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July 3, 2006 • VOL. 44, NO. 13 • Oakland, CA
Iraqi Catholics in U.S. see long struggle ahead
SAN DIEGO
(CNS) -- Appointing members of rival sectarian factions to key positions
in Iraq’s permanent government does not guarantee religious freedom,
security and long-term stability in the war-ravaged nation, according
to U.S. Iraqi Catholics.
Iraq’s Parliament recently approved the appointments of a Sunni
Muslim as defense minister, and of two Shiites as ministers of the interior
and national security departments.
Kurds, two Christians and members of other groups also comprise the 39-member
Cabinet.
In the December 2005 election, Iraqis elected only three Christians to
the nation’s 275-member Parliament. Christians comprise about 3
percent of the country’s estimated 27 million population.
Some in Parliament favor amending the constitution, which requires laws
to conform to provisions of Islamic law. But fundamentalists in the legislature
want Islam to be the state religion, giving “Muslim clerics the
power to dictate law” and to veto measures, said Bishop Sarhad Jammo
of St. Peter the Apostle Eparchy, based in El Cajon.
Robert Putrus of Escondido, who attends St. Peter’s Chaldean Cathedral
in El Cajon, said Christians in Iraq would continue to suffer if the constitution
does not grant religious freedom.
Christian owners of businesses, such as liquor stores, have been killed
by radical Shiites bent on religious cleansing, he said.
In amending the constitution, the top priority for factions in Parliament
is protecting their own interests, not working for religious freedom,
according to Sam Kosa of St. Michael Chaldean Catholic Church in El Cajon.
“Kurds want to expand their territory; Shiites want to follow Islamic
law; and Sunnis want more power,” which they lost after former Iraqi
President Saddam Hussein’s fall, he said.
Putrus said it is unlikely the constitution will be amended to allow religious
freedom. “There has been no separation of church and state in Iraq
before, during and after Saddam’s rule,” he said.
The Iraqis interviewed foresee a lengthy struggle as the new government
strives to curb terrorism and bring long-term security and stability to
their homeland.
Putrus believes that representation of rival factions in the government
“will eventually mitigate the violence. Militia members and terrorists
pose the greatest threat to Iraq’s security,” he said. “Militias
have allegiance to radical affiliations, not to the country.”
Putrus disagrees with Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki’s goal of integrating
militias into Iraq’s security structure. The militias should first
be disbanded; then volunteers could join Iraq’s security forces,
he said.
Kosa favors integrating militia members into Iraq’s security forces,
but only those who are qualified, trained and loyal to the government.
He said the country’s military and police forces must be stabilized
to curb terrorist attacks.
Bishop Jammo, on the other hand, said some militias were originally formed
to defend sections of cities that the government could not secure. “Now
the militias are fighting each other,” he said, noting conflicts
between anti-government Sunnis and terrorists from Iran and Saudi Arabia.
The insurgents cannot be controlled until Iraq’s army and police
force are independent and equipped by the U.S. military, he said. Terrorist
attacks also have crippled the country’s infrastructure and coalition
construction projects, the bishop added. “There is less electricity
and running water available now than there was four years ago.”
Regarding the threat of civil war, Bishop Jammo said sectarian violence
could lead to such a conflict.
Kosa called the ongoing violence an “undeclared civil war.”
Insurgents in Baghdad, Iraq, are fighting to cleanse the area of rival
factions. “It’s neighbor against neighbor,” he said.
Iranians are supporting the Shiites, and Sunnis in Saudi Arabia, Jordan
and Syria are backing their counterparts in Iraq, he added.
Those interviewed oppose partitioning Iraq to separate Shiites, Sunnis
and Kurds, which some U.S. military officers claim is necessary to avoid
a civil war. “Fragmenting the country into independent regions would
create anger and continuous fighting,” Bishop Jammo said. He favors
regional governments under a united federation, which Iraq’s Constitution
allows.
The escalating violence has taken the lives of 2,500 U.S. troops and,
according to a number of media sources, between 38,000 and 42,000 civilians.
To control the violence, “trust needs to be built among Shiites,
Sunnis and Kurds,” Kosa said. “If the constitution is their
standard, they will build that trust.”
An armed security guard stands watch outside the Syrian
Catholic Church during a Good Friday service in Baghdad, Iraq, April 14.
Christians make up some three percent of Iraq’s population of about
25 million.
CNS PHOTO/CEERWAN AZIZ/REUTERS
An Iraqi boy lights a candle near a statue of Mary outside
a church in Basra, Iraq, April 16. Despite the threat of sectarian violence,
Iraqi Christians gathered to celebrate Easter.
CNS PHOTO/WISAM AHMED/REUTERS
