also more sympathetically describes the Workers Communist Party of Iraq (WCPI) which has always rejected the U.S. occupation, and primarily focuses on social mobilization, mass protest and organizing among the Federation of Workers' Councils and Unions in Iraq (FWCUI), the Union of the Unemployed of Iraq (UUI), and the Organization of Women's Freedom in Iraq (OWFI) as a way of building towards revolution. The WCPI has rejected both the collaborationist route of the ICP and the armed struggle being waged by "Islamic fascism".
With the exception of a passing paragraph reference to the shora uprisings in 1991 and inclusion of a "Statement of the Sulaimaniya Shora," there is little in Salucci's book about one of the most recent significant events in Iraq's left history. With the defeat of the Iraqi army in Kuwait, troops deserted and mutinied as they returned to southern Iraq. Simultaneously in the north, workers' councils (shoras) were setup in Sulaimaniya, Hawlir, Kirkuk, Rania and Nasro Bareeka. For more information about the Shoras in 1991, readers may want to review "The Kurdish Uprising..." pamphlet, as well as "10 Days that Shook Iraq" by Wildcat UK.
Given the lack of discussion in this book, it would not appear that women exist in Iraq. Women's organizations in Iraq are at least as old as the ICP. Considering the degree of organization of women in Iraq, the gains in equality made and lost, the massive involvement and then removal of women in the workforce, and the involvement of the left in women's struggles, Salucci's avoidance of women and feminism is a glaring fault with this book.
Even though this short book does not sufficiently address the politics of the Ba'ath, pan-Arab socialism, the left wing of Kurdish nationalism, the shoras, or feminism, it is still a very useful reference and introduction to a history of the left in Iraq, and is highly recommended for those who would like a brief introduction. With no sign of an end to the occupation by the U.S. in sight, developments in Iraq will continue to dominate our attention.
Read the full review at http://nefac.net/node/2122
The book's inclusion of a speech by Qasim Hasan (Nazim) to the Comintern in 1935 alongside a 2003 statement by the Central Committee of the ICP shows how far the ICP has drifted in its revolutionary commitments. This drift has included opportunistically joining the U.S.-propped-up governing council, a collaborationist gambit which has not led to any sort of gains for the ICP in the most recent elections.
Salucci also more sympathetically describes the Workers Communist Party of Iraq (WCPI) which has always rejected the U.S. occupation, and primarily focuses on social mobilization, mass protest and organizing among the Federation of Workers' Councils and Unions in Iraq (FWCUI), the Union of the Unemployed of Iraq (UUI), and the Organization of Women's Freedom in Iraq (OWFI) as a way of building towards revolution. The WCPI has rejected both the collaborationist route of the ICP and the armed struggle being waged by "Islamic fascism".
With the exception of a passing paragraph reference to the shora uprisings in 1991 and inclusion of a "Statement of the Sulaimaniya Shora," there is little in Salucci's book about one of the most recent significant events in Iraq's left history. With the defeat of the Iraqi army in Kuwait, troops deserted and mutinied as they returned to southern Iraq. Simultaneously in the north, workers' councils (shoras) were setup in Sulaimaniya, Hawlir, Kirkuk, Rania and Nasro Bareeka. For more information about the Shoras in 1991, readers may want to review "The Kurdish Uprising..." pamphlet, as well as "10 Days that Shook Iraq" by Wildcat UK.
Given the lack of discussion in this book, it would not appear that women exist in Iraq. Women's organizations in Iraq are at least as old as the ICP. Considering the degree of organization of women in Iraq, the gains in equality made and lost, the massive involvement and then removal of women in the workforce, and the involvement of the left in women's struggles, Salucci's avoidance of women and feminism is a glaring fault with this book.
Even though this short book does not sufficiently address the politics of the Ba'ath, pan-Arab socialism, the left wing of Kurdish nationalism, the shoras, or feminism, it is still a very useful reference and introduction to a history of the left in Iraq, and is highly recommended for those who would like a brief introduction. With no sign of an end to the occupation by the U.S. in sight, developments in Iraq will continue to dominate our attention.
Read the full review at http://nefac.net/node/2122
January 5, 2025
Easy to read and helpful for some background information but read it with a grain of salt if you are a non-Trotsykist leftist. It definitely has a Trotskyist anti-USSR slant to it and often has some very slanted phrases that are clearly dismissive of the USSR. Not saying that it shouldn't be read, but just be warned to read it with a keen eye for the bias.
December 16, 2025
I know westerners mean well when they write about Arab resistance to western imperialism but they barely scratch the surface when it comes to the root causes and their political intricacies. Just one example is the author’s repetition of the propaganda that Ahmad Chalabi was a fraud, which is a narrative designed to discredit the very real desire of Iraqis actually living in Iraq to have Saddam Hussein removed from power. Chalabi, as well as every Shia Muslim, knew that the Americans are the only entity that would authorise his removal, the evidence being the betrayed 1991 uprising. It seems the communists in Iraq understood this too through their cooperation with the occupation post-2003.
I don’t appreciate the anti-Islamic propaganda here also. The Shia community have a lot of respect for the communists throughout the Arab world. They recognise that they’ve also given martyrs in the anti-imperialist battle, which seems like a lost point on the author, again probably because he’s an outsider.
Western historians and analysts should really consider reading Islamic history and theology to supplement their understanding of the Arab world. Not once did I see the author call for unity between the two anti-imperialist factions in Iraq, the Shia Muslims and the communists, for the sake of the nation. I assume he believes the western propaganda that Muslims are anti-communist, which if he had the slightest understanding of Islamic law, he’d realise that religion cannot be forcefully imposed on others.
Overall, the book is a breeze, an easy to read historical snapshot of the leftist movements in Iraq, but in no way is the writer an authority on the subject.
I don’t appreciate the anti-Islamic propaganda here also. The Shia community have a lot of respect for the communists throughout the Arab world. They recognise that they’ve also given martyrs in the anti-imperialist battle, which seems like a lost point on the author, again probably because he’s an outsider.
Western historians and analysts should really consider reading Islamic history and theology to supplement their understanding of the Arab world. Not once did I see the author call for unity between the two anti-imperialist factions in Iraq, the Shia Muslims and the communists, for the sake of the nation. I assume he believes the western propaganda that Muslims are anti-communist, which if he had the slightest understanding of Islamic law, he’d realise that religion cannot be forcefully imposed on others.
Overall, the book is a breeze, an easy to read historical snapshot of the leftist movements in Iraq, but in no way is the writer an authority on the subject.
May 27, 2018
This is a pretty short book. There is a whole timeline of how Iraq got to be the country it is today. The telling of this could have been better though. Interesting to read about the struggle they have gone through but also pretty complicated. Some other parts of this book that were hard to follow though. Something most people don't realize is how it's divided primarily by Kurds, Shiites & Sunnis. Although there is not such country as Kurdistan they are a whole culture in Iraq, & neighboring countries. The US involvement in Iraq was incomprehensible & that war should never have happened. Unfortunately it did & created lots of turmoil in the Middle East & made a complete mess of things.
June 2, 2007
Read the full review at http://nefac.net/node/2122
Reviewed by Stephen "Flint" Arthur
This slim volume focuses almost exclusively on the activities of the Iraq Communist Party (ICP) and is a powerful antidote to the patronizing orientalism many leftists and anti-war activists have towards Iraq. Through the lens of the ICP, Salucci shatters the illusion that Iraq is a backward, undeveloped society dominated exclusively by a reactionary political Islam without any substantial leftist history. Revealed is a society that grows from a British-installed monarchy with an agrarian economy, through a period of communist resistance to the monarchy and colonial exploitation that was interwoven with tribal and peasant uprisings, to the labor struggles of an emerging industrial proletariat centered on the oil industry. Salucci illuminates this with a very useful chronology of events, many statistics regarding land distribution, domestic production, and occupational employment, and a historical narrative of the many strikes and uprisings during the twentieth century. Even with these other details, the text will not serve well as a general history of Iraq, as it is focused almost exclusively on the politics and fluctuations of the ICP. This is both a strength and a weakness of the book.
The book's inclusion of a speech by Qasim Hasan (Nazim) to the Comintern in 1935 alongside a 2003 statement by the Central Committee of the ICP shows how far the ICP has drifted in its revolutionary commitments. This drift has included opportunistically joining the U.S.-propped-up governing council, a collaborationist gambit which has not led to any sort of gains for the ICP in the most recent elections.
Salucci also more sympathetically describes the Workers Communist Party of Iraq (WCPI) which has always rejected the U.S. occupation, and primarily focuses on social mobilization, mass protest and organizing among the Federation of Workers' Councils and Unions in Iraq (FWCUI), the Union of the Unemployed of Iraq (UUI), and the Organization of Women's Freedom in Iraq (OWFI) as a way of building towards revolution. The WCPI has rejected both the collaborationist route of the ICP and the armed struggle being waged by "Islamic fascism".
With the exception of a passing paragraph reference to the shora uprisings in 1991 and inclusion of a "Statement of the Sulaimaniya Shora," there is little in Salucci's book about one of the most recent significant events in Iraq's left history. With the defeat of the Iraqi army in Kuwait, troops deserted and mutinied as they returned to southern Iraq. Simultaneously in the north, workers' councils (shoras) were setup in Sulaimaniya, Hawlir, Kirkuk, Rania and Nasro Bareeka. For more information about the Shoras in 1991, readers may want to review "The Kurdish Uprising..." pamphlet, as well as "10 Days that Shook Iraq" by Wildcat UK.
Given the lack of discussion in this book, it would not appear that women exist in Iraq. Women's organizations in Iraq are at least as old as the ICP. Considering the degree of organization of women in Iraq, the gains in equality made and lost, the massive involvement and then removal of women in the workforce, and the involvement of the left in women's struggles, Salucci's avoidance of women and feminism is a glaring fault with this book.
Even though this short book does not sufficiently address the politics of the Ba'ath, pan-Arab socialism, the left wing of Kurdish nationalism, the shoras, or feminism, it is still a very useful reference and introduction to a history of the left in Iraq, and is highly recommended for those who would like a brief introduction. With no sign of an end to the occupation by the U.S. in sight, developments in Iraq will continue to dominate our attention.
Reviewed by Stephen "Flint" Arthur
This slim volume focuses almost exclusively on the activities of the Iraq Communist Party (ICP) and is a powerful antidote to the patronizing orientalism many leftists and anti-war activists have towards Iraq. Through the lens of the ICP, Salucci shatters the illusion that Iraq is a backward, undeveloped society dominated exclusively by a reactionary political Islam without any substantial leftist history. Revealed is a society that grows from a British-installed monarchy with an agrarian economy, through a period of communist resistance to the monarchy and colonial exploitation that was interwoven with tribal and peasant uprisings, to the labor struggles of an emerging industrial proletariat centered on the oil industry. Salucci illuminates this with a very useful chronology of events, many statistics regarding land distribution, domestic production, and occupational employment, and a historical narrative of the many strikes and uprisings during the twentieth century. Even with these other details, the text will not serve well as a general history of Iraq, as it is focused almost exclusively on the politics and fluctuations of the ICP. This is both a strength and a weakness of the book.
The book's inclusion of a speech by Qasim Hasan (Nazim) to the Comintern in 1935 alongside a 2003 statement by the Central Committee of the ICP shows how far the ICP has drifted in its revolutionary commitments. This drift has included opportunistically joining the U.S.-propped-up governing council, a collaborationist gambit which has not led to any sort of gains for the ICP in the most recent elections.
Salucci also more sympathetically describes the Workers Communist Party of Iraq (WCPI) which has always rejected the U.S. occupation, and primarily focuses on social mobilization, mass protest and organizing among the Federation of Workers' Councils and Unions in Iraq (FWCUI), the Union of the Unemployed of Iraq (UUI), and the Organization of Women's Freedom in Iraq (OWFI) as a way of building towards revolution. The WCPI has rejected both the collaborationist route of the ICP and the armed struggle being waged by "Islamic fascism".
With the exception of a passing paragraph reference to the shora uprisings in 1991 and inclusion of a "Statement of the Sulaimaniya Shora," there is little in Salucci's book about one of the most recent significant events in Iraq's left history. With the defeat of the Iraqi army in Kuwait, troops deserted and mutinied as they returned to southern Iraq. Simultaneously in the north, workers' councils (shoras) were setup in Sulaimaniya, Hawlir, Kirkuk, Rania and Nasro Bareeka. For more information about the Shoras in 1991, readers may want to review "The Kurdish Uprising..." pamphlet, as well as "10 Days that Shook Iraq" by Wildcat UK.
Given the lack of discussion in this book, it would not appear that women exist in Iraq. Women's organizations in Iraq are at least as old as the ICP. Considering the degree of organization of women in Iraq, the gains in equality made and lost, the massive involvement and then removal of women in the workforce, and the involvement of the left in women's struggles, Salucci's avoidance of women and feminism is a glaring fault with this book.
Even though this short book does not sufficiently address the politics of the Ba'ath, pan-Arab socialism, the left wing of Kurdish nationalism, the shoras, or feminism, it is still a very useful reference and introduction to a history of the left in Iraq, and is highly recommended for those who would like a brief introduction. With no sign of an end to the occupation by the U.S. in sight, developments in Iraq will continue to dominate our attention.
Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews