Muqtada
Al-Sadr: A Voice Of Resistance
By Ghali Hassan
19 August, 2004
Countercurrents.org
Immediately
after the invasion and occupation of Iraq, the US and its allies embarked
on a long colonial tradition of divide and rule. The creation of the
"Iraqi Governing Council" on ethnic and sectarian divisions
is a good example. Iraqis know this very well. The current "Iraqi
Interim Government" is a gang of expatriate criminals and quislings.
This division is the US prelude to instigate civil war between Iraqis
and justify US Occupation of Iraq.
The Iraqi people
did not "welcome" the occupying forces. It was a carefully
staged lie. Iraqis bitterly resent the occupation forces. After the
fall of Baghdad and the emergence of the nature of the Occupation, opposition
and resistance to US forces was instant.
The Iraqi resistance
groups varied, some are former soldiers and unemployed professionals
and workers but others are religious leaders with local and family influence.
They spread throughout the country. Although, these groups are not centrally
linked, almost all of them shared an enthusiastic devotion to Islam
and an enthusiastic rejection of the US-British Occupation of Iraq.
The rise of Sayyid Muqtada Al-Sadr is a good example.
Contrary to Western
liberals and pundits, Sayyid Muqtada Al-Sadr is not a "marginal
leader". Muqtada was born and lives in Iraq, and has large following
among Iraqis. Muqtada draws on the respect and legacy of his family.
Muqtada's father, Imam Muhammad Sadiq Al-Sadr who was loved and respected
for his opposition to the regime of Saddam Hussein was assassinated
with his two other sons in Najaf in 1999. Muqtada is also the son-in-law
of Imam Muhammad Bakir Al-Sadr. Imam Bakir Al-Sadr was executed in 1980
for his opposition to Saddam's regime. The family is well respected
among Iraqis and Muslims worldwide. It is important to remember that
Sayyid Muqtada did not live in exile during Saddam's regime.
Unlike Ayatollah
Ali Sistani, Muqtada Al-Sadr is not controlled by outside forces, such
as Iran. Sistani is an Iranian citizen and draws much of his support
from Iran. Sistani has good following in Najaf, but very little support
in the rest of Iraq. Ayatollah Sistani is like Ayatollah Khomeini who
lived in Najaf for many years, and remained unknown to Iraqis until
his departure to Iran in 1979. Sistani is promoted by the Occupation
authority because of his quietness to the Occupation. He is like a small
UN, that is
why the US like him. His departure to London, escorted by Ahmad Chalabi,
before the US attack on Najaf shows his real concern for Iraqis. His
"illness" couldn't't come at a better moment. Bush and Blair
must be dancing to the tune of his silence.
The dismantling
of the Iraqi state by the US Occupation forced Al-Sadr movement to organise
and fill the power vacuum. The movement of young urban and dedicated
grassroots Iraqis began providing social and health services and security
for neighbourhoods. In a report issued in September 2003, the
Belgium-based International Crisis Group credits Al-Sadr's movement
for keeping the peace in poor Shiite sections of Baghdad after the fall
of Saddam's regime. "Within weeks of the regime's collapse, Al-Sadr's
representatives claimed to have employed 50,000 volunteers in east Baghdad
to provide refuse collection, hospital meals and traffic control,"
the report says.
Western media continues
using the distorted and misleading terms of calling Muqtada Al-Sadr,
"radical cleric", and Iraqis who are resisting the occupation
"militia men". The media should report honestly instead and
show the ugly picture of US violence in Iraq. The sickening lies perpetuated
by
The New York Times and The Washington Post are shameful.
The allegation that
Muqtada Al-Sadr is supported by Iran is unfounded and untrue. Iran and
Iraq are neighbours, and shared cultural and religious ties. The people
of both countries welcome good relations.
Muqtada call to
armed resistance against the US Occupation after he has exhausted the
peaceful methods of democratic elections, and protested against the
US violence and undermining of democratic means. The US Occupation Authority
provoked Al-Sadr movement by closing the Al-Hawza, the movement newspaper,
which sparked a wave of peaceful demonstrations and distribution of
anti-Occupation information. The US forces violently attacked Al-Sadr
followers and arrested many of them, including Al-Sadr communications
officer. Thousands of innocent people were killed as a result of US
violence. The Mahdi Army is the movement-armed resistance fighting the
Occupation forces.
Muqtada was the
first to denounce the Occupation and acknowledge publicly that the Americans
were in Iraq to stay and rob the country of its wealth. Muqtada is also
the first to announce that the Americans and their allies must be expelled
by force from Iraq. Muqtada, like all Iraqis, has a legitimate right
under international law to denounce and resist the Occupation.
The Occupation forces
and their quislings tried to co-opt Muqtada Al-Sadr, but he refused
to support the appointed thugs and the US Occupation. Muqtada said that
there could be no ordinary politics under Occupation. He said Iraq must
be free of all Occupation and of the authority of collaborators with
the Occupation. More than 70% of Iraqis view Muqtada Al-Sadr favourably
and his popularity is rising, thanks to American terrorism.
The indiscriminate
attacks on Kut, Samara, Hilla, and Fallujah and other cities in Iraq
show the brutality of a racist and fascist force eager to enforce its
corrupt rules on the people of Iraq. The destruction of Iraqi cities
and infrastructure is reminiscent of that of Genghis Khan in the Middle
Ages. Water and electricity have been cut off in Iraq for a week, leaving
the remaining civilians there in dire straits. Is this the freedom and
democracy the US is selling? The Occupation brought only miseries to
Iraqis.
The attack on Najaf,
the holiest city in Iraq, was designed to silence the majority of Iraqis,
and legitimise an unelected group of thugs and criminals picked up by
the US to serve its interests in Iraq against the interests of the Iraqi
People. It is an attack on civilisation by the forces of evil.
Najaf is visited
by Muslims from all over the world. It is in Najaf where Imam Ali ibn
Abu Talib, the son-in-law and cousin of the Prophet Mohammad, was buried.
The Imam Ali shrine is the most sacred place in Iraq. For more than
a week, US forces have besieged and attacked Najaf with bombs and shells.
The Americans should be ashamed of their fascist government.
The Americans are
not in Iraq to promote democracy. The US is the enemy of democracy and
democratic movements in the Developing World. You only need to look
around you to see how brutally the US attacking democracy. There are
plenty of examples. Democracy means the people (Iraqis or South Americans)
managing their own affairs and wealth. Democracy means independence
and sovereignty. Iraqis do not need the type of democracy the US promoted
by the power of tanks and cluster bombs. The US is not a good example
to emulate; the US is a failed experiment.
Finally, the recent
sectarian and ethnic tensions in Iraq are not the product of deep-seated
cultural differences. They are the product of Western imperialism and
colonialism in the Middle East. The only path for peaceful world is
for the US to follow the path of civilised nations and stop acting violently
and unjustly. The only path to peace is to end the occupation of Iraq.
Iraqis must be free from US tyranny.
Ghali Hassan lives in Perth, Western Australia. He can be contacted
at:
[email protected]