Rarely will you find an Iraqi who has not been on the receiving end of a flying shoe or slipper, at some point or another during their childhood, as punishment for mischievous behaviour. The person throwing the slipper/shoe is usually the mother, and if shoe-throwing were an Olympic event Iraq would be guaranteed a Gold medal every 4 years. Shoe-throwing is a serious insult in Iraqi culture because the shoe is the lowest thing on the ground and conversely when you want to show respect to an Iraqi you say "on my head".
This isn't the first time a high ranking official has been insulted in this way. Sadrists in Najaf threw shoes at Iyad Allawi when he visited the holy shrine 3 years ago because he went to war with the Mehdi Army. Mohammed Baqir al-Hakim also received similar treatment in Iran in 1999. His Iranian security guards were baffled when angry Sadrists pelted him with shoes in Qum forcing him to cancel a scheduled speech on the death of Moqtada's father. Neither incident caused as much fuss as the latest attack, and for good reason. This time it was the US President.
$10 million in cash, men offering their own daughters, and becoming famous with a prosperous future that pays. That is the prize up for grabs for anyone willing to act like a complete idiot in the Arab and Muslim world. To be honest I did not think much of the shoe-throwing per se. Yes it was a very stupid thing to do, but I was not going to lose sleep over an incident which has a casualty figure of 0. What is even more important is what happened after the incident because it says a lot about almost everything that has gone wrong in that part of the world.
What I am still trying to digest is the disgusting response from across the Arab and Muslim world. In Iraq it was the usual players who were making noise and I apologise in advance for the next sentence which is going to be sectarian. The Shia slum-dwellers who support Sadr and the Sunnis who have had their lives turned upside down since Saddam's early and unnatural demise where the two major groups showing support for Muntadhar al-Zaidi. In Kurdistan there was no real jubilation at the very unprofessional and childish behaviour. Why? Because my sectarian sentence is true.
Outside Iraq in the wider Arab and Muslim world the response has been astonishing. I am not the type of person who is unfamiliar with the backward ways of that part of the world but even I was surprised at the prevailing attitude. Edward Said would probably turn in his grave if he hears me use "that part of the world" in such a derogatory manner but I am not going to window-dress or sugar-coat here. They are backward and most of the inhabitants seem to take up a specific geographical area on this planet. I made a vow to myself to limit my political correctness as much as I could when I first started this blog and I am not about to break that promise. I will only ever start being diplomatic one day if it's in my job description.
Before anyone bothers to send me hate mail accusing me of being a self-hating Arab Muslim I would like to put my hands up now and say guilty as charged. I hate the Arab and Muslim world and I hate a lot of the things they stand for.
In Egypt a man offered his virgin daughter to fulfill the desires of this Iraqi "hero". There is nothing in the Arab world that comes before a man's honour. The wife, the sister, the mother and the daughter are the most precious things in the Arab world so you Westerners can imagine how valuable this "gift" is. Of course when I say they are the most precious things in the Arab world that does not mean they cannot (double negative) be regarded as mere objects or a commodity that can be given in exchange for other commodities.
In Jordan and Palestine Zaidi was hailed as a hero, but that is not so surprising because the list of people regarded as heros over there include the likes of Saddam, Uday, Zarqawi and Bin Laden.
A Saudi Arabian man offered $10 million for the shoes so that the next time his obese friends come over to eat a camel he can point at the shoes and say, while still chewing on camel fat, "these were the shoes that were thrown at Bush". That phrase would elevate his standing in society to degrees unthinkable in the Western world. The Saudi would need to spend $50 million on property, cars, yachts and private jets to achieve the same results, so from his point of view $10 million is a decent investment.
The real irony in this case is that it was only because of what Bush did in 2003 that gave people like Zaidi the opportunity to express their 'opinions' in this way. This brave Iraqi hero could not have shown the world the extent of his 'honour' and national 'pride' if it wasn't for the evil infidel Bush who forced Saddam to live in a rat-hole not even worthy of rabid rats.
News
Sunday, December 21, 2008
Sunday, December 07, 2008
Status Of Forces Agreement
Prime Minister Maliki's Chief of Staff, Dr Tarik Najem Abdullah, was a guest speaker at an event organised by the Muslim Youth Association. The event took place on Saturday in the Dar al-Islam Foundation in north-west London. The issue was of course the SOFA and the future of Iraq.
Abdullah went into detail regarding what the SOFA really means for Iraq and how it was dealt with. He spoke with a certain degree of equanimity, and considering this is such a highly controversial subject, I found it both refreshing and impressive.
He started by emphasising the fact that everyone was in on the details of the negotiations, both groups inside the government and also those outside. After every round of negotiations all the different political groups were briefed on the developments. Even before the cabinet agreed to sign the agreement Maliki had a meeting with all the political heads in Iraq, and no one, except the Sadrists, opposed the final agreement. There were differences of opinion on some aspects of the SOFA with some groups but the Sadrists refused to accept it outright.
"The Iraqi government had a choice", he said, "between asking the US forces to stay in Iraq for one more year, under the current circumstances, or start negotiating the SOFA". He also told the audience to bear in mind that any military force stationed in any other country in the world would need to have some sort of agreement with the local government otherwise nothing would work. Signing the SOFA was in the best interest of Iraq.
The negotiations reached an impasse in June 2008, when Maliki voiced his concerns over Iraqi sovereignty and again when negotiations officially ended in October 2008, when there were still 155 points that the Iraqis could not agree on with the Americans. While 90 of these revolved around the use of language, some of the others infringed Iraq's sovereignty. Talks were revived again in early November and in the revised version, which according to Abdullah was a victory for Iraq, the Americans were forced to compromise on many issues. Some issues were dealt with and agreed on just two days before the deal was approved by the Iraqi cabinet.
The major issues, such as prosecution of US forces or contractors in Iraqi courts ended up being in the favour of the Iraqis. Also the Iraqi forces are allowed to search the Americans but the Americans are not allowed to search or detain without the approval of an Iraqi Judge. There will also not be a single permanent US military-base in Iraq.
Abdullah mentioned on more than one occasion that the Iraqi negotiators managed to strike a deal with the Americans that is unique and nothing like any SOFA the Americans have around the world with over 80 other countries. He said "We should be proud of the negotiators". The German Ambassador in Baghdad was so impressed by the deal he told the Iraqis "What you have managed to get, we could only have dreamed of".
Now it seems Britain will also have to sign a SOFA with Iraq and I think someone should remind them, just in case they forget, to sign it with the Government of Iraq and not the militias.
Abdullah went into detail regarding what the SOFA really means for Iraq and how it was dealt with. He spoke with a certain degree of equanimity, and considering this is such a highly controversial subject, I found it both refreshing and impressive.
He started by emphasising the fact that everyone was in on the details of the negotiations, both groups inside the government and also those outside. After every round of negotiations all the different political groups were briefed on the developments. Even before the cabinet agreed to sign the agreement Maliki had a meeting with all the political heads in Iraq, and no one, except the Sadrists, opposed the final agreement. There were differences of opinion on some aspects of the SOFA with some groups but the Sadrists refused to accept it outright.
"The Iraqi government had a choice", he said, "between asking the US forces to stay in Iraq for one more year, under the current circumstances, or start negotiating the SOFA". He also told the audience to bear in mind that any military force stationed in any other country in the world would need to have some sort of agreement with the local government otherwise nothing would work. Signing the SOFA was in the best interest of Iraq.
The negotiations reached an impasse in June 2008, when Maliki voiced his concerns over Iraqi sovereignty and again when negotiations officially ended in October 2008, when there were still 155 points that the Iraqis could not agree on with the Americans. While 90 of these revolved around the use of language, some of the others infringed Iraq's sovereignty. Talks were revived again in early November and in the revised version, which according to Abdullah was a victory for Iraq, the Americans were forced to compromise on many issues. Some issues were dealt with and agreed on just two days before the deal was approved by the Iraqi cabinet.
The major issues, such as prosecution of US forces or contractors in Iraqi courts ended up being in the favour of the Iraqis. Also the Iraqi forces are allowed to search the Americans but the Americans are not allowed to search or detain without the approval of an Iraqi Judge. There will also not be a single permanent US military-base in Iraq.
Abdullah mentioned on more than one occasion that the Iraqi negotiators managed to strike a deal with the Americans that is unique and nothing like any SOFA the Americans have around the world with over 80 other countries. He said "We should be proud of the negotiators". The German Ambassador in Baghdad was so impressed by the deal he told the Iraqis "What you have managed to get, we could only have dreamed of".
Now it seems Britain will also have to sign a SOFA with Iraq and I think someone should remind them, just in case they forget, to sign it with the Government of Iraq and not the militias.
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