Iraq's prime minister comes to Cairo amid ongoing violence nationwide and a refugee crisis that threatens to overwhelm the region. Were solutions proposed, asks Dina Ezzat An end to the plight of Iraqis inside and outside of Iraq requires action, not policy statements. Judging by the outcome of this week's visit to Cairo by Iraqi Prime Minister Nuri Al-Maliki -- the first by the Shia politician -- it seems sure that neither the Iraqi government nor key regional states (not to mention the US and other international forces) are ready to engage a plan of action for stabilising the situation in Iraq. Nor could they if even they wanted, some argue. "What are we supposed to make of this visit by Maliki? Nothing. Maliki and people like him are a major part of the problem in Iraq," comments Ahmed, one Iraqi living in Cairo. "They are not the government of the Iraqi people. They are not Iraqis -- not real Iraqis. They are power groups that are only after their interests. They do not care for the Iraqis," he adds. Having arrived last summer in the wake of the escalation of sectarian violence and speaking to Al-Ahram Weekly from his appliances store on the outskirts of Cairo, Ahmed is full of bitterness over the "role of those who call themselves Iraqis" in what befell him, his family and three million other Iraqis forced to flee Iraq since the US invasion in 2003 as well as Iraqis who are still living "in hell because they have no escape". Ahmed, a 40-year-old Sunni, and his wife, a Shia, and their three daughters were all born and brought up in Baghdad. "Even under the nightmarish years of the invasion of Kuwait [in the early 1990s] and the sanctions that were imposed on Iraq things were okay. We were afraid of Saddam Hussein but we could have led a peaceful life if we simply avoided politics. Today, there is no such thing as a peaceful life in Baghdad," Ahmed laments. "It is not just politics or one tyrant that you have to avoid; it is also religion, your sect, your neighbourhood, all the Sunni and Shia leaders, and everything else. And still, you can never tell if you will escape being killed or not; you cannot tell if your children will be spared or not," he adds. It was this feeling of "continuous horror" that turned Ahmed's initial optimism in the wake of the dissolution of the previous regime into dismay and then almost nostalgia for the days under Saddam. "Before there was one devil. Today there are endless devils... some you know and some you do not." For Ahmed as for many other Iraqis who spoke to the Weekly, Sunni and Shia alike, the government of Maliki and those prior to it failed the Iraqis. "I am 27 years old. I knew nothing of the good old days of Iraq that my parents used to speak of," says Mortada, also an Iraqi refugee now in Cairo. "I was born and brought up when Iraq was going through its wars with Iran, Kuwait, and the rest of the world. I only experienced sanctions and suffering," he says. When the regime of Saddam was toppled, Mortada hoped that the new governments of Iraq would bring fairness and, if not necessarily immediately, development and prosperity. Like Ahmed, Mortada is shocked by what he calls the "dismal performance of one Iraqi government after another." For Ahmed and Mortada, post-invasion Iraqi governments are sectarian and offer no hope for the future. Iraqis in exile complain about all political leaders, Sunni or Shia, regardless of their own sect. Many Sunni Iraqis who spoke to the Weekly in Cairo emphasised their familial ties with Shias, just as Shias underlined familial ties with Sunnis. "I am Shia and I am living with two Sunni friends," says Mortada. "We share the same apartment and we work together in small jobs ill-fitted for our university degrees," adding that when one of the three is out of work, which happens often, the others provide for him. Iraqis in Egypt seeking refuge are not all registered with the United Nations Humanitarian Centre for Refugees (UNHCR). Having their passports marked "refugee" is not easy for the average proud Iraqi to reconcile with. "I had to do it, because otherwise my son would not have been admitted to school and couldn't graduate into university," commented one Iraqi woman who asked for her name to be withheld. Having spent over a year trying to register herself as an investor -- a route that many Iraqis with financial means take in order to gain residency in Egypt -- this lady had no other choice but to take refugee status. "As a result I cannot leave the country and come back freely. I cannot visit my sister who has taken refuge in Syria. And if I ever try to go back to Baghdad to visit my husband, who has been repeatedly denied an entry visa to Egypt, I would not be able to come back to my son," she said, tears coming to her eyes. There is no clear official estimate of the number of Iraqis who have fled to Egypt since the invasion, especially during the last year as the security situation deteriorated dramatically and as both Jordan and Syria, who play host to over two million Iraqis, refuse to accommodate more. Rough estimates suggest that there are between 70,000 and 100,000 Iraqis in Egypt, mostly in Cairo. Less than 10 per cent are registered as refugees. "We never wanted to leave our country or seek refuge elsewhere. We lived under so much suffering during the days of Saddam, but we did not leave," said Ali, another Iraqi exiled in Cairo. He added: "It was the indiscriminate bombings and the kidnap and rape of our women that forced us out and is obliging us to put up with the humiliation of being treated as unwelcome guests." It is hard to exaggerate the suffering of Iraqis seeking refuge away from their once prosperous country. Entire families have been forced, either by fear or under direct physical threat, to leave their homes and businesses. Some made it out safely, and together. Others were divided in the process. "I came with my parents; my husband was supposed to follow in a few days after selling our properties," said a 25-year-old Iraqi women. Seven-months pregnant, she is not sure what happened to her husband because she lost touch with him. She is not sure if he is alive or, "God forbid", dead, or whether he will make it to be with her when their first child is born. A female friend of the woman told the Weekly that due to health complications that resulted from her continuous grieving it is uncertain whether or not the rest of her pregnancy will be safe. "What can Maliki do for me? Nothing. Does he care for me? Those leaders just want to please the US, or Iran, or somebody else, but not us, the Iraqis. We are not on their minds," said the pregnant woman before breaking into tears. Her emotional outburst brings words of sympathy from Iraqis passing by. "You are Iraqi. You must have faith in God. God is generous," they say as they see her sobbing on a pavement in Al-Ordoniyah, a district of 6th October City outside Cairo. Every Iraqi who spoke to the Weekly, whether affluent or burdened by financial concerns, had but one answer to the question of what should be the outcome of the visit of Maliki to Egypt: agree with Egyptian authorities to make it easier for Iraqis forced to live in Egypt "until the situation gets better in Iraq". "It is not in our hands. We cannot go back. We know that we might have to be here for a year or two, but we don't know if they will let us stay or not," said Zeinab, a middle-aged housewife. "If the Iraqi government cannot secure for Iraqis the basic requirements they need, especially personal safety in Iraq, then the least it could do is to speak to other governments to accommodate Iraqi refugees," she added. Egyptian officials say that they have done their best to accommodate Iraqis; that Egyptian sympathy with the tragedy that befell the Iraqi nation in the wake of the US invasion and the consequent security deterioration prompted officials to allow entrance for close to 100,000 Iraqis, "Sunnis and Shias alike", to live in Egypt without harassment. Some sources indicate, however, that at the end of the day it is the paramount duty of Egyptian authorities to serve the interests of the Egyptian people. As such, Egyptian authorities deemed "inappropriate the 'doors wide open' policy for indefinite numbers of Iraqis to come and live in Egypt". The concerns offered by security authorities are not easily countered. Authorities say they have a legitimate concern about having "just any Iraqis enter and live in Egypt" at a time when Al-Qaeda has made a hub out of Baghdad. They also say that despite amicable feelings that bond Sunni and Shia Iraqis who live in Egypt, there are no guarantees that tensions in Iraq would not be reflected in Egypt. Furthermore, security authorities are uncomfortable with the rising number of Shias in Egypt, given the prevalent security doctrine that all Shias are affiliated to Iran's political and security agenda. Despite this context, sources say that the issue of Iraqi refugees in Egypt was not the number one item on the agenda of talks with Maliki held in Cairo Sunday, although it was discussed with promises made on the Cairo side to make accommodations and on the part of Maliki to work towards improving the situation on the ground, especially for residents of Baghdad, so that Iraqis don't have to flee. Speaking to reporters on the eve of Maliki's arrival, Egyptian Foreign Minister Ahmed Abul-Gheit said that, "the success of the Iraqi government to achieve national reconciliation is the best way to address the situation of Iraqi refugees and displaced individuals since it would allow them to go back to their homes in what would be the ultimate solution to their problem." Maliki's meeting with President Hosni Mubarak at the presidential headquarters in Heliopolis Sunday morning was private. Neither Maliki nor the presidential spokesman spoke to the press afterwards. Following talks with Egyptian Prime Minister Ahmed Nazif Sunday afternoon, however, Maliki did address the press. The Iraqi prime minister said he urged Cairo to take part in Iraq's reconstruction and received an encouraging response. "It was a positive and comprehensive meeting and we discussed the problems in Iraq. I clarified to the president the reality of what is going on in Iraq, which is not a civil or sectarian war," Maliki said during a joint press conference with Nazif. "We found that Egypt is ready to be a partner in Iraq's reconstruction and that Egyptian companies have a role that we are ready to support." For his part, Nazif said the situation in Iraq and international efforts to help the embattled Arab nation had been discussed. "Egypt stands by Iraq and we affirm our support for the Iraqi government's efforts towards reconciliation between all parts of Iraqi society. We condemn indiscriminate terrorism," Nazif said. Neither Maliki nor Nazif referred to demands made by the former for Egypt to consider posting a diplomatic presence in Baghdad to encourage the return of Arab diplomats to the Iraqi capital since the slaying of Ihab El-Sherif, head of the Egyptian diplomatic mission, in the Iraqi capital in the summer of 2004. Informed sources told the Weekly that Cairo made no promises on this front on the basis that it would be a terrible setback if another Egyptian diplomat was harmed in Baghdad. What Cairo promised instead is to encourage more Iraqi politicians to visit Cairo and examine the options for reconciliation. But on Tuesday Al-Maliki said at a press conference that he had received a promise from President Hosni Mubarak that an Egyptian ambassador to Baghdad would be appointed. Al-Maliki added that this would be realized 'soon'. However, Egyptian sources underlined that Cairo insisted that for Egypt to show more openness towards the current Iraqi government it should show more openness to all Iraqis. Cairo expects, sources say, a reduction in sectarian bias exercised by the government and what Egypt fears is tacit support for radical Shia militias. "It is not at all that Egypt is playing Sunni versus Shia, but rather that Egypt believes firmly that an even-handed approach by the government towards all sects is necessary for the containment of the current ethnic violence in Iraq," said one source. Egyptian officials have refrained from making public statements on this matter and chose instead to blame "some of the Iraqi forces acting in Iraq", as Foreign Minister Abul-Gheit did in a recent condemnation of ethnic killing in Baghdad. At the Cairo headquarters of the Arab League for talks with Secretary-General Amr Moussa Sunday evening, Maliki was given much the same advice as he received in talks with Egyptian officials: if it wishes to receive broad support from all Arab countries, the Iraqi government has to move towards taking action to reduce sectarian divisions. Maliki promised to move in this direction, but he also called upon Arab countries to reach out to Iraq. The Iraqi prime minister and Arab League secretary-general told a joint press conference that they agreed that a future Iraqi reconciliation meeting could take place at the headquarters of the League if deemed too difficult to hold in Baghdad. Neither Maliki nor Moussa, however, offered a date for the resumption of the reconciliation process launched by Moussa over a year ago but interrupted by escalating sectarian violence. The issue of Iraqi reconciliation is likely to be high on the agenda of meetings that will be hosted by Egypt on Iraq in 10 days. Two conferences will be held in Sharm El-Sheikh and will be attended by Iraq's neighbours as well as Bahrain and Egypt, and the five permanent members of the UN Security Council and other members of the G8 industrialised nations. On Tuesday, Al-Maliki told reporters that he believed that Iran will also attend the Sharm El-Sheikh conference. "All Iraqis have suffered from this violence and from this terror and it is our hope that through the establishment of greater security and through the advancement of a process of political reconciliation in Iraq this violence can end," said Assistant US Secretary of State David Satterfield in Cairo last weekend following talks with the Arab League and Egyptian officials on the Sharm El-Sheikh meetings. Maliki himself won't attend the upcoming meetings. Next, Maliki plans to travel to Kuwait with aides saying that the United Arab Emirates and Oman might be added to his itinerary. (see11 p. 7)
