Sectarian malaise

By Salama A Salama

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In the mid-1990s, Rwanda was the scene of massacres involving Hutus and Tutsis, in which almost half a million people lost their lives. This was the worst case of ethnic cleansing in recent memory, but it was not the only one. In Bosnia, a similar conflict erupted, albeit on a smaller scale. But the last thing we expected to see was genocide in the heart of the Arab world. Yes, there have been sad instances in Algeria, but these were thought to be the exception to the rule. Then came Iraq. What we have learnt is that ethnic cleansing can happen close to home.

Nothing prepared us for Iraq. Sectarian strife began on a limited scale then it suddenly mushroomed into all-out conflict between Sunnis and Shias. Dozens are killed everyday, in markets and mosques, in homes and in streets. Government employees, university teachers are abducted and shot. Militiamen attack homes, take victims away in buses, and then shoot them in cold blood. Since the occupation began, over 500,000 people are believed to have died.

The government of Nuri Al-Maliki recently slammed a curfew on Baghdad, but the violence continues. Gangsters dressed as policemen go from home to home, robbing and killing innocent victims, just because they're from the wrong sect. Shia militia, such as the Mehdi Army of Moqtada Al-Sadr and the Badr Corps of Abdul-Aziz Al-Hakim, are blamed for much of the mayhem. But Sunni militia can be just as brutal. The government is either unable to stop the killing or -- as some claim -- collaborates with the murderers. Clerics on both sides have called for tolerance and reason, but the mayhem has not stopped.

US forces were supposed to be in charge of security in the country, but so far they've done little to stop the violence. Some say the Americans are solely interested in fighting Al-Qaeda and the remnants of the Baath Party. Others say the Americans encouraged the Shias to assert themselves at the expense of the Sunni community, which was in power under Saddam Hussein. The problem is more complex than that. Sectarian discrimination is part of Iraq's history. Tensions between the Sunnis and Shias are not entirely new. Once politics was restructured along sectarian lines, pent- up frustrations burst to the surface.

The point I am trying to make is that religious fanaticism can be destructive to any nation. Once a sectarian malaise takes root, once it had its first taste of blood, it is hard to go back. Countries that fall prey to sectarianism fall apart and end up dominated by foreign powers. This is how the Iraq case appears. This is the Iraqi malaise.

The worst part of this malaise is that it is contagious. We've already seen sectarianism rearing its head in the Gulf. In recent elections in Bahrain and Kuwait, sectarianism and fanaticism spoke louder than moderation and common sense. No Arab country is immune to this contagious malaise. Just take a look at Lebanon, where politics are but a thin disguise for sectarian tensions.

The history of political progress points towards the secular state. There is a difference between a religion that acts as a moral force and a tide of fanaticism that holds back progress. Fanaticism of the type seen in Egypt amid debate over the veil is destructive. Fanaticism is pitting Islam against democracy. It is turning political debates into a religious tug of war. Once this happens, bloodshed won't be far behind. The mix of religious ardour and sectarian discrimination is politically inflammable and potentially lethal.