Re: A Day When Mahdi Army Showed Its Other Side
On Nov 27, 2006, at 1:51 PM, Marvin Gandall wrote:
>
On Nov 27, 2006, at 10:02 AM, Marvin Gandall wrote:
reactionary beliefs derived from rural culture
Though based in an urban slum?
How do you know what Sadr’s program is?
> Doug
I haven’t seen any of the material of the movement, except
indirectly, but I think it’s a good guess that the model the Sadrists have in mind most closely approximates the Islamic Republic of Iran. You’re right to
suggest, however, that popular movements which favour economic
redistribution but are politically and culturally illiberal are not strictly a rural
phenomenon and also find significant support among the urban poor and unemployed.In any case, you don’t think the Sadrists - any more than the
followers of Khomeini and Nasrallah - are just a bunch of crazy nihilists with
no idea what they would do with power, do you? And if you don’t think that,
then where do you think they would look for inspiration and guidance?
Unlike Yoshie, I’m certainly no expert on Sadrism, though some web
research (for what that’s worth) suggests it’s Khomeini-ish, though
independent of Iran. I was responding to Yoshie’s claim in a headnote
to a forwarded article that the Sadrists do have a political program,
but it wasn’t discussed in the appended article. The “populist”
component - in the economic sense - of the Iranian regime is
Ahmadinejad’s contribution, not the long-reigning mullahs’.
Here’s Juan Cole
He [Muqtada al-Sadr] began by explaining to the interviewer what
was meant by the “Sadr Movement,” which he said is not a political
party. He described it as simply consisting of anyone who strictly
follows [yuqallid] the teachings of Ayatollah Muhammad Sadiq al- Sadr (d. 1999), Muqtada’s father (known as “the second martyr”). He
said that in a wider sense, anyone who honored the “Speaking
Hawzah” or religious authority, including those who follow
Ayatollah Muhammad Baqir al-Sadr (d. 1980) (”the first martyr”),
could be counted as part of the Sadr Movement. They call for the
Islamization of society and the spread of Islam in the world, so
that it will become a base for the advent of the Imam Mahdi [the
Muslim messiah to come at the end of time]. […] Muqtada says that the goal of the Sadr Movement is the creation of
an Islamic society. “For an ‘Islamic government’ without an Islamic
society cannot in any way be considered actually an Islamic
government.” He rejects any separation of religion and state. “I
say that religion is complete and all-encompassing, extending to
politics.” Since religion issues from God, who is perfect and
complete, religion itself must be complete, and therefore must
encompass all aspects of life. Religion is a part of politics, but
politics must not dictate religion. […] Asked about the trial of Saddam, Muqtada says that his greatest
fear is that the trial will be conducted in such a way that he will
be found innocent. He says that whoever was killed in Iraq was
killed by Saddam, directly or indirectly. He killed Muhammad Baqir
al-Sadr with his own hands, but killed Muhammad Sadiq al-Sadr
through others. He deserves death.
Doug