Iraq's about politics, not sectarianism
By: Raed Karmi
Writer: Raed Jarrar
A few weeks ago, the Washington Post reported
that the administration was considering what some call an "80%
solution" to solve the problems in Iraq. In essence, the
solution would be designed to work with the Shia Iraqis who
make up 60% of the population and the Kurds who make up 20%.
It would exclude the Iraqi Sunni Arabs that make up the
remaining 20% of the population.
However, this won't work. There are new, mixed Iraqi
coalitions emerging, which makes the Iraqi political map more
complicated and mixed than this solution provides for.
Background of the issue
The approach of the United States in dealing with Iraqis is,
and has been, based on such sectarian and ethnic divisions.
The Governing Council, created by Paul Bremer in July 2003,
whose 25 members were chosen by the U.S. led coalition to
represent their sects. This was the first time in Iraq's
contemporary history where leaders of the country were
selected based on them having been identified as members of a
particular sectarian group. The Governing Council was a
failure - at least in part because of the sectarian makeup
and, as one member said of it, the Council's propensity to
"sit in the council while the country is burning and argue
over procedure.''
Furthermore, the U.S administration -- followed
by the mainstream media -- did their best to portray the
growing Iraqi-Iraqi conflict as a sectarian or religious one
with roots that pre-dated the occupation even though many
Iraqi analysts and politicians disagreed with that perception
and believe the current conflict is based on political, not
religious, motives.
The real problem
As new coalitions emerge inside the Iraqi government, it seems
that the background of "sectarian conflict" put forth by the
U.S. is collapsing completely. A number of Shia groups such as
the Al-Sadr movement and the Al-Fadila party are working with
Sunni, Kurdish and secular parties both within and outside the
Iraqi government and are attempting to establish a national
front that is against the occupation and is for unity in Iraq.
While these pro-unity groups coalesce, the Bush administration
is lending its support to another pro-occupation coalition
that may include Al-Hakim of the Supreme Council of Islamic
Revolution In Iraq (SCIRI), the two main Kurdish parties, and
the Islamic party which is a Sunni party led by the Iraqi vice
president, Tariq Al-Hashimi.
Conclusion
The newly formed coalitions prove sectarianism is not at the
root of the conflict in Iraq. Sectarian and religious
differences are not splitting the country. Thus, it's clear
that the "80% solution" will have no impact and will not work,
nor will any other sectarian-based response.
The main issue that is splitting Iraqis is the presence of the
occupation, and that's why
more than 87% of the Iraqi people, and a majority of the
country's politicians, believe that the first step in dealing
with the Iraqi-Iraqi conflict is pulling out the U.S. and
coalition troops and ending the occupation.
----------------------------------------------------
Written in collaboration with Jennifer Hicks
|
|
|
|
"Knowledge is
better than wealth because it protects you while you have to
guard wealth. it decreases if you keep on spending it but the
more you make use of knowledge ,the more it increases . what you
get through wealth disappears as soon as wealth disappears but
what you achieve through knowledge will remain even after you."MORE
..
|
|
|
|
|
|