Live, from Baghdad, it's Saturday Night!

The Iraqi refugee question (0.00 / 0)

The country's future depends on the fate of those who fled earlier sectarian violence.

Mar. 11, 2010 Even though Iraq's election is over, the vote was so divided among political coalitions that it may be weeks before a new government is formed. However, we do know that the parties that claimed to rise above sectarian divisions did well - most notably Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki's Rule of Law alliance. This indicates that many Iraqis are eager to move beyond the bloody divisiveness of past years.

We don't yet know, however, whether Iraqi politicians will heed the voters' message. Maliki, a Shiite who declared himself a leader for all Iraqis, acquiesced in the dubious banning of many Sunni candidates at the last minute.

But there is one move the next prime minister could make that would signal a desire to reunify the country: speeding the return of the hundreds of thousands of Iraqis who fled the violence, of whom around 60 percent are Sunnis and 15 percent are Christians. Most are living precariously in neighboring Arab countries, afraid to go home.

Why is their return so important? "If they're not welcome back, there is an identity problem for Iraq and the region," said veteran NPR correspondent Deborah Amos, the author of a fascinating new book that focuses on the Iraqi refugee problem, Eclipse of the Sunnis: Power, Exile, and Upheaval in the Middle East.

"The refugees are the canary in the coal mine," Amos said, a sign of whether Iraq is ready to move beyond sectarian strife. Their fate will indicate whether it has become a Shiite-dominated state in which Sunnis aren't truly welcome, or a state in which all Iraqis have a role. -->-->-->

Bleak futures and displacement not enough to keep Iraqi refugees away from the polls

Many Iraqi families have been forced to leave their homes and live in refugee camps in Syria. (Photo credit: Creative Commons)

11 March 2010 Despite the poor conditions for the Iraqi refugees living in Syria, hundreds of them still lined up at the polls on 5 March to cast their vote in the future of their country. The Iraqi election took place over three days and was held in 16 countries including Syria.

Candidates in Iraq's parliamentary elections have decided to focus their attention on refugees in Syria because they comprise the largest group of Iraqis who have been forced to leave their homes due to insecurity resulting from war. -->-->-->

Fits in with your comments on turnout. Thing is the Iraqi's especially the young, won't forget this past decade whether still in country and a or not refugee or the tens of thousands still stranded in the neighboring countries and elsewhere.  

'Hearts and Minds, "The ultimate victory will depend on the hearts and minds of the people who actually live there." -- President Lyndon Johnson

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by: jimstaro @ Sat Mar 13, 2010 at 15:03:08 PM CST

Have you (0.00 / 0)

actually ever met an Iraqi? It's just that you continuously try to lecture us on what the Iraqis think and how they will seek revenge. Personally I don't think you know what the hell you are talking about.

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by: FredUSMC @ Sat Mar 13, 2010 at 15:12:06 PM CST

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