Iraq - Global Issues - Research Paper Example

Running head: Iraq Iraq - Global Issues Iraq has captured the headings of world politics in recent years because of the wars between Iraqand the colonial powers. Saddam was accused of killing innocent people and possessing illegal weapons of mass destruction. But, even after the execution of Saddam, Iraq is not free from conflicts and showing no signs of calming down. There are many other reasons for the Iraqi conflicts like migration problems, religious domination and under treatment of women community or male domination over the Iraqi society. This paper briefly analyses the migration issues, religious conflicts, and discrimination of woman in Iraqi society. Overview of migration/immigration in Iraq “Immigration into Iraq was limited until the beginning of the 1970s. However, the rise in oil prices and the increase of oil exports, as well as extensive public and private spending in the mid-1970s, created a market for foreign labor. The result was a stream of foreign (mainly Egyptian) workers whose number may have risen as high as 1,600,000 before the Gulf War” (Iraq – Migration, n. d). Iraq was a country blessed with immense oil and fresh water resources which are short in even developed countries like America. Many people believe that if another world war occurs; that could be for control of energy sources or fresh water sources. The high demand for energy sources and fresh water sources made Iraq a country of Immigrant’s paradise. But the brutal ruling of Saddam Hussein and the subsequent Iraq wars has created doubts in the minds of the immigrants and many people escaped to neighboring countries like Turkey and Iran. Areas of impact of religion Islam is the national religion of Iraq, adhered to by some 97% of the population according to a 1997 census. About 60–65% of Muslims belong to the Shias and 32–37% to the Sunni. About 3% of the population is adherents to Christianity and other religions including Jews” (Iraq – Religions, n. d). Even though Islam was the prominent religion in Iraq it doesn’t mean that Iraq was free from any religious conflicts. Islam itself was divided into two major fractions in Iraq as Shias and Sunnis. Even the majority Shias was not able to live safely in Iraq. Former president Saddam Hussein has been accused of killing thousands of innocent Shia Muslims and Kurds. The migration of westerners or the Christians to Iraq has been witnessed suspiciously by the Iraqi community. Iraqi leaders believed that the migration of Christians to Iraq may harm their interests and their wealth would be exploited by the Christians. Moreover, the traditional Muslims in Iraq have suspected the migration as a plot by the westerners to baptize the Iraqi Muslim community into Christian. “The most obvious effect of colonialism that has dragged out throughout the centuries is that on culture” (Scars of Colonialism, n. d). Iraqi culture is purely and traditionally based on Islamic values and principles. Christianity and Islam have more differences than similarities. Even though both these religions belong to the Abrahamic religions, that doesn’t mean that these two religions are short of any conflicts between them. The traditions and beliefs are entirely different for both the religions. Colonial powers always concentrated in spreading their religion wherever they captured control and the arrival of colonial powers like America has witnessed suspiciously by the Iraqis. Ethnic makeup of Iraq ‘Arabs constitute about 75–80% of the total population in Iraq. The Kurds, an Islamic non-Arab people, are the largest and most important minority group, constituting about 15–20%. A seminomadic pastoral people, the Kurds live in the northeastern Zagros Mountains, mostly in isolated villages in the mountain valleys near Turkey and Iran” (Iraq - Ethnic groups, n. d). Migration has increased the number of Christians in Iraqi soil. Christians are believed to be one of the most liberal religions in the world compared to Muslims or Jews. Christians treat men and women equally without any gender differences. On the other hand in the Muslim community the women are exploited heavily. “The abuse of women and girls is endemic in most societies around the world. One in three women will be raped, beaten, coerced into sex or otherwise violated in her lifetime. Rape as a weapon of war is a feature of conflicts from Sudan to Iraq” (Global Fund for Women, 2009). The contributions of the women to the human development often underestimated even in the civilized societies. “Despite the fact that women are the worlds principal food producers and providers, they remain invisible partners in development”(Gender and Food Security). Compared to men, women are more involved in growing food crops and doing kitchen jobs. Even though women are more hard working than the men, their contributions are neglected by the society. “In some patriarchal societies, religion or tradition can be used as a barrier for equal rights” (Shah, 2009). For example, in Iraq, the rights of the women are often overlooked by the male dominated Muslim society. The rights of the Muslim women are limited in most of the Muslim countries and in Iraq it is for name sake only. Women face human rights injustices, in addition to gender-based discrimination.  Women and children account for most casualties of war and make up most of the worlds refugees, displaced and poor populations. (Amnesty International USA, 2009) Conclusions Iraq is a country which was blessed with immense natural resources like oil and water. Immigration to Iraq was uncontrollable before the Iraq war because of the availability of these natural resources. But the thirst for exploiting such natural wealth of Iraq has resulted in the colonial powers focusing more on Iraq and the subsequent Iraq wars. The Iraq war forced thousands of Iraqis to escape to other neighboring countries like Turkey and Iran. Iraq is a Muslim dominated country with two major groups of Shias and Sunnis. The conflicts between these two communities have been exploited by the colonial powers to spread Christianity in Iraq. Moreover, women in Iraq are discriminated so heavily even though they contributed heavily to the economic development of Iraq. The dissatisfaction of the women community in Iraq has also exploited by the colonial powers. References 1. Amnesty International USA, (2009), Violence Against Women, Retrieved on 4 November 2009 from http://www.amnestyusa.org/violence-against-women/page.do?id=1011012 2. Gender and Food Security, (n.d), Retrieved on 4 November 2009 from http://www.fao.org/Gender/en/agri-e.htm 3. Global Fund for Women, (2009), The Issues, Retrieved on 4 November 2009 from http://www.globalfundforwomen.org/cms/issues/overview/ 4. Iraq – Migration, (n. d) Retrieved on 4 November 2009 from http://www.nationsencyclopedia.com/Asia-and-Oceania/Iraq-MIGRATION.html#ixzz0VscHY3O5 5. Iraq – Religions, (n. d), Retrieved on 4 November 2009 from http://www.nationsencyclopedia.com/Asia-and-Oceania/Iraq-RELIGIONS.html 6. Iraq - Ethnic groups, (n. d), Retrieved on 4 November 2009 from http://www.nationsencyclopedia.com/Asia-and-Oceania/Iraq-ETHNIC-GROUPS.html 7. Scars of Colonialism, (n. d), Retrieved on 4 November 2009 from http://docs.google.com/gview?a=v&q=cache:PvPHeoRNrVoJ:www.craigmarlatt.com/school/worldissues/sovereignty_colonialism_scars.pdf+colonial+powers+introducing+Christianity+in+Iraq&hl=en&pid=bl&srcid=ADGEEShnrzQZUhAxf-LX6_XpnSh58BpULthF7ICwDWbnL3wA4qkslzgkf4l8W5OG5Yfevz52kGzIW9caRMUymxEMSEHmNjaFyrLKMw4iluRm9N6G6PAnbWMUtjXzocFrujRvRFYFrRYv&sig=AFQjCNEMK9iAaFjhXkiaPwKRDpkqR1IkbA 8. Shah Anup, (2009), Women’s Rights, Retrieved on 4 November 2009 from http://www.globalissues.org/article/166/womens-rights Read More