Sectarianism in Iraq: Antagonistic Visions of Unity PDF
Preview Sectarianism in Iraq: Antagonistic Visions of Unity
SECTARIANISm IN IRAQ This page intentionally left blank FANAR HADDAD Sectarianism in Iraq Antagonistic Visions of Unity A A Oxford University Press, Inc., publishes works that further Oxford University’s objective of excellence in research, scholarship, and education. Oxford New York Auckland Cape Town Dar es Salaam Hong Kong Karachi Kuala Lumpur madrid melbourne mexico City Nairobi New Delhi Shanghai Taipei Toronto With offices in Argentina Austria Brazil Chile Czech Republic France Greece Guatemala Hungary Italy Japan Poland Portugal Singapore South Korea Switzerland Thailand Turkey Ukraine Vietnam Copyright © 2011 Fanar Haddad Oxford is a registered trade mark of Oxford University Press in the UK and certain other countries. Published by Oxford University Press, Inc 198 madison Avenue, New York, New York 10016 Published in the United Kingdom in 2014 by C. Hurst & Co. (Publishers) Ltd. www.oup.com Oxford is a registered trademark of Oxford University Press All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise, without the prior permission of Oxford University Press. Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data is available for this title Fanar Haddad Sectarianism in Iraq Antagonistic Visions of Unity ISBN 978-0-19-932-738-6 To my parents This page intentionally left blank CONTENTS Acknowledgments ix 1. Introduction 1 2. Approaching a Theory of Sectarianism 7 Defining Sectarianism 8 Drivers of Sectarian Identity 10 External Influence 10 Economic Competition 14 Competing myth-Symbol Complexes 17 Contested Cultural Ownership of the Nation 21 ‘Ethnohistories’ and the Formation of Sectarian Identity 23 Assertive, Passive and Banal Sectarianism 25 3. Sectarianism in Iraq 31 Iraqi Nationalism between State, Sunnis and Shi’as 32 Sectarian Relations and Dominant Narratives of the Iraqi Nation-State 38 The Conflation of Sectarian Identity with Ethnicity 40 The Suppression of Shi’a Identity 43 The Interaction of Sunni and Shi’a identities 51 ‘We’re all Brothers’ 52 Class and Geographic Boundaries 56 Sectarian Relations in Social Relations 60 A Final Qualifier 62 4. The Events of march 1991 65 Beginnings 66 Leadership and Coordination 69 vii CONTENTS The End of the Uprisings 73 Iran and the Uprisings 76 Contentious Symbolism 80 The Consequences of the Events of 1991 84 5. The Sanctions-Era 87 The Economic Breakdown 89 Neo-Tribalism 94 The Religious Revival 103 Al-Hamla al-Imaniya 105 Sectarian Identity 109 Conclusion 115 6. Sectarian Relations and the mythology of 1991 117 The State’s Response 118 The Page of Betrayal and Treason 127 Al-Intifada al-Sha’abaniyah 132 7. Sectarian Relations in Post-2003 Iraq 143 The New Iraq 143 Sectarian Identity in Post-2003 Iraq 145 Outsiders, Insiders and the Formalisation of Sectarian Politics 147 The Collision of Myth-Symbol Complexes in Post-2003 Iraq 151 Sectarian Nationalism in Post-2003 Iraq 152 The Contest for Cultural Ownership of Iraq 154 An Old Symbol in a New Environment: the mass Graves 162 Iraq, the Arab World and Arab Identity 166 Arab Fighters in the Sectarian Imagination 172 Competing Victimhoods 175 8. Civil War 179 What is a Civil War? 179 Ethnic Conflict 182 Sectarian Relations and Sectarian Civil War 185 The Symbols of Assertive and Aggressive Sectarianism 187 Fixing the Breakdown 199 Conclusion 205 Notes 211 Selected Bibliography 273 Glossary 287 Index 291 viii ACKNOWLEDGmENTS my research is not strictly limited to the ‘scientific’ but benefits from the insights and experiences of friends, family, acquaintances and colleagues all of whom have been of immeasurable value without having to be officially inter- viewed. my thanks to all of them. I am particularly indebted to mohammad Jewad al Ali and his family, Azhar and maryam, and to Ayad Sultan for their help in finding sources and in shar- ing their experiences and insights. This book would never have been written were it not for their help. I would also like to thank all those interviewed for sharing their often painful and intimate memories. I would also like to express my gratitude to my PhD supervisor Gareth Stans- field for his continuous support and encouragement. I am also indebted to Saj- jad Rizvi and to Ahab Bdaiwi for their encyclopaedic knowledge of Shi’ism. Likewise, I would like to thank Ronen Zeidel for his thoughts on sectarian identity and sectarian relations and for his considerable contribution to my own thinking on the subject. I am also indebted to mathew Preston for his help on conflict theory. my thanks as well to Reidar Visser for his help, encouragement and support on this and other projects. I would also like to express my heartfelt gratitude to Raeid Jewad who assumed the position of unofficial reader! His comments and support, not to mention his proofing, are much appreciated. The greatest debt of all is owed to my parents and to my brothers; their love, faith, encouragement and support has been an asset throughout my life. I would also like to thank my father for his help in deciphering and translating Iraqi regional dialects. Finally I would like to thank Amina for her love, support, encouragement and saintly patience. George Orwell famously described the process of writing a book as a, ‘horrible, exhausting struggle, like a long bout of some painful ill- ness.’ Amina’s presence throughout the writing of this book ensured that I would be unable to share Orwell’s lament and for that I thank her. ix
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