Sistani's fatwa

[eridani]

http://www.juancole.com/2004_06_01_juancole_archive.html#108628011298855089

•trans. J. Cole
Many of the believers have asked about his position toward the new Iraqi government, which was constituted yesterday through the efforts of Mr. Lakhdar Brahimi, the envoy of the secretary general of the United Nations:

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In His Name, May He be exalted.

His excellency the Sayyid had previously and repeatedly affirmed the necessity for the Iraqi government to possess a sovereignty that derives from free and honest elections in which the children of the Iraqi people participate in a general way.

There are many well known reasons for which elections were postponed--obstruction and bargaining, obstinacy and intimidation. The time fled, and the appointed date of 30 June approached, on which it was supposed that Iraqis would regain sovereignty over their country.

Thus, the process has become one of appointment, in order to form a new government, without achieving the legitimacy of having been elected. Moreover, it does not represent all the religious systems of Iraqi society and all political forces in an appropriate way.

etc.

[Ms. Clio]

1. Sistani still giving them the benefit of the doubt?

"Thus, the process has become one of appointment, in order to form a new government, without achieving the legitimacy of having been elected. Moreover, it does not represent all slices of Iraqi society and all political forces in an appropriate way.

Even so, if it is to be hoped that this government will establish its worthiness and probity and its unwavering determination to shoulder the immense burdens now facing it, it must:

(snip of a list of eminently reasonable demands)

What will happen when he has finally reached his limit?

[Aidoneus]

2. he'll just set a new limit

cf. the Annajaf alAshraf/Karbala` "red line" that the occupyers must absolutely not under any circumstances cross.

[Ms. Clio]

4. I see--so he is basically ineffectual?

Or a collaborator?

I respect your opinion on these matters--what is his position, and how do you see it evolving as the situation changes/worsens?

[Teaser]

5. He is no collaborator

But he is not an opposition either.

His main goal is to avoid social disruption. It is the cornerstone of his political philosophy, such as it is.

[Ms. Clio]

7. But what if the society is even more disrupted by the occupation?

Apparently crime and security are much much worse now than under Saddam, for example.

[Teaser]

9. Not in the south it's not.

It's still *fairly* stable there, even with the Sadrist rebellion.

[Dhalgren]

15. Whether anyone chooses to believe it or not,

Sistani is a man of peace. This whole situation has him in a quandry. His tradition is not pacifist, so he has a hard time adopting the Ghandian mode, but he seems to want to. How far he can be pushed is anyone's guess.

[Teaser]

3. Ayatollah as-Sistani will never reach his limit

I communicated with Mr. Cole himself, and I've been informed that he does not believe this to be an "endorsement" of the new government. Rather as-Sistani is saying that this is the situation that they are faced with, and the best that can be hoped for is for this illegitimate government to fulfill it's promises.

That said, as-Sistani's greatest fear is social disorder. He will never do anything that could increase the probability of that disorder. Even if it means taking more and more shit from the occupation.

This man survived for years under Saddaam by issuing ambiguous and inoffensive statements that could be read any number of ways depending on the reader's political bent.

The only thing that I could see changing this dynamic is if Moqtada as-Sadr continues to build his support among the population to the point where it threatens as-Sistani.

[Ms. Clio]

6. Thanks for the information

Is al-Sadr likely to do that?

[Teaser]

8. Depends

on how things go with his insurrection.

The Best thing as-Sadr could do for his movement is to allow himself to be captured or killed.

Either event would shift the balance to the Sadrist movement and away from the clerical establishment at Najaf.

As it is, Sistani will keep the South of Iraq from open revolt. That will *never* be a problem for us as long as Sistani remains the dominant example for shiite muslims.

The thing about shi'ah islam is that it involves taking one person, usually an ayatollah, as your "example" who decides moral issues for you. You cede your responsibility to them.

Right now, in the south, as-Sistani is that example for most people. So it would take a major precipitating event for that perception to change. If the southern shi'ah see as-Sistani make a slip up, or if the new "government" fails to follow through on as-Sistani's recommendations, as-Sistani will likely suffer some kind of crisis of confidence in his status as "marjah al-taqlid", or "object of emulation."

Sadr may not be able to fulfill this role yet, because of his lack of advanced theological degrees. But a decrease in as-Sistani's stature will certainly increase as-SAdr's stature to some extent.

[DoveTurnedHawk]

10. First Good News I've Heard in a While

If Sistani sticks with the process, there is actually hope for an orderly transition.

DTH

[Teaser]

11. It is not good news or bad news.

Essentially all it says is:

"I hope this thing works."

Which has been his position since the invasion, more or less.

[DoveTurnedHawk]

12. Lack of Opposition by the Most Influential Iraqi Cleric Is Good News

In my book, anyway.

DTH

[Teaser]

13. IT's the same story that's been told for the last year.

as-Sistani's pronouncement is a complex way of saying nothing. Which is what he's done for most of last year. In only a few instances did he *ever* say anything about the occupation, and then in very guarded tones. It's all he ever does.

[DoveTurnedHawk]

14. Which Is a Hell of a Lot Better Than What Sadr is Doing (eom)

DTH

[StopThief]

16. Teaser, I have a question for you.

It appears to me that you lack respect for Sistani due to his lack of encouraging revolt against the occupation. Am I misreading your very subtle message?

Also, I have never seen the use of "as" preceding a name. Is this more correct than the more common "al"?

[Teaser]

17. It's not a matter of respect or disrespect

I have no feelings for the man whatsoever. I speak arabic, but I am not a muslim.

I'm just providing an objective analysis of the man and his motivations. He is not a man of peace or a man of war. He simply is the type of leader who'd like to see order preserved at almost any cost, so that al-Hawza can go about its religious business. I don't know what there is to respect in that view, but I don't really have a big problem with it either. It's just his way.

as for pronouciation, the arabic definite article "al", in modern standard arabic is elided with the first consonant of the following word for a large number of initial letters.

for example the city of najaf, is "an-Najaf" , Nasiriyah is "an-Nasiriyah", Ramadi is "ar-Ramadi" but Baghdad is "al-Baghdad" and Kut is "al-Kut".

There are two S sounds, sin (regular s sound) and Saad (an almost shouted S followed by a thickening of the vowel)in arabic. Both are elided into the "al" prefix so al Sadr is "asSadr" and al Sistani is "asSistani".

I don't like the transliteration al-Sistani (although I will use it for some audiences) because it misleads people about how the name is pronounced. It would be as offensive as calling the head of Clan MacDougal in Scotland "Mr. Make-Doogal".

[StopThief]

18. Thank you for the grammar information.

Do you have a personal opinion on whether Sistani would better serve those who follow him by encouraging an uprising?

[Teaser]

19. A few suggestions

I don't believe Sistani would serve anyone by encouraging an uprising. He should, however, apply more active pressure to the Coalition for early elections.

He was conned out of early elections by Brahimi (who is an inveterate stooge of the US occupation, BTW).

as-Sistani would serve everyone's interest by encouraging demonstrations for elections now. There is no need for registration of the population. As Juan Cole and others have noted, the UN oil for food program has issued ID cards to every Iraqi citizen. The names on these cards are tabulated and could be used as a form of "soft voter registration".

We could hold elections in a manner of 2 months if we wanted. Sistani could make us do it.