Peace in the Face of War

embassies need to know how these projects are developing, to be assured
that their aims are being achieved. Often, I am asked to arrange meetings
for them with various sectarian leaders, and sometimes I am able to and
sometimes not.
Often my discussions with diplomats focus on ways to reduce political
sectarianism, and encourage the building of coalitions across the tribal
and religious divides. (In Iraq’s first democratic election, for a transitional
assembly in January 2005, over 120 different groups and parties put up
candidates, which was impractical as well as daunting for the voters.) I
always leave these meetings with a long list of things to do. My unique ability
to relate to Iraq’s religious leaders means that when I meet with diplomats
from Coalition countries I can inform them of the views I have encountered
‘on the ground’. One question that has been central to our deliberations is:
How can religion advise, rather than supervise, politics? Often I find that
diplomats have only a very limited understanding of the nature of religion in
Iraq, and so these meetings can be very educational.
With some diplomats, I am frequently involved in complex hostage
negotiations. In these cases, the character of our meetings is totally different.
They ask me for details about our dealings with the people we think may
be the kidnappers, and sometimes I can give them that information and
sometimes I can’t. I cannot betray people’s trust, even when they are
generally perceived as ‘really bad’ people. It is crucial in such negotiations
that everyone recognizes that I and my team are not working for any
government. (It is no secret that a large part of my foundation’s funding
comes from the Pentagon, but the Americans have never once told us what to
do and I always make this clear to the people we are dealing with – and they
accept this.) We have to approach these matters as religious, not secular,
leaders. It is this that wins us respect in Iraq and enables us – not always, but
sometimes – to accomplish what we are trying to do.
My relations with Iraqi politicians are not always easy, but they are always
very civil. Some of them, such as the National Security Adviser, Dr Mowaffak,
I have become very close to. All of Iraq’s prime ministers since the war have
also become my friends. When I meet with these people, we talk through
every aspect of their work and ours, from trying to combat religious
sectarianism to caring for my congregation at St George’s. I also have to
engage with politicians from the various countries in the Coalition, and
especially our major partners, America, Britain and Denmark.
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