Malik Dohan al-Hassan
Malik Dohan al-Hassan (Arabic: مالك دوهان الحسن; 1 July 1919 – 23 May 2021) was an Iraqi politician and academician, who served as Minister of Culture and Information in 1967, headed the Iraqi Bar Association in 2003, and was the Minister of Justice in the Iraqi Interim Government in 2004.
Malik Dohan al-Hassan مالك دوهان الحسن | |
|---|---|
| Minister of Culture and Information | |
| In office 1967–1968 | |
| Preceded by | Ahmed Matlab |
| Succeeded by | Salah Omar Al-Ali |
| Minister of Justice | |
| In office June 2004 – May 2005 | |
| Preceded by | Hashim Abdul-Rahman al-Shibli |
| Succeeded by | Abdel Hussein Shandal |
| Personal details | |
| Born | July 1, 1919 Al-Qasim, Babil, Ottoman Empire (now Iraq) |
| Died | May 23, 2021 (aged 101)[1] Amman, Jordan |
| Alma mater | LLB – University of Baghdad, 1947 Diploma in Public and Private Law – Montpellier University, 1951 Doctorate in Law – University of Paris 1 Pantheon-Sorbonne, 1957 |
Early life
Dr. al-Hassan was born in al-Hilla, south of Baghdad, in 1919 to a shi'a Arab family belonging to the Jubur clan, one of the largest clans in Iraq. He graduated from the University of Baghdad in 1947. He continued his studies in France where he received a Diploma in Public and Private Law from Montpellier University and a Doctorate in Law from the Paris 1 Panthéon-Sorbonne University. He then became a Professor of Law at the University of Baghdad. He was elected President of the Al-Mustansiriya University in 1966. He authored seminal books in tort law that were taught in law schools in Iraq.
Pre-Saddam government
He was appointed the Minister of Culture and Information in 1967 by President Abdul Rahman Arif.[2] He is considered the foremost authority in Iraq on tort law, authored seminal books taught in Iraqi universities.
During Saddam government
al-Hassan was imprisoned under Saddam Hussein for 2 years, then interned in Baghdad and was prohibited from travel for ten years. He was permanently banned from practicing politics and holding public office. As a result, al-Hassan practiced private law until the end of the Ba'athist rule over Iraq in 2003. [3]
Post-Saddam
In 2003 he was elected to head the Iraqi Bar Association. He was appointed to a task force looking at compensation for the victims of the Saddam Hussein government. In June 2004 he was appointed as the Minister of Justice in the Iraqi Interim Government.[3] As Minister, he was targeted by a car bomb that killed four people, including his nephew.[4] Responsibility was claimed by Abu Musab al-Zarqawi, head of al-Qaeda in Iraq.[5] He defended the use of the death penalty against former President Saddam Hussein, saying "...we have the right and even the obligation to use the tools that we see useful".[6] Later that year, he threatened to resign unless a judge who had indicted Ahmad Chalabi for murder and money laundering was fired.[7]
2005 Iraqi elections
He had initially called for the Iraqi legislative election of January 2005 to be postponed as it could "...trigger civil war".[8] He nonetheless took part with the National Democratic Coalition, who only received 9,747 votes. Even though he did not get elected, he remained a vocal figure in the media and was often asked for his opinion. In February 2007, he criticized the proposed Oil and Gas Law as being too vague.[9]
References
- ^ "وفاة مالك دوهان الحسن اول وزير عدل في العراق بعد 2003 عن عمر تجاوز الـ100 عام". وكالة نون الخبرية.
- ^ (PDF). Coalition Provisional Authority. June 30, 2004. Archived from the original (PDF) on April 24, 2009. Retrieved August 23, 2009.
- ^ a b . The Independent. June 29, 2004. Archived from the original on September 7, 2009. Retrieved August 23, 2009.
- ^ Six die in blast targeted at Iraqi minister[dead link], The Independent, 2004-07-18
- ^ Iraqi justice minister escapes car bomb, China Daily, 2004-07-18
- ^ "Iraqi minister survives bomb blast that kills four of his bodyguards". the Guardian. July 17, 2004.
- ^ Juan Cole (August 11, 2004). "Iraq National Congress Office Closed". Informed Comment. Retrieved August 23, 2009.
- ^ Iraqi Elections (I): The Imperatives of Elections on Schedule, MEMRI, 2004-12-15
- ^ Iraq Oil Technocrats: Time Not Suitable For Oil Law, Global Policy Forum, 2007-02-17