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Iraq is Tilting Toward Uncharted
Territory, Baghdad’s Unilateralism Should be Blamed
19.1.2012
By Omar Sindi - Exclusive for ekurd.net |
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General Mustafa Barzani (Mullah
Mustafa),
Photo: ekurd.net / Archive
January
19, 2012
Let’s take a look back at political repercussions at
past and current political parties, individual
politician’s patterns and mystification behaviors
once they take power in Baghdad.
Since the creation of the state of Iraq in early
1920 by British Mandate, it forced the main two
Nations Arabs and Kurds together along with other
minorities. Stemming from Monarchy era, which
unilaterally committed many errors and unjust
decision making such as first Arabization policy on
Kurdish land in between 1935 to 1937 in Kirkuk a
group of Arab Ubaid Tribe to al- Hawija area. This
area was a winter shelter of a Kurdish Tribe,
Jaffati. Even during the Mandate era the British
advisor to Iraq, C.J Edmonds, expressed his concern
the Monarchy will fall into absolutism. However,
when the Monarchy rule was precarious, it would talk
about inclusive leadership and a constitutional
system. As soon as they thought they were in a
strong position, all the laws and regulations would
be shelved or negated by the Monarchy leadership.
Their downfall from power was finally caused by Army
brigadier General Abdel Karim Qasim and his fellow
officers on July 14, 1959. The leadership never
realized before the tremendous complexities of the
environment they lived in.
After Qasim seized the power, he formed an
inclusive, tripartite government including Sunni
Arabs, Shi’ite Arabs and Kurds in his Cabinet. On
July 26, 1958, a new constitution was written to be
voted on, after a free referendum. The Iraqi Flag
was changed to represent all people of Iraq. In the
written constitution it was declared that all Iraqi
are equal citizens and granted them freedom without
discriminations regardless or race, nationality,
language or religion.
General Mustafa Barzani was invited back from the
Soviet Union to participate in decision making and
the Kurdish people rights were fully recognized.
However, slowly and surely Qasim and Colonel Arif’s
government descended into Machiavellianism and
absolutism with Qasim at its helm. Day to day the
Iraqi people were confronted with a bewildering
array of social problems which increased in
complexity as time went on. This continued until
Qusim was over thrown in February 1963 by his fellow
officers, the colonel Abdul Salam Arif as leader of
the action.
From the February 1963 coup to the July 17,1968
coup, during the era of reign of both brothers,
Abdul Salam Arif and Abdul Rahman Arif, no progress
was made in the Country other than its contoured
descent into chaos. Kurdish rights were not
implemented and the fighting was ongoing. The
Kurdish conflict remained unresolved until Abdul
Salam Arif died in a mysterious helicopter crash in
April 1966. His brother Abdul Raman Arif then took
over leadership and continued with the same
policies. Both brothers were supporters of the pro
pan-Arabism movement and admirers of Jamal Abdel
Nasser of Egypt, and did not attempt to foster
inroads into Iraq‘s diverse social structure. On
July 17,1968, while Arif was sleeping, his aides,
along with members of Ba’ath Party,Ahmad al-Bkr,
overthrew him in a bloodless coup.
After the Ba’ath Party took over power in Baghdad on
July 17,1968 with Ahmad Hasan Bakir and Saddam
Hussein at the top, its leadership issued a
provisional constitution declaring all social ill
problems would be dealt with on a case-by-case
basis. Actually, all these cull were schemes,
perfidious issues and false notions because the Ba
‘ath leaders did not know where the country was
heading and the hierarchy position was not stable
yet. However the ba’ath party with its leadership
descended quickly into absolutisms and the honeymoon
was over. They arrested several hundred officers and
many businessmen and continued its military offence
against the Kurdish people. However, the ba’ath soon
realized these military offenses were not going well
and it might cause their leadership to eventually
fall from power. The Ba’ath government announced a
cease fire and declared autonomy for the Kurdish
people under the leadership of Mustafa Barzani.
Actually, the peace deal was proved to be a scheme,
the intents of which were disingenuously trying to
buy time. The world witnessed the Ba’ath Party ‘s
miscalculation and Bakir and Saddam’s cruelty to all
Iraqi people, specifically the Kurds and shi’ite
people.
The current Iraqi Prime Minster Nuri -al Maliki and
Da’wah Party ’s mystification and deficit trust.
What is the characteristic of a dictator? Usually a
dictator holds many important positions in a
government for himself, for example Dictator Saddam
Hussein held in his government the positions of 1)
President, 2) Chairman of revolutionary command
council, and 3) Prime Minister.
Nuri al Maliki’s currently holds in his government
the positions of:
1) Prime Minister, 2) Commander of armed force, 3)
Defense Minister, 4) Interior Minister, 5) Head of
intelligence, and 6) National security Chairman. The
world, the Pundit, the Da’wah party must decide and
cast the vote whether or not Mr. Maliki is a
dictator.
The article in the New York Times on January 1, 2012
was written by Ali A Allawi, who occupied several
positions in Iraq between 2003 to 2006 including
Trade, Defense and Finance Minister positions. What
is stunning? The author expounds how Iraqi’s diverse
society can work together with Iraqi “national
institution and civic culture” however, trying to
search and find any proof that Mr. Allawi,www.ekurd.net
while he was occupying those sensitive positions,
did not reveal any upbeat record that he defended
the heterogeneity of the Iraqi society. Most Baghdad
politicians disregard the second opinion, thinking
rather that Iraq is a homogenous society. Another
blunt point the author makes a plea for help from
it’s neighbors, a self-delusional idea, as those
subtle actors need to clean their house first,
before they can help Iraq.
As long as Iraqi political parties or politicians do
believe that unilateralism rather than
multilateralism can steer Iraq in the right
direction, then the Iraqi people will suffer the
most and Iraq will drift toward uncharted territory.
What else?
P.S. It has been little over a year since I have
tried to express my view and opinion through
“Ekurd.net” Many thanks to “ekurd net.”
However, my writings have been criticized as biased
by both Anwar Hawrami and Hasan Hawrami, but what is
funny is that those two critics have the same last
names, maybe they are brothers? I have tried my best
to state the facts and stay neutral, however, any
person or persons that fight against all the odds
for the Kurdish liberation movements keeps the
spirit and aspiration alive during one of the
darkest times. That person will have my admiration
and deepest conviction. The late Mustafa Barzani did
more to fight for Kurdistan than the Argentinean
born Ernesto (Che) Guevara, Dr. John Garang of
Southern Sudan and Ahmad Shah Mossoud of
Afghanistan.
Omar Sindi - United States
Copyright © 2012 ekurd.net. All rights reserved
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