Iraqi policemen stand
Iraqi policemen stand guard outside the Seventh-day Adventist Church in Baghdad, following attacks on several churches. shattered calm Church bombings terrorize Christians After months of relative quiet, a series of church bombings in mid-July reinforced the vulnerability of Iraq’s dwindling Chaldean Assyrian Syriac population. The bombs exploded in apparently coordinated attacks on Sunday, July 12, wounding 32 people. Both Chaldean and Assyrian churches were targeted. In the most serious attack, four people were killed and 21 wounded. The next day, a car bomb exploded near Our Lady of Fatima Church in Mosul, injuring three children. Other churches bombed include St. Mary, St. Joseph and Sacred Heart. Iraq’s ethnically and religiously mixed city of Mosul imposed a curfew on vehicles in Christian neighborhoods on July 13 in response to the attacks. The curfew in the northern city, home of many of Iraq’s estimated 750,000 Christians, was later lifted and officials vowed to protect civilians from violence. Iraqis of all religions and ethnicities worry there may be worse to come and Christians fear their small community may be the target of further violence. “We had warned the authorities that we would be targeted, that our churches would be struck again, but we got no response,” said Chaldean Bishop Shleimon Warduni, standing in front of a life-size statue of the Virgin Mary in Baghdad. “They left our churches without protection.” William Warida, a Christian and chairman of a Baghdad human rights organization, said militants were attacking Christians to make international headlines. “The Christians,” he said, “are the weakest link in the chain of Iraqi society.” The bombings were another blow to the drive to get Christians who have fled the country to return to Iraq. “After Sunday, the Christians that were thinking of coming back from outside, now maybe they will change their minds,” said Warida. “This was a message to them not to come back.” Pope Benedict XVI decried the bombings in a telegram sent to Cardinal Patriarch Emmanuel III Delly. The Pope, the telegram says, “prays for a conversion of heart in the authors of this violence, and encourages the authorities to do everything possible to promote just and peaceful coexistence among all sectors of the Iraqi population.” The Holy Father “also gives assurances of his prayers and his spiritual closeness to the Catholic and Orthodox communities of the Iraqi capital,” the telegram states. Fifty-nine churches have been bombed in Iraq since the U.S.-led invasion in 2003. Compiled from the Associated Press, Reuters and other sources. ‘a big step forward’ U.S. allots funds to Nineveh Plain … but will they get there? By Joyce Wiswell The House of Representatives has approved million in funding for religious minorities in Iraq for a range of programs primarily in the Nineveh Plain region. But based on past actions, advocates in the United States are skeptical that the funds will get where they are needed. Congressman Mark Kirk (R-IL) called the latest funding, part of the Fiscal Year 2010 State and Foreign Operations Appropriations Bill, “a big step forward for building an autonomous administrative region for ChaldoAssyrians in the Nineveh Plain.” Democratic Congressman Gary Peters of Michigan supported the bill, saying, “In the last year thousands of Iraqi Christians have sought refuge in Southeast Michigan and thousands more are expected in the years to come. This funding will aid refugee populations in Iraq that are most in need of our assistance.” But the Chaldean Assyrian Syriac Council of America (CASCA) says there is no proof that past funds have reached the Nineveh Plain. In fiscal year 2008, million was allocated for projects including the establishment of a microfinance institute in AP Photo/Khalid MohammeD Telkaif; grants and loans for agricultural activities; and a community stabilization program that would help displaced minorities with housing, vocational education and employment. But, according to a CASCA report, fund administrator USAID never sent a team to the Nineveh area to ascertain needs. Furthermore, CASCA says, contracts were never put up for bid, there has been little or no coordination between existing USAID contractors, and no reporting system is in place for what, if any, projects that have been completed. CASCA also questions what happened to million earmarked to “assist vulnerable Iraqi religious and ethnic minority groups, including Christians,” in the Fiscal Year 2008 Emergency Supplemental Appropriations Act. Meanwhile, Congressman Frank Wolf (R-VA) and Congresswoman Anna Eshoo (D-CA) sent a letter to Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki on July 22 expressing concern over the recent spate of church bombings. The prime minister was in Washington in late July to meet with President Barack Obama. “We understand that it is your desire to see Iraqi refugees return to the land of their birth. We share this hope,” the two wrote. “But news analysis following the [recent] bombings indicates that Christians who were contemplating returning will understandably reconsider given the fear gripping their community in the wake of the attacks. “As the U.S. presence in Iraq draws down, the burden for protecting these ancient faith communities rests increasingly with Iraqi forces,” the letter continues. “Increased security at Christian places of worship and an investigation into who is behind these most recent attacks will send a powerful signal that your government is committed to preserving and protecting Iraq’s ethno-religious minorities.” The letter also mentions the million for minorities in the spending bill. “This funding is intended to support a range of programs such as security, economic development, health care enhancement and democratization programs primarily in the Nineveh Plain region,” Wolf and Eshoo wrote. “Bipartisan congressional support for these minority faith communities remains strong.” 18 CHALDEAN NEWS AUGUST 2009
today kurdistan, tomorrow iraq? Proposed constitution includes Christian rights By Joyce Wiswell Now that the Kurdish Regional Parliament has agreed to protect the rights of Christian minorities in its constitution, the next step is to see similar language included in Iraq’s Constitution. That was the message from Nimrud B. Youkhana, Kurdistan’s Minister of Tourism and a member of the Assyrian Patriotic Party, on a late-June visit to the U.S. The Kurdish Constitution was voted on in referendum simultaneously with the region’s parliamentary elections on July 25; results were pending as The Chaldean News went to press. Out of 111 seats, 5 each are guaranteed to Chaldean Syriac Assyrians, Armenians and Turkmen, Youkhana said. That label of Chaldean Syriac Assyrian is important, said the minister, calling infighting over labels “a waste of time.” “We are one,” he said. “We have the same habits, history, religion and language. Maybe the only difference is in the church [people attend].” Youkhana expressed disappointment over the Chaldean Bishops’ self-identity declaration made at their recent synod in Iraq. “We hope they will not continue with that,” he said. “The church should not interfere strongly in politics. They can advise, but not interfere in political issues. Anyone is free to use the name ‘Chaldean,’ but it never means an independent ethnic group.” Ensuring Chaldean Syriac Assyrian rights in the Iraqi Constitution, which will be voted on in January 2010, “is not going to be done so easily, but it’s started good with the Kurdistan constitution,” Youkhana said. Youkhana is among a growing chorus demanding that the Nineveh Plain be designated an autonomous region of Iraq. “It won’t be a ghetto and it won’t be a cage for the Christians,” he said. “This will be an area with higher authority where we can keep our identity, culture and tradition — and be equal with Kurds and Arabs to help rebuild Iraq. “We are not asking to be independent,” he added. “We are part of Iraq.” The proposed Kurdistan constitution is controversial on several fronts. It unilaterally asserts Kurdish sovereignty over disputed territories including Kirkuk province and areas photo by nora bahrou downs Nimrud B. Youkhana said minorities are “still waiting for a piece of the Iraqi cake.” of Nineveh and Diyala provinces, which have long been a source of tension between central and Kurdish authorities. It also requires that the Central Government obtain the prior consent of the Regional Government before concluding any Travel Kurdistan? With its soaring mountains and ancient villages, Kurdistan is a place worth visiting, said Minister of Tourism Nimrud B. Youkhana during his recent U.S. tour. “Kurdistan is the other Iraq,” he said. “It’s a virgin region — not yet discovered.” Tourists get a taste for “how ethnic groups are living in peace — especially in Iraq,” he said. A just-launched website, www. tourismkurdistan.com, promises “a natural landscape overflowing with rivers and streams, hills and mountains” with “magic in every town and city.” international treaties that will also apply to the region. Youkhana, whose village of Bakhitma was destroyed by Saddam Hussein in 1978, said he supported the U.S.-led invasion of Iraq in 2003 to oust Hussein. “It was the right thing to be done,” he said. “Iraqis could not get rid of Saddam themselves.” He is, however, against the withdrawal of U.S. troops until Chaldean Syriac Assyrian and other minority rights are guaranteed in the Iraqi Constitution. “We expected after 2003 we should have a piece of the Iraqi cake, but that is not happening,” he said. “We don’t believe the promises — we need it concrete in the constitution.” Youkhana said he believes the radical Islamic movement will fade away as economic conditions improve in Iraq. “The people of Iraq are looking for a way from the fundamental parties,” he said. “If the economy goes good, that will take care of the problem.” AUGUST 2009 CHALDEAN NEWS 19
