"Perhaps the central criticism is that Iraq is simply not secure enough to have a fair vote. But this is not sufficient grounds to deprive Iraqis of their say in their own political future. In May 1992 the Kurdish parties operating in Iraq's no-flight zone held elections for their new regional Parliament under conditions that were pretty grim. Only by holding that poll did the Kurdistan Democratic Party and the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan achieve the legitimacy they hold to this day. Likewise, security in post-revolutionary Iran was almost as bad as in Iraq today. The shah's 440,000-strong army had melted away. Assassinations by anti-Islamic elements claimed the lives of a leading ayatollah and the army chief of staff. The new rulers were carrying out purges of military and civilian bureaucracies. Secular and leftist Islamic guerrilla organizations refused to surrender their arms. There was armed rebellion in the Kurdish region, and ethnic Arabs were sabotaging oil facilities and pipelines. Yet the referendum and general election were held within six months of the shah's being deposed. The least that Mr. Bush and Mr. Bremer, the high priests of Middle Eastern democracy, can do is to emulate the mullahs of Iran..."(from a piece by Dilip Hiro)