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Wednesday, 17 January 2007 07:06 |
 | | Roland Martin |
CHICAGO ÇƒÓ As President George W. Bush outlined his new plan to get us out of the quagmire in Iraq, it was evident that despite his assertions, the Iraqi people are not in control of their own destiny.
There have been repeated calls from Democrats and Republicans for the Iraqis to step to the plate and assume command of the nation. Yet our administration essentially asserts that they are not ready to do so and require our assistance, namely in the area of security.
The civil war that has engulfed the nation has led to the deaths of a number of Iraqis, as well as U.S. soldiers. Bush hopes that the 21,500 troops he is adding to those already in the country will stabilize it and provide a solid backup to Iraqi troops.
But
when it comes to Iraq, we are sort of like the big brother or sister
who refuses to let our younger sibling learn from his or her own
mistakes, preferring to do the work ourselves. As Sen. Barack Obama,
D-Ill., has asserted, as long as we maintain such a large presence in
the country, the Iraqis will have no reason to assume command of the
decisions.
This was the
biggest mistake we made at the outset of the war: demanding the United
States control every aspect of Iraq, as opposed to letting leaders in
the country take the lead. The worst thing in the eye of Iraqis ÇƒÓ and
frankly, Muslims worldwide who arenët happy with American domination ǃÓ
was seeing Ambassador L. Paul Bremer III serve as the administrator of
the Coalition Provisional Authority.
He essentially ruled the country and was the de facto president of Iraq.
And on Wednesday night, Bush further made it plain that he runs Iraq ÇƒÓ not Iraqi Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki.
In his speech,
Bush announced that "to establish its authority, the Iraqi government
plans to take responsibility for security in all of Iraqës provinces by
November.
"To give every
Iraqi citizen a stake in the countryës economy, Iraq will pass
legislation to share oil revenues among all Iraqis. To show that it is
committed to delivering a better life, the Iraqi government will spend
$10 billion of its own money on reconstruction and infrastructure
projects that will create new jobs.
"To empower
local leaders, Iraqis plan to hold provincial elections later this
year. And to allow more Iraqis to re-enter their nationës political
life, the government will reform de-Baathification laws, and establish
a fair process for considering amendments to Iraqës constitution."
How many
Americans heard any of these plans from al-Maliki? Heck, how many
Iraqis heard their own leader make such an announcement?
This is the kind
of fundamental issue that doesnët serve our long-term interests.
Finally, we hear a plan that calls for Iraqis to spend their money on
the nationës infrastructure, and it comes from the U.S. president and
not Iraqës leader.
Supporters of
the war say we have to protect "American interests." But itës not in
the best interest of Americans to continue to run the nation. We keep
saying we donët want to do it, but our actions are speaking louder than
our words.
Big brother,
itës time to let go. What is more debilitating to a younger sibling:
failing, or having to constantly have big bro or sis looking over your
shoulder and telling you how to do this or that?
We canët
continue to hold the Iraqisë hands. Frankly, whether we think we can
stabilize the country or not, we are likely to see fierce fighting for
control of the country. Thatës what opposing interests do. Remember, we
had our own Civil War that was fought on the battlefield and not in the
halls of Congress, editorial pages and radio talk shows.
Mr. President, itës time for Iraq to grow up, and not continue to be propped up by the United States.
ï
Roland S. Martin, editor of The Chicago Defender newspaper, is author of "Speak, Brother! A Black Manës View of America."
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