If there is one thing about the supposed deliverance of democracy to the Iraqi people it’s that the institution of the rule of law, if you can call it that, seems to continually fail them – not unlike a plethora of other things.

Case in point – legal proceedings regarding the recent actions of television reporter Montazer al-Zaidi began without him. al- Zaidi was not present in court yesterday when proceedings began in the Green Zone, was unable to confer with his legal representation during it, nor afforded the right to speak in his own defense publicly. Instead, he was visited in prison by the presiding judge, something that would never be allowed in the United States.

Let’s not forget that al-Zaidi is facing up to a decade in prison for his actions. He is currently being held incommunicado by the Iraqi military in the Green Zone and has been denied contact with his family. This has, of course, raised concerns that he has been physically abused. If that is the case, and the presiding judge visited him in private and was witness to signs of physical abuse and injury, he should have either presented that information in court or be recused for not doing so. Because that is not a representation of the rule of law – it’s a representation of politically motivated justice.