dancing around dead bodies is not "an Iraqi tradition"
Dr. Muwaffak Al-Rubaie, the Iraqi National Security Advisor, have asked me to help him deliver this piece to the U.S. audiance :
Recently, an interview I had on CNN has been taken out of context and
quoted by multiple other sources, unfortunately damaging the image of
Iraqis. I mentioned that some of the Iraqis attending Saddam's
execution were happy that Saddam's era had come to an end, and that
all Iraqis can now work together in starting a new chapter. Some of
them expressed their happiness through a traditional dance usually
preformed at celebrations and weddings.
In no way did I mean that dancing around dead bodies is "an Iraqi
tradition". In fact, it is neither an Iraqi tradition, nor an Arab or
Muslim one. Our religion and traditions ban any gloating over
someone's grief, even if we loathed that person and thought he got
what he deserved. Our Arabic traditions and Islamic rules pertaining
to death prevent cussing, shouting, vengefulness, and wrath towards
those about to die; in addition, we are even prohibited from speaking
ill of the dead. Our Iraqi traditions in particular are against
sectarian or ethnic taunting. All the mistakes that happened during
this execution do not reflect our heritage and religion, and they do
not reflect our values in building the new Iraq.
We do understand many people's point of view who criticized the
execution's timing as well. We did not mean to offend anyone by
picking the Holy Muslim days of Eid Al-Adha, and we regret any other
offensive technicalities that occurred during the execution, but we
urge the international community to remember the bigger picture, and
see Saddam's execution as a milestone representing an end of a dark
era. We, at the Iraqi government, wanted the trial and execution of
Saddam to be a reason for putting Iraqis together and uniting Iraq,
but it was used by many political groups inside and outside Iraq as an
excuse to divide Iraqis furthermore and to find reasons for increasing
the violence.
Unfortunately, it seems that many people around the world were
distracted from the real issues, which are Saddam's crimes over the
last several decades. Our Prime Minister, Mr. Maliki, went as far as
threatening to re-think Iraq's relationships to any countries that
mourn Saddam or find excuses to criticize his trial and execution. We
want to keep the attention focused on Saddam's victims and their
sacrifices, and also on the great possibilities of the post-Saddam
Iraq.
We hope that the Western media will not end up playing into the hands
of those who wanted to increase the sectarian tension between Iraqis,
and we assure everyone that all the mistakes that occurred during
Saddam's execution are condemnable, and that our only intention was to
follow our traditions in being respectful and professional during the
execution. The Iraqi judicial system will prosecute and punish all the
people who transgressed the standards of law and decency during
Saddam's execution.
I will conclude with a quote from our prayer for the dead, a great
example of the tradition of tolerance in Islam: "All Mighty, don't
bring about divisions after his death, and forgive us for our sins".
Recently, an interview I had on CNN has been taken out of context and
quoted by multiple other sources, unfortunately damaging the image of
Iraqis. I mentioned that some of the Iraqis attending Saddam's
execution were happy that Saddam's era had come to an end, and that
all Iraqis can now work together in starting a new chapter. Some of
them expressed their happiness through a traditional dance usually
preformed at celebrations and weddings.
In no way did I mean that dancing around dead bodies is "an Iraqi
tradition". In fact, it is neither an Iraqi tradition, nor an Arab or
Muslim one. Our religion and traditions ban any gloating over
someone's grief, even if we loathed that person and thought he got
what he deserved. Our Arabic traditions and Islamic rules pertaining
to death prevent cussing, shouting, vengefulness, and wrath towards
those about to die; in addition, we are even prohibited from speaking
ill of the dead. Our Iraqi traditions in particular are against
sectarian or ethnic taunting. All the mistakes that happened during
this execution do not reflect our heritage and religion, and they do
not reflect our values in building the new Iraq.
We do understand many people's point of view who criticized the
execution's timing as well. We did not mean to offend anyone by
picking the Holy Muslim days of Eid Al-Adha, and we regret any other
offensive technicalities that occurred during the execution, but we
urge the international community to remember the bigger picture, and
see Saddam's execution as a milestone representing an end of a dark
era. We, at the Iraqi government, wanted the trial and execution of
Saddam to be a reason for putting Iraqis together and uniting Iraq,
but it was used by many political groups inside and outside Iraq as an
excuse to divide Iraqis furthermore and to find reasons for increasing
the violence.
Unfortunately, it seems that many people around the world were
distracted from the real issues, which are Saddam's crimes over the
last several decades. Our Prime Minister, Mr. Maliki, went as far as
threatening to re-think Iraq's relationships to any countries that
mourn Saddam or find excuses to criticize his trial and execution. We
want to keep the attention focused on Saddam's victims and their
sacrifices, and also on the great possibilities of the post-Saddam
Iraq.
We hope that the Western media will not end up playing into the hands
of those who wanted to increase the sectarian tension between Iraqis,
and we assure everyone that all the mistakes that occurred during
Saddam's execution are condemnable, and that our only intention was to
follow our traditions in being respectful and professional during the
execution. The Iraqi judicial system will prosecute and punish all the
people who transgressed the standards of law and decency during
Saddam's execution.
I will conclude with a quote from our prayer for the dead, a great
example of the tradition of tolerance in Islam: "All Mighty, don't
bring about divisions after his death, and forgive us for our sins".
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