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Today
This Year in Iraq
Muharram is one of the most significant events in the history of Shi'a Muslims.
This year holds special significance for Shi'a Muslims as it is the first time
since Saddam seized power in 1968 that it will be allowed to be commemorated openly
in the streets of Karbala.
To understand the importance of this event one must consider the status of
Shi'a Muslims in Iraq and the country's recent political history.
Persecution and suffering is a phenomenon that Iraq's Shi'a have long-been familiar with stretching right back to Husayn's time.
The movement began with the followers of 'Ali (father of Husayn) but it was Husayn's martyrdom which galvanised support and conviction amongst Muslims and ensured the growth of Shi'a followers.
Shi'a have always been the majority (approximately 65%) of the population in Iraq but for decades they have been oppressed by the ruling Ba'th party regime.
Led by Saddam Hussein, the regime was largely Sunni and tended to mistrust and discourage publicly observing rites such as Muharram which some perceived as a threat to their power.
The event is based around the central tenet of the Shi'a movement, that the legitimate
ruler of the Muslim community (Caliph) is someone directly descended from the
Prophet Muhahammed (the Imam) such as Husayn.
Shi'a believe the Imam must be appointed by the Prophet. This belief threatens any Muslim leader who is not a direct descendant of the Prophet including Saddam Hussein.
Muharram also commemorates the refusal of Husayn to bow down to oppression.
The overthrow of the Ba'th government and the survival of this event which tells the story of a man who refused to bow to a tyrant resonates strongly with Shi'a who too have suffered oppression and are only now regaining their religious freedom.
The commemoration of Muharram also reinforces and propagates the Shi'a religion. Much more than just a yearly tradition, it lies at the heart of Shi'a identity itself. The visits to the shrines of Husayn and his brother 'Abbas at Karbala, as well as the processions of mourners who often beat their chests and practice self - flagellation are all ways of uniting with Shi'a in a religious ceremony of grief and raise their profile around the world.
To find out more about Iraq's political history and the rise of the Ba'th party
regime and its effect on Shi'a click here.
Iraq's Political History
The story of Imam Husayn, oppressed by a powerful and militaristic ruler has many parallels with the plight of Shi'a Muslims in Iraq and the rise during the late 1960's of Saddam Hussein and his Ba'ath party-dominated government which was composed predominantly of Sunnis.
By 1968, the Shi'a element of the Ba'ath party dropped to 6% and Shi'a masses
looked for alternate representation. In answer to this, the largest Shi'a political
organisation, the Al-Da'wa al-Islamiyah party (Islamic Call), formed in 1958 provided
an outlet for the increasingly disaffected Shi'a people.
Believing that there was no hope of social improvement through political activity and faced with the being ruled by a Sunni-dominated government, Muharram and its religious processions became an outlet for political protest.
In 1974 five members of the Da'wa party were executed after rioting in Karbala. In 1977 there were more serious disturbances and eight were executed. Faced with this defiance of their rule, the Ba'th party took steps to control (some say ban) Muharram commemorations in order to limit their power over Shi'a Muslims.
The traditional march of Shi'a from Najaf to Karbala to visit the holy shrines was also suppressed. One of the most visible ways the commemoration of Muharram was discouraged could be seen in the declining number of flagellants. The performance of flagellation turned from the enthusiastic wielding of knives, swords and chains to paying others to perform it.
Indeed, Iraqi Shi'a groups acknowledge that by abolishing the public rites, the
government took an enormous step towards bolstering its own rule, for these rites
had threatened the Sunni dominance of Iraq.
Day to day life for Shi'a Muslims in Iraq became increasingly dangerous during the '70's especially after the 1979 Iranian Revolution and during Saddam's eight-year war against Iran in the '80's where Iranian Shi'a were targeted.
Shi'a Muslims associated with the Da'wa party were arrested and either executed or deported across the border to Iran. With this massive campaign, the Ba'th party succeeded in destroying the power of the Da'wa culminating in April 1980, with the execution of the Ayatollah Sadr, the symbol of Shi'a opposition to Saddam's Iraq.
As the war between Iran and Iraq dragged on Iraqi Shi'a participated in an unsuccessful uprising against the regime which only worsened the situation. The Sunni authorities cracked down on the Iraqi Shi'a leading to further terror and executions.
On May 1st 2003, with the official end of the US-led invasion and the overthrow of Saddam Hussein's Ba'th Party, Shi'a Muslims celebrated their religious freedom. Today, Iraq is still occupied by coalition forces and only just beginning to rebuild.
The renaissance of Muharram, a religious ritual that at its heart is bound up with the Shi'a way of life marks the first steps of a country keen to reassert its traditions and revel in its heritage.
Who holds power today? Who's who in the Iraqi world?
At the forefront of a revitalised Iraqi Shi'a community are influential clerics. A number of leaders stand out - ranging from the older, more reserved leadership to younger, more militant mullahs eager to assert their power after so long in the political wilderness.
Two of the principal leaders are:
The Grand Ayatollah Ali Hussein al-Sistani: A top "marjaa," or
religious authority, in the Shi'a clerical hierarchy and recognised to be the
leader of Shi'a Muslims. Originally from Iran, he heads the Hawza al - llmiya,
a historic centre of Shi'a learning in the shrine city of Najaf. Whilst Al - Sistani
has rejected any 'foreign rule' of Iraq he has urged his followers not to interfere
with coalition forces and says that he will accept whatever form of government
that the Iraqi people approves of.
Muqtada al-Sadr: The third son of the Ayatollah Mohammad Sadiq al-Sadr.
Sadr known as Sadr the second was murdered by Saddam's regime in February 1999
and is now revered by many as a martyr. His son enjoys much support due to his
family name although he is too young and of too low a clerical rank to take on
the symbolic leadership that Sistani holds.
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