Some Basra people say the clashes, assassinations, kidnapings, the daily threat of violence and the enforcement of a rigid Islamist code of conduct amount to a “Shia Talibanisation”, with music and wedding parties banned and huge billboards warning women against venturing outside unveiled.
October 27, 2007 7:01 am Basra, Shiite Militiamen in Iraqi Army and Police, IraqIraq | They say the Mahdi is coming back | Economist.com, October 25, 2007
Many Basrawis use the language of apocalypse to describe the rival Shia parties and their militias (the biggest calling itself the Mahdi Army) that are struggling for control of their city. The police force, set up by the British, is infiltrated by the militias and involved in crime. Some Basra people say the clashes, assassinations, kidnappings, the daily threat of violence and the enforcement of a rigid Islamist code of conduct amount to a “Shia Talibanisation”, with music and wedding parties banned and huge billboards warning women against venturing outside unveiled.
“We live a half-life in Basra,” says a university teacher. “There’s no space for life, no parks, theatres, cinemas or space for freedom. Civil and political activities are controlled. When you go outside, the fear is inside you that you may be followed and targeted. We’re living in a nightmare.”
Many Basra people blame the British for their plight but still say that their rapid withdrawal would lead to outright war between the militias. “We have a saying”, says another academic, “that a just non-Muslim ruler is better than a Muslim tyrant.” The British invaders, some Basrawis argue, could have won people over if they had showed a willingness to support the hidden Mahdi. “One of our traditions says that most of those standing against him will be Muslims and most of his followers will be from the Christian community.”