They were removed from the list of candidates.. What is the secret of number 56 in Iraq?

The decision to delete 56 numbers did not leave sarcastic comments, the remaining fraudsters and instead of deleting the numbers, they demand the deletion of the candidates accused of corruption.

The Independent High Electoral Commission of Iraq has issued a unique decision to cancel number 56 from the list of candidates for the upcoming October parliamentary elections. This decision was taken after many election candidates refused to use the ballots for this issue. What is the secret behind this number and why do candidates have reservations about it?

Notorious reputation

The reputation of the number 56 is not only associated with the electoral process, but it has been an ostracized and notorious number among Iraqis for many years, and wherever the number is, its mention and its bearer are often the subject of ridicule and derision.

This is due to the legal article 456 of the Criminal Code, which deals with the crime of fraud and deception. Based on this article and its punishment, Iraqis have for years referred to the number 56 as anyone accused of fraud and deceit, and the adjective has often been used to express Iraqi displeasure with the political class.

The reputation of this number forced the Electoral Commission to remove it from the list of candidates for the upcoming elections in order not to embarrass them, as it happened before, as the Commission’s spokesperson Jumana Al-Ghalai explained to Al Jazeera Net, indicating that the proposal to cancel this number was submitted by the Candidate Affairs Department after its request.

Al-Ghalai said that the exclusion of this number is a result of its connotation and therefore may affect a candidate’s chances in the election, so it was excluded in order to achieve a fair opportunity for all candidates.

reduce inconvenience

Many candidates express their satisfaction with the commission’s decision, which freed them from the shame of wearing this number, as well as from anxiety, waiting and accusations of fraud and corruption if they did it without studying the candidate’s program, personality or abilities.

In this regard, the Baghdad candidate Saad al-Muttalab describes this move as positive and of interest to the candidates, noting that the reputation of this number is not new, but dates back to the nineties of the last century, and in the difficult economic conditions of Iraq, there is a high rate of fraud and fraud in order to steal citizens’ money.

After the US invasion that toppled (deceased) President Saddam Hussein in 2003 and the subsequent rampant corruption, this accusation, which al-Muttalabi called unfair, was leveled at politicians. Not all politicians are corrupt, underscoring the importance of scrapping the number, saying: “Any candidate who wears it is subject to ridicule and projection and will not be able to get to the House of Representatives on the grounds that they will be accused of corruption before they take responsibility.”

Al-Muttalab’s opinion differs from that of several candidates who expressed surprise at the removal of the number, such as Karbala gubernatorial candidate Ahmed al-Hilal, who expressed his desire to take 56 instead of creating chaos around it, noting that “the main thing is the person, not the number. It’s bad, but Iraqis now know how to evaluate candidates.”

For his part, journalist Abdel-Amir al-Kinan considered the commission’s move a good step, but he wonders if removing the monument status will ensure Iraqis have representatives and an honest government that enjoys competence, clean hands and accountability. Perhaps its answer lies in the hands of Iraqis and not in the hands of numbers, if there is broad participation that moves in the right direction instead of following reputation and fame.

All 56 of them

The decision to delete 56 numbers was not free from sarcastic comments, the fraudsters remained and demanded the deletion of candidates accused of corruption instead of deleting the numbers.

Citizen Ali Jalal (33 years old) finds that the process of canceling the number was not correct, because it is the only number, in his opinion, that suits the majority of politicians, officials and representatives, indicating that he and many Iraqis are against this decision, because this number suits many current officials and parliamentarians, whose hands are stained with corruption, theft and fraud.

Some other citizens asked to restore the number because there were candidates who deserved to wear it, says Ali Abbas (36), who believed that the decision to remove number 56 was wrong because it applies to all party lists and candidate numbers.

The citizen spoke angrily and said: “We got nothing from the politicians except theft, corruption and wasting 18 years of life. The commission should give us number 56 without exception. This is the least they deserve when they promised us paradise in the previous elections. We have achieved nothing except destruction, lack of electricity and water.”

Quantization and coding

Researchers believe that coding by Iraqis is not a new issue, but rather one of deep-rooted issues stemming from authoritarian ruling governments that relied on restricting speech and freedom and criticizing authority and officials, as social researcher Nada al-Abid notes.

Al-Abidi spoke to Al Jazeera Net about the naturally critical and disaffected Iraqis who turn to politicians for the number 56 as a way of criticizing authority and expressing discontent, and he said that what the country has witnessed since 2003 has contributed to this. Rising poverty levels and this prompts the citizen to use symbols to express his displeasure and displeasure with the situation and to avoid the issue in case of direct reference from the government.

He emphasized that “Iraqi is unhappy with the manifestations of corruption and exploitation, so it has resorted to the indirect use of the term 56 to denote the manipulation, theft and fraud it has been subjected to by politicians and those responsible for the deterioration of the situation in the country. The authority of the fist.”

Scary background and numbers

The term 56 was not only associated with the opinion of citizens regarding corrupt officials, but also became a common term in society. Many Iraqis have begun to use this term for all intruders or emergency persons who are not in their specialty, as well as anyone who tries to show something other than his reality or tries to deceive people with false appearances and lies.

Eliminating the number from the candidate sequence brought the origin of the term’s use and its implications back to the fore. The decision to cancel the 56th row also took place during the previous elections. The Alliance carried the “Sayrun” sequence number 156 and was the subject of ridicule by others and the reference to the number when talking about the Alliance.

The case relates to other similar incidents of fear of numbers and their ill effects on their bearer. In Europe, “13” is considered the number of Satan and a symbol of pessimism and bad luck, due to its associated connotations with the accusation of “Judas Iscariot” about Jesus Christ, as depicted in the 15th century painting “The Last Supper” by the Italian artist Leonardo da Vinci.