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By DURAID ADNAN
BAGHDAD — These days, I barely recognize my hometown of Baghdad. It has been spruced up, painstakingly manicured for the Arab League’s first meeting here in two decades — as my colleague Jack Healy writes.
The city seems new, remade with flowers, palm trees, clean streets and repaved sidewalks. It is safe and empty at the same time, portions of it scrubbed of dirt, traffic — and Iraqis — for what is a milestone event for the Arab world, and perhaps for Iraq as well.
Maybe the summit, now in its second day, is mere window-dressing to obscure Iraq’s deep problems. But Iraqis, cynical after enduring so much violence, corruption and incompetence from their government, nevertheless hope that this could be a turning point for our country.
“Maybe these meetings can show that Iraq can hold its own among powerful Arab neighbors.”
— Duraid Adnan
Maybe these meetings can show the world how Iraq is recovering from the deep wounds of war. Maybe they can show that Iraq can hold its own among powerful Arab neighbors, that our country is not merely a puppet of Iran.
The summit has many claims to fame. It is the first major event in Iraq since the American military withdrew in December. The first summit meeting of the Arab League after the Arab Spring revolutions and uprisings changed the spirits of Arab societies. The first summit in Baghdad since Saddam Hussein was in power. The first Arab summit being led largely by two Kurds — President Jalal Talabani and Foreign Minister Hoshyar Zebari — showing that Iraq’s own relations are more interconnected and cohesive than the simplistic idea that we are divided into Sunnis, Shiites and Kurds.
Some Iraqis complain about the blockaded roads and extra checkpoints. Officials have confirmed that 100,000 security forces have deployed to Baghdad. Many people are angry that the government spent $500 million to remodel hotels, pave a few streets and buy armored cars for the Arab delegates, to say nothing of the one-week holiday for government workers. Many Iraqis have decamped to Kurdistan to spend the holiday there and escape Baghdad’s congestion.
Mustafa, a shop owner from the Sunni neighborhood of Amariya, in western Baghdad, shook his head at the idea that Iraq’s leaders could clean up the city for visiting leaders, but not for regular Iraqis.
“I remember a week ago I saw the roads were all dirty, and now they are all clean and beautiful,” he said. “So if the government wants to work they can do it, but it’s a matter of experience and qualifications.”
It is undeniable that the summit has captivated Iraq’s attention. Seemingly every newspaper and television station is covering the event, breathlessly updating viewers with news alerts to report the arrival of some trade minister or finance official to Baghdad’s airport. They have panel discussions and updates on each Arab country. Some Iraqi channels are playing special songs composed for the summit. Here are the jingoistic, pro-government lyrics of one tune:
“You have honored the Iraq of freedom. The situation has changed for better now that we have brave leaders.”
In the end, the summit may improve Iraq’s image, if it is not marred by catastrophic attacks. So far, Baghdad has been peaceful, and its leaders are crossing their fingers that it stays that way. It will not improve the fates of millions of Iraqis who live in dusty squatters’ camps, of those who sell candies and boxes of red tissues in the streets, of those who scrounge for garbage and live in crumbling homes where the power comes on for but a few hours each day.
But maybe, just maybe, the summit will help to encourage new foreign investments and kindle a revival that Iraq desperately needs, and deserves after suffering so much and for so long.
It may not solve all our problems, but it can at least show the world that Iraq is back, that we are still standing.
Duraid Adnan is an Iraqi journalist who works for The New York Times in Baghdad.
[You must be registered and logged in to see this link.]
BAGHDAD — These days, I barely recognize my hometown of Baghdad. It has been spruced up, painstakingly manicured for the Arab League’s first meeting here in two decades — as my colleague Jack Healy writes.
The city seems new, remade with flowers, palm trees, clean streets and repaved sidewalks. It is safe and empty at the same time, portions of it scrubbed of dirt, traffic — and Iraqis — for what is a milestone event for the Arab world, and perhaps for Iraq as well.
Maybe the summit, now in its second day, is mere window-dressing to obscure Iraq’s deep problems. But Iraqis, cynical after enduring so much violence, corruption and incompetence from their government, nevertheless hope that this could be a turning point for our country.
“Maybe these meetings can show that Iraq can hold its own among powerful Arab neighbors.”
— Duraid Adnan
Maybe these meetings can show the world how Iraq is recovering from the deep wounds of war. Maybe they can show that Iraq can hold its own among powerful Arab neighbors, that our country is not merely a puppet of Iran.
The summit has many claims to fame. It is the first major event in Iraq since the American military withdrew in December. The first summit meeting of the Arab League after the Arab Spring revolutions and uprisings changed the spirits of Arab societies. The first summit in Baghdad since Saddam Hussein was in power. The first Arab summit being led largely by two Kurds — President Jalal Talabani and Foreign Minister Hoshyar Zebari — showing that Iraq’s own relations are more interconnected and cohesive than the simplistic idea that we are divided into Sunnis, Shiites and Kurds.
Some Iraqis complain about the blockaded roads and extra checkpoints. Officials have confirmed that 100,000 security forces have deployed to Baghdad. Many people are angry that the government spent $500 million to remodel hotels, pave a few streets and buy armored cars for the Arab delegates, to say nothing of the one-week holiday for government workers. Many Iraqis have decamped to Kurdistan to spend the holiday there and escape Baghdad’s congestion.
Mustafa, a shop owner from the Sunni neighborhood of Amariya, in western Baghdad, shook his head at the idea that Iraq’s leaders could clean up the city for visiting leaders, but not for regular Iraqis.
“I remember a week ago I saw the roads were all dirty, and now they are all clean and beautiful,” he said. “So if the government wants to work they can do it, but it’s a matter of experience and qualifications.”
It is undeniable that the summit has captivated Iraq’s attention. Seemingly every newspaper and television station is covering the event, breathlessly updating viewers with news alerts to report the arrival of some trade minister or finance official to Baghdad’s airport. They have panel discussions and updates on each Arab country. Some Iraqi channels are playing special songs composed for the summit. Here are the jingoistic, pro-government lyrics of one tune:
“You have honored the Iraq of freedom. The situation has changed for better now that we have brave leaders.”
In the end, the summit may improve Iraq’s image, if it is not marred by catastrophic attacks. So far, Baghdad has been peaceful, and its leaders are crossing their fingers that it stays that way. It will not improve the fates of millions of Iraqis who live in dusty squatters’ camps, of those who sell candies and boxes of red tissues in the streets, of those who scrounge for garbage and live in crumbling homes where the power comes on for but a few hours each day.
But maybe, just maybe, the summit will help to encourage new foreign investments and kindle a revival that Iraq desperately needs, and deserves after suffering so much and for so long.
It may not solve all our problems, but it can at least show the world that Iraq is back, that we are still standing.
Duraid Adnan is an Iraqi journalist who works for The New York Times in Baghdad.
[You must be registered and logged in to see this link.]
