Iraq’s Sectarian Violence/Roots of Iraq’s Chaos
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Iraq’s Sectarian Violence/Roots of Iraq’s Chaos Posted on Sep 18 2008 at 7:48am by Iraq’s Sectarian ViolenceAs an American, I felt extremely sorry to read the report “Iraq in Grip of Sectarian Violence” (Feb. 24). The Iraq “expedition” was a horrible failure, messing up everything and ruining and destroying so many lives. However, it is in no way surprising that the formation of a new government is hitting snags. In fact, even if they succeed in putting one together , it will have built-in factors for failure. Elective politics can succeed only when parties are formed on the basis of ideologies and programs, not along religious and ethnic lines, as they are at the moment in Iraq. This will change eventually, when the concept of an Iraq that is more deserving of loyalty than sects gains acceptance. It will take time for a people to create political groups that serve the best interests of its constituents, regardless of other considerations. Leaders need to be elected by their ideas to help people have a good life, not by what mosque they go to, which tribe they belong to or if they are Kurds, Shiites or Sunnis. The issues should be the candidates’ ideas on taxes, health care, transportation, wages, trade, foreign relations etc. This is always a problem when new governments are formed without the people getting enough time to learn to think above sectarian considerations. One way out, theoretically, will be to ban parties based on religious or ethnic lines. But that is a theory extremely difficult to translate into practice. Perhaps, things will be better for the great-great-great grandchildren of the present generation of Iraqis.
Abbie Peters, United States published 1 March 2006
Roots of Iraq’s ChaosWhen Paul Bremer dismissed and disenfranchised Iraq’s professional military, he made the monumental mistake that caused most of the ongoing problems. What he did then was to throw away the instrument that any government needs to discharge its basic responsibilities.According to Ann Rand written words " The primary function of a government falls into three broad categories, all involving use of physical force to protect citizens’ rights: 1) the police to protect them from criminals, 2) the armed services to protect them from foreign invaders, and 3) the courts to settle disputes according to objective laws. When these responsibilities are forgotten, ignored and evaded, we have situations like that in Iraq: the tyranny of the lawless, anarchy, chaos, gang warfare and primitive savagery. There is only one basic principle under which an individual can live free in civilized society: that of renouncing the use of physical force and delegating to the government his right of physical self-defense. That is the only way to ensure an orderly, objective, legally defined enforcement of laws.The source of man’s fundamental rights is the nature in which God created man and this universe. Rights are conditions of existence required by man’s nature to live on earth. It is his right to use his mind, to act on his own free judgment, work for his values and keep the product of his labor." When there is no guarantee that these rights be his at the end of all troubles and suffering, there is no reason why individuals should cooperate with those in power. It is only when this principle is grasped and adopted by all that the Iraqi puzzle will begin to be solved.
Abbie Peters, Simi Valley, US published 6 August 2007
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