COUNTERVIEW: American intervention has boosted democracy
[ SATURDAY, DECEMBER 11, 2004 12:00:01 AM ]
Whether the situation in Iraq is better or worse today is best reflected in the common man's response to the impending elections there. On an Iraq log on the BBC website, Dhia Abdulwahab, a civil servant, writes, "A number of posters have gone up in Baghdad urging people to vote in the forthcoming elections. My friends and colleagues strongly support the elections and consider voting a duty". When George W Bush went into Iraq it was to free the country from Saddam's repressive regime and introduce democracy. Both these objectives have been met. The country is poised to hold its first free and fair elections. Adbulwahab recounts elections under Saddam as "ballot papers only carried the name of Saddam Hussein with "yes" and "no" boxes next to it. Election officials used to tick the "yes" box and then ask you to put your name on the card".
Sensing the popular mood today, a coalition supported by Iraq's top cleric, Grand Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani, is going to field as many as 228 candidates. And though the Shiite cleric Muqtada al-Sadr, who led the resistance against the American forces in the early days of the war, is not formally part of the alliance, it is believed that it has his blessings. Though the casualty rates on both sides have been high, it is clear that the Iraq operation is a triumph of American policy. So, too, the recently-concluded Afghan elections and the successful inauguration of Hamid Karzai as president. Millions of Afghans braved inclement weather to cast their vote. Afghani women voted for the first time in theelections. In Kandahar, which was the Taliban heartland, a large number of people came out to exercise their franchise. Terrorists everywhere are on the run. Democracy has taken firm root both in Iraq and Afghanistan. Washington's twin goals have been achieved.
null
[ SATURDAY, DECEMBER 11, 2004 12:00:01 AM ]
Whether the situation in Iraq is better or worse today is best reflected in the common man's response to the impending elections there. On an Iraq log on the BBC website, Dhia Abdulwahab, a civil servant, writes, "A number of posters have gone up in Baghdad urging people to vote in the forthcoming elections. My friends and colleagues strongly support the elections and consider voting a duty". When George W Bush went into Iraq it was to free the country from Saddam's repressive regime and introduce democracy. Both these objectives have been met. The country is poised to hold its first free and fair elections. Adbulwahab recounts elections under Saddam as "ballot papers only carried the name of Saddam Hussein with "yes" and "no" boxes next to it. Election officials used to tick the "yes" box and then ask you to put your name on the card".
Sensing the popular mood today, a coalition supported by Iraq's top cleric, Grand Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani, is going to field as many as 228 candidates. And though the Shiite cleric Muqtada al-Sadr, who led the resistance against the American forces in the early days of the war, is not formally part of the alliance, it is believed that it has his blessings. Though the casualty rates on both sides have been high, it is clear that the Iraq operation is a triumph of American policy. So, too, the recently-concluded Afghan elections and the successful inauguration of Hamid Karzai as president. Millions of Afghans braved inclement weather to cast their vote. Afghani women voted for the first time in theelections. In Kandahar, which was the Taliban heartland, a large number of people came out to exercise their franchise. Terrorists everywhere are on the run. Democracy has taken firm root both in Iraq and Afghanistan. Washington's twin goals have been achieved.
null
