Sayyid Ammar al-Hakim Says Those Who Are against the National Reconciliation Are Those Who Feed on Disputes between Iraqis
Sayyid Ammar al-Hakim, head of the Islamic Supreme Council of Iraq, said that those who are against the national reconciliation project are those who feed on and take advantage of the disputes between Iraqis, stressing the need to enact laws that incriminate the provocation of sectarianism and national division, urging the media to shed the light on the instructions of the religious authority given their human historical relevance. He also stressed the need to come up with a political project that would reassure everyone, explaining that the difference is something normal, but it must be directed, calling to exploit the media platforms according to a national vision during crisis times. Moreover, he described the “Labbayka Rassul Allah” battle as that which would restore the Iraqi dignity, stating that some steps yield directly, while others take time to produce a profit, and that things must be seen from the outlook of the state and how to build it must be considered. Here he pointed to the importance of the friendship with Iran and the other neighboring and regional countries, saying that we are not ashamed of mentioning that relationship. In the same context, he added that the national coalition, with all its powers, is interested in deeper relations with all the political powers in the country which represent the Iraqi people’s components.
This came in a speech delivered by his Eminence on Saturday, 7/3/2015 at his office in Baghdad in the mayoralty hall of Baghdad in the presence of a number of journalists.
His eminence called on media outlets to assume their responsibility under the current security and economic situation prevailing in Iraq, highlighting that the media must play a role in reestablishing national cohesion in the post-ISIS phase and contribute in addressing the problem of social division, through seizing this role not waiting for it to be given to it. His eminence pointed out that ISIS is different from Al Qaeda in that the former has a large Iraqi participation while the latter doesn’t, which suggests the provocation of grudges and revenge. Sayyid Al Hakim called for the establishment of a national media front to face ISIS, stressing the need to separate military work from political work and reminding that the religious authority had warned against such intertwinement which is why it insists on the popular crowd away from other denominations. His eminence also urged the media outlets to shed light on the heroic acts of the popular crowd, their wounded and martyr members, and strongly refused to consider that individual mistakes made by some members of the crowd apply to the entire crowd. He clarified that an individual mistake is not that of the other, just like the mistake of one physician is not that of all remaining physicians, and the mistake of one journalist is not that of all remaining journalists, and so on. He affirmed that the project of the popular crowd is to build the state, this is why we see its members defending all Iraqi regions. Sayyid Al Hakim reiterated his condemnation of all the mistakes, pointing out how important it is to integrate the popular crowd under the law of the national guard. Finally, he underlined the need to seek accuracy in broadcasting the news and choosing the headlines and to ensure legal coverage for media institutions, highlighting the need for significant laws such as law on syndicates and unions and the law on civil society organizations.
