The Hour of the Lawyer

Derek Reveron breaks down the stages of the Iraqi democratic transformation.

First comes the “hour of the lawyer”. The next stage is the “hour of the economist”. The last stage of a successful democracy is the “hour of the citizen”. Each stage has a different timetable ranging from six months to sixty years, and was a product of German Sociologist Claus Offe.

Very interesting reading. Iraq is in the first stage with the completion of its first free election in decades. The government reps have been picked and it is now time to create their own constitution.

It will be interesting to watch Iraq develop and go through each of the stages. The final stage takes generations, and is represented by democracy as a way of life, and when that democracy is challenged, they respond in one voice against it.