Bush pushes forward colanisation of Iraq

I have to say that I feel Iraq is a forgotten story which is rarely considered worthy of front-page news anymore. This is not the case in America where it still receives an awful lot of column inches. Geroge Bush is currently continuing to press forward with a deal which will effectively mean Iraq becoming a colony of America. Karl Meyer has an excellent piece in the New York Times which savages the deal as a repeat of past mistakes. Specifically he compares it too the failed treaty between Britain and Iraq in 1930 which led to a wave of nationalist backlash.

The deal would provide for as many as 58 American military bases and control of Iraqi airspace. It would grant immunity from Iraqi laws to American military personnel and empower American officials to detain suspected terrorists without the approval of Iraqi authorities. Since Iraqi law would no longer hold sway over it's airspace or the actions of American troops it is hard to see how it will be able to establish authority over it's own citizens.

It gives the lie to all those who said this war was about liberating Iraq and is the embodiment of the neo-conservative doctrine on the establishment of a Pax-Americana. All of which cannot help but make you wish for the speedy eviction of Bush from the White House and his replacement by a candidate committed to bringing the occupation of Iraq to an end.

US to stay in Iraq 'indefinitely'

Today's Independent carries reports of a secret deal being negotiated in Baghdad to perpetuate the American military occupation of Iraq indefinitely. Under it US troops would occupy permanent bases, conduct military operations, arrest Iraqis and enjoy immunity from Iraqi law. America would retain the long-term use of more than 50 bases in Iraq.

The report calls into question constant US denials that it wants permanent bases in Iraq. Opposition to the 'strategic alliance' is however likely to be strong; Iraq's Prime Minister, Nouri al-Maliki, is believed to be personally opposed to the terms of the new pact but feels his coalition government cannot stay in power without US backing. However, it risks being charged with being a 'pawn' of America and may strengthen opposition headed by Shia cleric Muqtada al-Sadr.

FIFA suspends Iraqi football team

CNN reports that footballs governing body, FIFA provisionally suspended the Iraqi national team from international football. The ban, which will last for one year, is due to a government decision to disband the sport's national organising association. A governmental decree last week dissolved the Iraqi National Olympic Committee and all national sport federations, including the football association.

The government now has until Thursday to reverse its decree. If this does not happen then FIFA has said it will present the one-year suspension to the FIFA Congress meeting in Sydney, Australia on Friday. Controversy over the decree has pitted Iraqi Vice President, Tariq al-Hashimi who has urged Iraqi President Jalal Talabani to annul the decree, against Iraq's Cabinet which voted last Tuesday to "freeze the work" of the executive office of the country's Olympic committee and all its federations.

According to a senior government official, who asked not to be named, talking to CNN the Cabinet's action was brought about because of corruption charges against the Olympic committee.

Iraq on the web

The disintegration of Iraq used to be big news but it has faded from the headlines of late as the worlds eye roves elsewhere. However, there is still the small matter of Iraq being an occupied country and ordinary Iraqis struggling to exist and get to grips with their countries future. The Internet is proving to be one of the main mediums through which ordinary Iraqis can make their voices heard.

Hometown Baghdad is less a blog and more a 'Vlog'. The videos are short but informative; one shows Saif, a resident of Zayounal, attempting to barricade his house with barbed wire. Of course, the strains of living in a city like Baghdad are an ever-present theme but other videos look at more "normal" aspects of everyday life; for example, "Kiss and Tell" tells the dating stories of Saif, Adel, and Ausama. Although it is not overtly political, the crew behind the films couldn’t resist a comment on the occasion of the fourth anniversary of the fall of Saddam:

"When I was shooting one of the subjects as he packed his bag, I could feel my heart shivering. I even began feeling nervous behind the camera. How emotional the thought of packing is! I curse packing and I curse wars!”, (Ziad Turkey, Hometown Baghdad, April 9 2007).

Iraqiya is the attempt of an Iraqi woman to provide a different perspective. It is written by a "typical Iraqi woman" who has "a bachelor's degree in English and works at one of the Iraqi Ministries." Her self-description rather belies her claim that she has "not benefited from the old regime nor the new one". A lot of Iraqi blogs emanate despondency; the by-line for BlogIraq is "an Iraqi who used to have dreams." It ruminates on the disappointment that many Iraqi's feel with the occupation, marking it's fifth anniversary by starkly saying:

"Those five years were nothing but another episode of suffering. With some new types of suffering, I must admit. If we look into facts of what this war has accomplished in five years, and I mean the accomplishments to the simple Iraqi person who does not have "Democratic" dreams, you can simply say, NOTHING." (March 19th)

Nobody reading this will need any introduction to the sectarian nature of Iraq’s strife. In the crucible-like atmosphere, Healing Iraq seems to be an ambitious goal. It attempts to provide a daily commentary on news and events in Iraq and is well-written. However, as with most Iraqi blogs, the author is once again something of a mystery; although this is hardly surprising under the circumstances it is something that is more reminiscent of bloggers living under dictatorial regimes and should indicate the limits of the "freedom" that Iraq has thus far achieved. Having said that it is regularly updated and thus is a fresh source of information.

Presumably the authors of Iraq The Model thought that they were being ironic in their choice of title although Iraq has become something of a model of the limitations of what military intervention can achieve and how it can go badly wrong. Baghdadee is an interesting forum, you will have to be fluent in Arabic (or at least have access to a good page/text translator) to be able to glean the most from it.

If you want to read a comprehensive news source covering Iraq then you could do a lot worse than Iraq Slogger. As well as being presented professionally, it has an extensive array of sections covering topics as diverse as security and a section it calls "good news." Its attempts to brighten the gloom even extend to the inclusion of a humour section; however a closer examination reveals that it would be perhaps better termed satire. Societies that are as deeply immersed in civil strife as Iraq’s often find that there is little separation between politics and everyday life and indeed that shines through numerous blogs whose main function is to provide a platform for their author’s views.

Of course, maintaining any semblance of normality in such an environment would be an achievement in itself. Everyday life becomes a battle to survive and everything else tends to be lost in that, including culture that Westerners take for granted. However, a number of blogs attempt to keep the cultural flame burning for Iraq and lend an expressive voice to art, entertainment, and other cultural staples. Baghdad Artist is perhaps one of the more well-known artists but the blog has not been recently updated which, given its quality and presentation, is a shame. Poetry is also alive in Baghdad on Words That Come Out.