As part of the series of intellectual activities, the Rafidain Center for Dialogue RCD held a panel discussion entitled "Study Centers and Its Role in Decision-Making and Institution-Building", in which the researcher Dr. Lina Al-Khatib, Middle East and North Africa Program Officer at Chatham House Institute, as well as researchers at the Institute Reynad Mansour and Zaid Al-Ali were hosted. The panel discussion, which took the form of a round table, was attended by group of professors of Kufa University, as well as group of academic, cultural and political elites in Najaf. The panel focused on realistic and forward-looking analytical insights into the role of study centers in internal and external political decision-making and the presentation of alternatives to the decision-maker. By highlighting the mechanisms and importance of the work of studies centers in the West, the researcher revealed the new orientation of these centers, which is to adopt field research studies in order to reach a deeper understanding of Middle Eastern societies so that they can go beyond political dealing based on dealing with decision makers away from understanding social reality.

Al-Khatib also pointed out that Iraq is ahead of the rest of the region in the field of intellectual freedom related to the nature of the work of the research and studies centers, adding that many countries in the region such as Egypt and Jordan lack that free field. The panel also addressed other issues such as the importance of the independence of study and research centers and the importance of communicating with Western studies centers to convey the right information and how to benefit from the products of the study centers in political accounting.

Below are the most important outcomes of the panel discussion:

Conclusions:

1-     The Study Centers adopts the Field Work (monitoring the dynamics of reality on the ground) in order to deepen the understanding of the nature of the problems in Middle Eastern societies in order to move beyond the political vision adopted by Western decision makers based on focusing on dealing with decision makers in Middle Eastern countries away from understanding socio-political realities.

2-      The task of the study centers is to communicate information based on scientific study to decision makers, and they cannot impose on decision makers a certain political orientation because political leaders have their own ways of making decisions.

3-      Studies, seminars, publication of research papers, articles and findings by research and studies centers can be used as facts that can be invoked against government officials when adopting failed policies.

4-      Iraq is a thriving situation for freedom of thought, criticism and frank dialogue, and what exists in Iraq in this regard is ahead of what exists in many countries of the region, such as Egypt, Jordan and others.

5-      The Research and Studies Centers is trying to correct some preconceived notions based on misconceptions, resulting from a lack of understanding of The Middle East dynamics by decision makers in the West, for example, Arab societies are seen as tribal societies that are fully subordinate to tribal elders. But the realistic view on the ground shows the line of that perception as Arab societies are not so subject to tribal authorities.

6-      Many of the products of Iraqi intellectuals are important, but they face a problem in delivering them to the other as a result of the weakness of research centers that can be linked to institutions abroad.

7-      Not all research and studies centers are independent, and in many countries such as the United States, Germany and others, there are study centers known to be associated with political parties, and researchers are trying to take advantage of getting closer to political elites by providing targeted research.

8-      Diversity in studies centers and civil society institutions in Iraq (whether independent or dependent on a party) is important and beneficial in the near, medium and long terms. Such diversity exists in developed countries and has benefited them. However, non-party centers and institutions remain, as a result of their independence and neutrality, closest to communicating with the public, which produces unguided scientific studies.

9-      The issue of funding is one of the factors in the activity of the research and studies centers, for exmple, the United States has become the most attractive country for researchers because of the strength of material support provided to the study centers .

10-   One of the most difficult obstacles facing research centers in their work and cooperation with Arab countries is that many of these countries have little history in the field of the work of these centers, in addition to the absence of freedom of thought and expression.

11-   When examining the Iraqi situation on the ground, the focus should be on two structural changes that Iraqi society has experienced over the past three decades, the first being a change in the level of values resulting from the deterioration of the economic situation and the spread of poverty after the imposition of economic sanctions on Iraq in 1990, while the other change is a behavioural change that resulted after the transition from a dictatorial regime to an unregulated democratic system.

12-   The social political movement in Iraq is divided to two parts, the first is internal and it is governed by the debate between civilians and Islamists about the nature of the state and its orientations, while the second part of the political social movement is related to the regional and international environment, as it attracts Iraqis between the Iranian axis on the one hand and the western axis on the other.

Recommendations:

1-      The Research and Studies Centers should adopt field work by sending researchers to the social, political and economic realities to keep up with events and variables to get the right information that helps prepare sober scientific studies.

2-      Research centers need to rely on the independence of funding to ensure the impartiality and scientific research they carry out and present to decision makers away from the orientations of financiers.

3-      Research centers should be given sufficient freedom for their researchers to express their different positions against governments and their policies and not adhere to the research institution's own position.

4-      Communication with research centers in Western countries is necessary to communicate the real information that the media may ignore, as research centers with an original scientific mission move away from achieving certain political objectives and therefore can be the link between Middle Eastern and Western societies.

5-      The need to develop the institutional work of research and studies centers in the Middle East, as the desire of Western centers to cooperate with Middle Eastern centers collides with the lack of institutions for scientific research.

6-      The need to legislate laws that contribute to encouraging donations to study centers, which contributes to the development of their work and ensure their independence, as is the case in Western countries, where tax exemptions are provided in the event of donations to research institutions. This would lead to the revitalization of Iraqi study centers, which are more than 100.