By AINA
Translated from Arabic for AINA by Aymenn Jawad Al-Tamimi.
The Council of the Heads of Christian Sects brought
a proposal on Tuesday to the head of the Iraqiya List- Ayad Allawi- for
dialogue and reconciliation, warning at the same time of the dire
consequences of the continuation of disputes between political blocs
with the upheaval in the regional situation. In this, Allawi expressed
his cooperation and his agreement with the attitudes of the council.
Allawi
said in a published statement following his reception of a delegation
from the council headed by Patriarch Mar Louis Rafael- in a copy
obtained by 'Sumaria News' from him- that "the two sides discussed the
situation of Christians, the turbulent political crisis in the country
and the proposal for reconciliation that the Council of Christian Sects
strives for."
Allawi also spoke of "the role of Christians and
their indigenous history: their being a fundamental part of society,"
expressing his "great dismay because of the exodus of the Christian
component [of society] from Iraq."
He pointed to the
"deterioration in the security situation, the collapse of institutions,
the worsening of corruption and the poverty that have been greatly
contributing to the exodus of our Christian brothers," adding that, "If
there had been serious government measures, protection and stability
would have been guaranteed for them when we witnessed this great
exodus."
For his part, the Patriarch, according to the statement,
spoke of "the disputes between the Iraqi political blocs, the upheaval
in the regional situation, especially in Syria, which will have a great
impact on the stability of the entire region." He emphasized that "it is
necessary for all to find a solution to these problems. Otherwise, the
consequences will be dire."
The statement pointed to the fact that
"the meeting of the Council of the Heads of Christian Sects with the
head of Iraqiya guarantees the advancement of a proposal for dialogue
and reconciliation in order to rebuild Iraq," indicating that it [the
proposal], "encompasses the requirement for the breaking of the growing
deadlock between political and government factions with an urgent appeal
for political factions to commit to prevent opening up the arena to
foreign intervention, [to commit to] a solution to pending problems and
to ensure to hasten the process of considering the dossiers of
detainees."
The statement added that "the proposal for dialogue
includes a guarantee for a roundtable featuring the most prominent
religious and political figures from all sects and components [of
society] to get out on paper an agreement to secure constructive
dialogue and serious work to resolve pending issues."
Allawi
thanked "the Council of Heads of Christian Sects headed by Patiarch Mar
Louis for this proposal," expressing his "cooperation and agreement with
the attitudes of the council since they are on a national level."
The
head of the Chaldean Church in Iraq and the World- Cardinal Mar Louis
Sako- had released his proposal on the 28th of March for dialogue and
reconciliation between Iraq's political factions.
The Council of
the Heads of Christian Sects brought forth the proposal during a meeting
with the head of the Council of Representatives Osama al-Nujaifi on the
28th March and emphasized the need to "prevent opening up the arena to
foreign intervention and hasten the process of considering the dossiers
of innocent detainees." During this meeting, Nujaifi affirmed his
"positive agreement" after studying the contents of the proposal.
In
the same way did the deputy Prime Minister Saleh al-Mutlaq on the 5th
of April this month express approval of the proposal, which the head of
the Chaldean Church in Iraq and the World- Cardinal Mar Louis Sako-
brought forth. During this time, the cardinal expressed his hope that
the proposal would reverberate well among the politicians.