Young cleric forms his own government

BAGHDAD - Sami Orfali

 Young Shiite cleric Muqtada Sadr, son of Mohammed Sadeq Sadr who was assassinated the densely populated Shiite suburb of Thawra in 1999, formed what he described as the “legitimate and national government.”

In a bid to test the popularity of his new measure, Sadr asked his supporters to go to the streets and announce their allegiance. Only a few hundreds demonstrated which harmed Sadr’s political image more than nourishing it.

Sadr again could not prove his leadership over that of the Hakim family. During Hakim’s forty-days commemoration of his death, some fifty thousand Shiites went out to the streets and wept over the assassinated leader.

Popular talk here has it, however, that Arab media satellite televisions were blowing the Sadr popularity out of proportion. “I’ve seen al-Jazira footage on a pro-Saddam demonstration that has only 50 people all of them smiling to the camera,” according to Jadiriya resident Amin Okla.

He added that several surveys were published in decent publication showing that more than half of the Iraqis supported the stay of alliance troops. “But these surveys are not given as much media coverage.”

According to Okla, Arabs in general were in love with conspiracy theory. “I saw my neighbor running into his garden. When I asked him what was wrong, he replied that American troops were shooting on civilians randomly and stealing furniture!”

Okla added: “Can you believe a soldier stealing a sofa?” He also said that many stories were based on rumors and that despite the volatile security situation, Iraq was not on its way “down the drain.”