The "let them fight it out" solution

"In historical context, the country [Iraq] is not much different from others that have emerged from decades of dictatorship and tried to sort out a new political status quo among multiple competing ethnic groups. Yugoslavia began to break down in 1991; despite repeated Western interventions, the bloodshed continued until the end of the decade. The wars over Congo's future began in 1994 with the end of the Mobuto dictatorship and didn't end until 2003. Lebanon's civil war began in 1976 and ended in 1989.
As the behavior of the Maliki government and its Sunni enemies has made painfully clear, Iraq is nearer the beginning than the end of its sorting out. Each of the main sides -- Shiite, Sunni and Kurd -- remains convinced that it can impose its sectarian agenda by force. . . . Until all are convinced that they have exhausted the option of force, there will be no settlement.
If Iraq is like the rest of the post-Cold War world, this will take six to 12 years, not six to 12 months. Not only is the United States unlikely to speed up the resolution of the conflict, it may even slow a resolution down, by acting as a buffer or co-combatant -- as did U.N. troops in Bosnia, Syrian forces in Lebanon and the armies of multiple African states in Congo."

source
The Washington Post. War Against Time. January 8, 2007. (columnist Jackson Diehl).

posted: friday, january 12, 2007, 8:27 AM ET
update: friday, january 12, 2007, 10:38 AM ET

tag: iraq

Kabila wins Congo's runoff election; New constitution provides for federalism

"Incumbent Joseph Kabila was on Wednesday declared the winner of Congo's first presidential elections in more than 40 years.
. . . The sort of violence that killed at least 23 people after the first round of voting on July 30, and that people endured during a decade of civil war, did not materialize.
. . . Many here say they hope a new constitution, adopted last year, will provide some framework for reforms. The document provides for the creation of provincial legislatures, for example, that in theory will decentralize state power, allowing provinces to retain 40 percent of revenue for local projects."

source
The Washington Post. Incumbent Declared Winner in Congo Vote. November 16, 2006.

posted: tuesday, november 21, 2006, 3:52 AM ET