Does Iraq need new Baath party?
There is news coming about something like a formation of a new Baath party! The same news indicates that Syria is somehow behind this step. If this is true, it is very dangerous for the stability of Iraq in future. Every one know that the Baath party imported to Iraq from Syria and the Syrian party is no difference from the Iraqi one in its totalitarianism in power control and in its oppressive way to its own citizens. Both parties have the same dogma and the only differences are who will control the power which is Saddam and his tribesmen in Iraq and Assad and his tribes in Syria.
Those who say that the Baath party represent the Sunnis are wrong because it is a mixture of Sunni and Shiite members although Saddam used the ethnic card to be able to control. Same card used in Syria. In both countries Baath uses the force to stay in power and the only achievements it got are for its own members. It calls for Arab unity, freedom and socialism. None of these but the reverse were achieved in both countries. Baath party always stated that it may use force to achieve its goals which is the power control of course.
Baath controlled power twice in Iraq. In 1962 for a while before the pro-Arab nationalist Abd Assalam Aref kicked them away; may be by request from Jamal Abd Naseer who was another dictator. During 1960s the Baath had its own militia called AL Haress Al Qawmi (The National Guard) which used too many ways of intimidations, rapes, assassinations, killing, tortures, etc to remain in power or just to prevent their opponents from the political work in the country. They had a prison called Qaser Al Nehiya (The palace of termination). Any one who enters that place considered finished for ever or if he got a chance to get out he or she will not be psychologically stable person and may be handicapped and mutilated. Women and men rapes were one of their preferred ways on that place.
When the Baath came back in 1968 the Iraqis still have fresh memory about their crimes few years ago. The Baathist broadcasted their first announcement after they control power by tanks worked its way through the Republican Palace and arrested the previous non-elected self-appointed weak president Abd Al Rahman Areef. In the first announcement it was not clear who were these new coup de tat rulers. The people feared and prayed to God that they are not the Baathist again. To mislead the people the Baathist reassured them that they will not repeat the same mistakes of 8th Feb 1962 coup de tat again (they mean the rapes, killing etc mentioned above). They withdraw any celebration about that date but only after few days the people realised that this time is even worse than the previous one starting with the executions of many Jewish and Shiite (Aaezra Naji Zelkha and his group) accusing them as spying for Israel in Baghdad and Basrah after a short trial by a special court. The other the atrocities followed later which only we know and seen the iceberg of it. When Saddam controlled absolute power after clearing the way for himself by executing many of his opponents and forced Ahmed Hassan Al Baker to resign he declared the 8th of Feb 1962 as the Bride of all revolutions! He was among Al haress Al qawmi at its dark time.
How can the Iraqis even think about accepting the Baathist back and yet the criminals among them have not been prosecuted and some even free? There must be something wrong going on there. Syria should not interfere in the Iraqi affairs and they should solve their own problems and try to introduce a democratic system to end the presidency for life issue and the one party state for ever. They should give back the 250 millions dollars of the Iraqi money which is frozen in their banks as well as all the other Arabs should do the same. The Iraqi people are not responsible for the debits of Saddam. We know that how much the Arabs, the French, the Russians and the others benefited from selling the dog staffs to the Iraqis to eat it during the years of sanctions. There are too many East Europeans regret their allowances for the communist to enter in politic after the end of communist. They consider them as a time bomb and it will be a big mistake if the Iraqis allowed the Baathist to enter politics as soon as this time.
<< Home