Ordinary Iraqis Blame Politicians for Rising Sectarian Conflicts

BAGHDAD, Iraq – Shiite-Sunni conflicts in Iraq are fueled and fanned by Iraqi politicians for self-interest, with disregard for lost lives or the good of the nation, ordinary Iraqis charge.

“Political conflict that takes the form of sectarian power is what is complicating the situation and makes many wage a dishonest war,” said Fallah Shami, 30, a resident of Baghdad.

“Reliance on foreign interference and outside support by any means, even if it affects national security or social order, is their priority to gain power,” he charged.

Shami believes that the problems have deeper roots than just a Shiite-Sunni dimension.

“It is political corruption that has led to the deterioration of the political, economic, and security situations,” he said.

“The security situation deteriorates when there is a new political stance within government or parliament,” he told Rudaw. “The politicians on purpose escalate or calm the crisis when their interests are threatened.”

Many Iraqis still remember the dark years of 2006-2008, when the country was gripped by kidnappings, sectarian killings and displacements. There were concrete blast walls everywhere.

Iman Kazim al-Sarraf, an activist, said that foreign interference in Iraqi affairs is one of the important reasons behind the sectarian conflicts.

“The regional interference in Iraq is made possible by prominent politicians who have opened the door to such meddling, fueling the crisis of confidence between politicians and ordinary Iraqis,” she said.

Iraqis, especially Baghdad residents, fear that recent escalations between Shiites and Sunnis could mean a return of the sectarian war. They are wary of the disagreements between political parties and parliamentary blocs.

Shiite cleric Sheikh Razak Hassan al-Gazzi said that Iraqi politicians are preoccupied with power struggles and remain mindless of the domestic situation, which includes foreign meddling by neighboring countries.

“Regional powers dictate to the political parties and politicians who represent the hopes and dreams of Iraqis,” he told Rudaw. “They play the sectarian game.”

“The deterioration of the security in Baghdad and other provinces that has claimed many lives is a testament to these people,” al-Gazzi added.

But he believes that, this time, Iraqis may not allow their leaders to drag the country into another civil war.

“The Iraqis have learned their lesson,” he said. “Even if internal and external parties seek another sectarian conflict, they (Iraqis) will not allow it.”

The United Nations Mission in Iraq (UNAMI) described 2013 as the “bloodiest year” since 2008. The organization reported that last year 7,818 people were killed and 17,981 were wounded.

The fear of a renewed sectarian war has increased since the start of major battles between the Iraqi army and insurgent groups in Anbar province.

The unrest in Anbar, and violence in other parts of Iraq, has already killed an estimated 600 people this month.

“Some politicians try to play the sectarian card in order to gain votes that secure government positions,” said Sheikh Saleh Saadoun al-Dulaimi, Sunni imam of the Omar ibn al-Khattab mosque in central Baghdad.

“Those who want to be in the political arena need to rely on a fair political game and lead the country without discrimination, favoritism or playing with Iraqi wounds,” he told Rudaw.  

Al-Dulaimi said that Iraqi leaders do not have any plans to “build a state or a unified national project that can uplift Iraqis from the lack of services, unemployment and high poverty.”

“Sectarianism is a threat to society,” added al-Dulaimi. “It must be confronted with sensibility and understanding.”

Last September Iraqi leaders signed a national document at a social peace conference arranged by Iraqi Vice President Khodair al-Khozaei, though several leaders of the Iraqiya bloc such as Ayad Allawi and Deputy Prime Minister Saleh al-Mutlaq, were absent from the conference.

Soon, parliament speaker Osama al-Nujaifi also withdrew his signature from the document, after the Shiite Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki ordered the arrest of Sunni MP Ahmed al-Alwani and the attack by Iraqi troops on Anbar.