Pessimism in Iraq was the theme, writes Doaa El-Bey Writers and political analysts expressed concern about the situation in Iraq, with some arguing the country was on the brink of civil war. In his column in the London- based Asharq Al-Awsat on Tuesday, Abdul-Rahman Al-Rashed did not rule out the possibility of a Shia-Sunni confrontation if either allows extremists to rule them. Al-Rashed said democracy in under-developed countries shows such societies at their worst because it cast poor light on their differences. However, he regarded the differences between candidates at the time of an election as natural. "It is expected that a politician will ask people to vote for him because he is Sunni or Shia. But the real danger is when candidates do not accept the results of the ballot box. As a result, parties will engage in continuous arguments and sectarian strife will become a daily affair." Al-Rashed wrote that Shia, Sunnis and other minorities should opt for democracy as it was the safest option for the former because they represent the majority of Iraqis and for the latter as the only means to participate in ruling their country. "There are differences between different sects in Iraq. However, Shia and Sunnis can work together to build a great nation or live in an inferno of differences if they allow opportunists to run Iraq according to their interests and personal ambitions." Leila Al-Bahrani, an Iraqi writer, described the bombing of the shrines in Samaraa as an earthquake that will shake Iraq and fan more sectarian strife and possibly soon start a civil war. "The differences between the sects were translated into a war on shrines and mosques that will only benefit those who want Iraq to return to square one," Al-Bahrani wrote in Asharq Al-Awsat on Tuesday. She said the latest developments in Iraq raised questions: who are behind these incidents? Is the US capable of spreading democracy and preserving security in Iraq? She cast doubt on the credibility of the US and its genuine will to spread democracy in Iraq because it dissolved the Iraqi army and did not provide another force to protect the country after occupying Baghdad. "US forces focussed only on controlling oil resources. In addition, they opened a dialogue with Iraqi armed forces that fight and kill Iraqis. "The US is spreading the culture of division and sectarianism by allying with one sect against the other. "Unfortunately, all the present scenarios in Iraq include violence and sectarian strife while the state is trying to build its dream of democracy." Jaber Habib Jaber believed that post-Samaraa Iraq differs from before. "Nobody could have believed that political differences would be the start of a crisis... I hope I am wrong," Jaber wrote in Asharq Al-Awsat on Sunday. He ascribed the problem in Iraq to the failure of parties to share power during the last three years and saw no hope as neither the results of the elections nor another option would resolve sectarian differences. Jaber suggested a federal state that will acknowledge religious and ethnic groups in Iraq. "If there are some drawbacks in a federal state [in Iraq], recent developments that put Iraq on the route of sectarian, religious and ethnic problems necessitates reconsideration." He added that unless there was a genuine and drastic change in the level of violence in the next few months, maintaining a weak central government would be difficult. Talaat Ismail, in the United Arab Emirates daily Al-Bayan, disagreed with Jaber, saying one of the lessons that should be learnt from bombing the shrines in Samaraa is that "there is only one Iraq. All the parties should cooperate in defending it." The second lesson is that forming the government is just the first step in a long and arduous road to deal with all the negative implications of occupation. Iraqi leaders should learn to compromise in order to protect their country. "To escape the circle of violence requires taking serious steps towards security... the withdrawal of the occupying forces will not take place under the current state of anarchy and daily killing of innocent civilians." Naseef Hatta asked whether Iraq was heading towards civil war that could put an end to a united state for good. He agreed with Ismail in Al-Bayan on Sunday that the way out of the current dilemma was the quick formation of a government representing all political and social parties in Iraq. Hatta also called for the national unity conference as soon as possible. He argued that its scheduled time in June was too late under the current situation. He underlined the importance of a clear and firm Arab, regional and international stand to protect the unity of Iraq.
