Iraq Press Roundup

In its Friday editorial, the daily newspaper Al-Mashriq described civil conflict as a hysteria of the people fueled by a hunger for revenge.

Written under the headline "The depth of the Iraqi people saved them," the editorial said that because civil wars never break out without a prior sense of hysteria, the symptoms, results and miseries associated with civil conflict cannot be detached from societal preconditions.

"Results of civil wars are the same as of the American, Lebanese and Spanish civil wars; all of which are very brutal and terrifying," it said.

The editorial stated the roots of Iraqi society are to blame for civil conflict, not a sense of revenge upon those who have killed their sons in acts of brutality.

It noted that it was intended for Iraq to experience a civil war that would kill thousands of citizens, displace a large number of residents, keeping only sectarianism behind. The reality, however, is that Iraqis today, five years after the U.S. occupation of Iraq, still feel embarrassed to reveal their heritage, the editorial claimed.

"This harmony among the people of Iraq means the hysteria prior to the civil war has no existence even though technology, the communication development and intelligence capacity could have ended Iraq from the first hours of the occupation," it said.

The article said that although Iraqis are quick-tempered and in spite of the apparent attempt by foreign countries to stoke sectarian conflict in Iraq, most residents still have enough sense to not be swept up in the currents of civil war.

"Evidence showed that Iraqis are wise and original people despite the fact that they are, as many describe them, backwards. … The day when the world realizes that the Iraqi people are immune to the virus of hysteria that lead to a civil war is near," Al Mashriq newspaper summarized.

Meanwhile, in its Friday editorial, "The art of dialogue," the independent Al-Sabah Al-Jadeed newspaper commented on the new terms entering Iraqi political discussions following the fall of Saddam Hussein.

The editorial highlighted the fact that federalism, freedom of expression, tolerance, press freedom, democratic liberalism and others are terms that were added to the dictionaries of the everyday Iraqi people after 2003.

The editorial noted that common Iraqis use these political terms in daily conversation without a real understanding of their meaning, adding political language may be better understood by the educated elite.

The column added, however, that the new language is often used by analysts and politicians on television broadcasts, but not in the spirit of political debate.

"We watch these politicians come on television and raise their voices at each other when discussing an issue as an attempt to only zip the mouth of the other person, turning the scene into a joke," it said.

The editorial says this misuse of the new political language is because Iraqi society has not been given the opportunity to establish the democratic values and traditions of Western governments.

It noted that those who lived under the Iraqi monarchy, which ended in 1958, disagree, saying that despite the objective capacity to do so, the leaders of the time promoted democratic traditions.

Al-Sabah Al-Jadeed criticized some of the guests on Iraqi news shows from the political class who turn the discussion into a "circus" by insisting that engaging in a shouting match is an expression of democracy.

"Democracy is built on the art of dialogue and speeches that are civilized, logical and wise," it concluded.