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| Islamic guidance is part of eight new, free primary and secondary schools funded by a Shiite foundation in Najaf. Sam Dagher |
Rising player with a vision for Shiite Iraq
Free schools and mass weddings create support for a Shiite-run south.
from the November 20, 2007 edition
Page 2 of 3
The Hakim foundation, as it's sometimes called, employs 7,500 people, 1,000 of whom are called "mentors." In Najaf, it has also opened the first private college for religious studies and eight so-called "model schools," where basic primary and secondary education comes with a substantial dose of Islam. There are plans to open similar schools throughout Iraq.
"There has been a massive intellectual degradation in the country," says Hassan al-Hakim, Ammar al-Hakim's cousin and the foundation's deputy chairman. Like his relative, he is dressed in clerical robes and wears a black turban, which according to Shiite religious custom is worn by sayyids, those claiming to be descendants of the prophet Muhammad.
"At the foundation we have worked to tear down the previous way of thinking and attempted to reconstruct a new one based on dialogue, respect of the other, and true Islamic teachings … thanks to God we have made great strides."
Hassan describes the role of mentors at the foundation as follows: "They work with people through mosques and other meeting places to explain to them the thinking of the marjayia and its political vision."
The sweeping victory achieved by the United Iraqi Alliance, the Shiite coalition that includes ISCI, in the December 2005 elections would not have been possible without the overt support and blessing of Grand Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani, the highest Shiite religious authority in Iraq. "Sistani is a crown on our heads," is a common chant at most public events and rallies organized by the party.
Not far from the foundation's headquarters in Najaf is a new two-story building, which, unlike most Iraqi government offices, is impeccably furnished and equipped on the inside. Here, 150 women ages 15 to 25 are being groomed and educated to become mentors. Students covered in traditional black head-to-toe overgarments, known as abayas, walk the carpeted hallways barefoot. The soothing sound of prayers echoes from speakers above. Each student gets a monthly stipend in addition to other benefits.
"The student will spread education and virtue among women in society according to the principles of Al al-Bayet [Shiites]" says Umm Muhammad Kashef al-Ghitaa, the director, who covers her whole face in the presence of men.
At another location, the foundation is building the Dar al-Hikma seminary for men to make it into the largest and most structured in Najaf. At the moment, most hawzas, or Shiite seminaries, involve a senior cleric giving classes to circles of students. Three hundred students are studying at the foundation's seminary and will graduate in six years to be mentors.
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