Bookstore in Mosul

The BBC Arabic  visited a bookstore in Mosul, one of the businesses trying to put things together now that Daesh has been kicked out.

The people browsing the books have big hopes:

"Me and some of the other young people here are getting together and trying to do something to bring culture back."

"We want to show people that after all the death and sadness, we are more than that."

Young women discuss the Arab police during protests

The BBC Arabic hosted a discussion with some earnest young women from Iraq, Egypt, and Lebanon, talking about police treatment during protests. These are not necessarily the Arab Spring protests asking for an overthrow of the government, but rather protests asking for things as simple as a proper trash pick up service.

The lady on the left is Iraqi, the one in the center is Lebanese but studying in France, and the lady on the right is Egyptian.

The Egyptian lady started by saying: the police doesn't understand their role. They don't understand that they serve people. They just want to take advantage of the weapons they carry.

The moderator asked: well, you know, Egypt has outlawed protests. So what are the police supposed to do when they see protesters?

I'm sure the Egyptian lady gave a very competent answer, but I didn't understand it.

Then it was the Iraqi lady's turn. She said: Iraq has weekly demonstrations about politics (did you know that?) But there's not as much police violence during them as there used to be. Today, there's some collaboration, let's not say very strong, between the police and civil society. That doesn't mean everything is perfect. But yes, the violence against protesters has decreased. It was much worse in 2011 (I think that's the year she mentioned.)

When it was the turn of the girl from Lebanon, she showed us the spots on her elbow where she'd been hit by police in her home country. And actually, it was women police. She had been part of a protest that has something to do with the fact that the trash in Beirut has apparently not been picked up for months, and it's just sitting in the streets. I can't really figure out why, but the politicians need to agree on something, but they won't.

And they were also protesting that the government is trying to negotiate without getting the input of regular people. So how did they end up getting beaten up? I didn't understand that part! The Lebanese girl said something about how one of their members was a hemophiliac, and either they were trying to get him out of the protest so he wouldn't get hurt, or they were trying to explain his condition to the police, and somehow that led to the violence.

Besides the violence, the Lebanese girl explained that actually a few dozen human rights activists have been recently imprisoned, and that's also a strategy for frightening people out of protesting. And she said something, although I didn't really follow, about how the police had followed her home and they were asking questions.

The BBC Arabic moderator asked her: aren't you scared that you'll be arrested, too?

And the Lebanese girl gave some heroic answer about how she wasn't scared, and none of her friends were scared, and that the police couldn't stop them.

The Iraqi lady echoed that. She said that in the Iraqi province of Babel, protesters have been beaten by security forces, but the protesters keep coming out, it encourages them.

Again, the conversation was about harassment and whether protesting was a wise decision, and the Iraqi lady got fed up and said: You know, really, the protesters are protesting for simple things, just for human rights, stability. It's very similar to what the Lebanese and the Egyptians are asking for. We're not asking for anything complicated, we're tired of what's been happening.

Pretty miniature houses in Iraq

There's a man in Iraq whose mom used to read books to him when he was little. Many of them depicted scenes from Europe and the US.

So he started recreating those scenes by making little miniature houses and filling them with exquisite details! They're called dioramas. He's made scenes of London, Paris, and New York.

This looks real, doesn't it? But it's smaller than a dollhouse.

Here you can see a bookstore in Paris! Boulevard Books!

The man doing all this was interviewed on the BBC Arabic. Dioramas are not a widespread art-form in the Middle East, so he didn't really have a ready stock of material he could buy. So he makes all the little pieces himself:

Here is the man himself, talking to the BBC Arabic through Skype:

He is currently living in Turkey as a refugee because of the very unsafe situation in Iraq. At one point, he did have an exhibition of his works in Baghdad, but that was two years ago before he fled with his kids and wife. "Obviously, I don't have the exhibition now, but I pray, and we all pray, that the conditions there will get better and if so, then surely I would love to go back and do more exhibitions."

Here you can see his finger on a little toy horse, in a little bedroom, in a tiny little house!

The BBC Arabic lady who did the interview said: I'm assuming you do scenes from Europe and the the US because most of the books you read when younger were set in these areas. But would you ever consider doing a scene from the Arab world?

And he said:

No, I do not pick Arab places because I do this so I can remove myself from my reality. I cannot at the moment think about doing a scene of Iraq. One day, inshallah, I'll make one of these of Iraq, and it will fill me with joy. If i do it now, it will surely fill me with pain.

It takes him 2-3 months to make a diorama. He first studies the place he is recreating for a month.

"If I want to build Paris, I have to look at the windows, the doors, the floors. But it's fine that it takes that long, because it fills me with joy."

The BBC Arabic interviewer asked if part of this had to do with reconnecting with his childhood.

He said: yes, it reminds me of my youth, even though my childhood was so hard, but I don't know, when i think back to childhood, I still get happy.

The interviewer next asked: this is a very small artform in the Middle East. Why do you think the Arab world doesn't care about dioramas? Do they just not care about details?

"Well," said the Iraqi artist, "I think Arabs do care about details, but you know even in the world at large these dioramas are not very widespread or popular."

The interviewer asked: have you ever gotten to visit these places, or is it all based on books you've read and movies you've watched?

He said: No, I have not, but Inshallah, one day I'll get to visit these places, if God wills it.

Since he's living in Turkey as a refugee, it's impossible for him to travel at the moment, but he said, Inshallah something will work out.

Iraq and the heat

Back in the beginning of August, the BBC Arabic reported on the 50 degree Celsius weather in Iraq. I think that must be 140 degrees Fahrenheit.

Since the water and electricity are often cut off, people bought ice from vendors in the street:

But the worst thing is that there are a lot of refugees in Iraq right now who have been displaced because of Daa-esh (ISIS). They don't have electricity period. They are living in camps.

They are able to get water:

And then carry it back to their tents:

But still, it's so hot:

We are suffering, says this man:

Iraqi culture and Iraqi Jews

The BBC Arabic did a little dialogue at the end of May about the state of Iraqi arts and the cultural scene.

They are having a hard time because, as this man says, people like Daa-esh (ISIS) don't like things like music and books and art.

"The Middle East is crazy right now, culture is trying to defend itself from Daa-esh and all the militias."

And besides, there's been so much war and devastation it can be hard to think about pure, beautiful things. One of the Iraqis in the conversation said: 'Being cultured in Iraq is like combing your hair when you're bald'.

This is, I think, one of the scenes of devastation that makes it so hard to get beyond:

This man interviewed at a book market said that Iraqi arts have lost their voice. It has been affected by the religious and political challenges, and these days people are religious rather than exploring the cultural side of things.

Amazingly, they also interviewed a man from the Iraqi military. I didn't catch if this was just his philosophy, or if this is the official position of the Iraqi military, but he said that 'we need culture' in our lives, it's very important for our society.

And here is a concert that the military was holding:

And then they talked about how when there is so much war and unhappiness, people feel like they are being shallow if they enjoy music and art (again, like combing your hair when you're actually bald.)

People feel like they can't deal with cultural things, because it's so far below what is going on.

One old man said: I believe there's a group of young Iraqis trying to stay with music and books. I believe and trust in them, and that they can improve the politics.

The next day, the BBC Arabic was talking about Iraq again, this time about how there are so many divisions in society. So this old man came and was talking about how Iraq used to be, before the second World War:

He said that in those days, Iraq had many Jewish people among its population, and they lived in all parts of the country, from the north to the south. And they did not live in ghettos like in Europe. Other Iraqis would buy kosher from them. The Jews and the Muslims were living side by side.

But as we all know, these days are over; that ship has sailed.

Another person in the conversation was asked: do you think that Iraqi could go back to all the minorities living together in peace?

The answer: Yes, but not soon. Because Daa-esh has ruined things. It will need a long period of healing first.

The Arabic News From Al Akayshi

We found a restaurant that had good, cheap Iraqi food, so we had to go there at every possible chance.

All this cost $25:

And all this cost $50 (and some of that included food we got later):

This restaurant was playing a TV news channel called something like Al Maydaan. Here's what they were reporting about.

First, here is the lady who was giving the news:

This man was reporting from Yemen:

A lot of bombs have exploded in Yemen:

They showed a clip of the UN Secretary General Ban Ki-Moon because they are trying to put together a conference to stop the violence. But I think at this stage, there was no agreement, so they had postponed everything.

Then, we got news from Saudi Arabia. This was the day after, or two days after, a bomb exploded in a Shia mosque in Saudi, and killed dozens of people. Here is the funeral and the protest:

Then, we took a commercial break to see a random animation of birds and sad-looking people sitting in barren places:

Then, it was time to move on to Iraq. This time, we followed the Iraqi army as they try to bomb Daa-esh:

The Iraqi army on the prowl:

Lest we forget, there is still a war in Syria, which was next on the agenda.

This Syrian in Palmyra was describing conditions, now that the city has fallen to Daa-esh:

The caption is mentioning the 400 people who Daa-esh are suspected of massacring when they entered the city.

This lady looks like she's packed up. But where can she go?

Talking about the ancient ruins of Palmyra:

Meanwhile, the Syrian city of Halab was also enduring military operatons:

I think this channel was pro-Syrian president. They didn't talk at all about the atrocities he has committed. They just talked about the atrocities that Daa-esh has committed, and how the Syrian army, led by the president, are the heroes who are going to fix everything.

More news from Syria: apparently, a Ukrainian airlines has decided to start airplane trips to Syria. The trips are weekly between Kiev and Latakiya. Sounds like a great vacation to me!

Here's a lady from the airlines explaining the reasoning behind their business model:

And finally, something is happening in Sudan, but I'm not sure what:

If you want to check out this place, look for it. It's on Warren Street, I think.

The Arab-American Take on the Arab News

Riding around Dearborn, we remembered to search the radio and find the local Arabic station. An Iraqi lady, who moderated the program in her strongly Iraqi-tinted Arabic, was hostess of the evening for a broadcast called: 'Broadcast of the Evening' (translated from Arabic).

They were talking about Da-esh (ISIS). So in other words, we were getting the Arab-American take on the Arab news, but not in English. This was the evening that Palmyra in Syria fell to Da-esh, the same evening that Ramadi in Iraq was taken, too.

The hostess had posed a question for discussion: would you, as an expat Iraqi, ever go back there to help build the country?

A man had called in and he was saying: Yes, people will go back to Iraq. Now, I'm not saying that this will happen while the country is a hellhole, or while you have a large chance of being killed, but I'm saying if there was safety, and prosperity, and jobs and opportunities, then of course people will go back. 

Later on, another caller declared that he would not ever being going back to Iraq, ever. And when the hostess told him, 'well, of course don't go now, but if it was safe to go?' he still could not seem to consider the proposition in any conscience. 

Most of the people, though, did not answer the hostess' question. Instead, they just kept saying things like: 

Iraq was not always like this! Iraq was once full of civilization! Just a few decades back, the country was so beautiful!

And the hostess would tell them back: May God bless you! May God bless you! May God bless you!

And then everyone's comments usually ended with, 'pray for Iraq. Just pray for Iraq'. 

The hostess would then say: Yes, we will pray for Iraq, and may God give you health!

Then, a Yemeni man called in to share his good wishes: I pray for peace and prosperity for all my Iraqi brothers, and for an end to this nightmare. 

And then later on, when an Iraqi called in, he said: I wanted to extend my thanks to the Yemeni man, we really appreciate his wishes. 

Some people called in and I think they'd say something sectarian, something Sunni-Shia like, something about who's to blame for all this mess. Then the hostess would chide them: I don't want to get into that! That is not the discussion theme we're having today!

Finally, a man called in and tried to unify everyone: You know, we need to set aside our differences. We need to remember, it doesn't matter if we're Iraqi, Yemeni, Lebanese, Black, Asian, Mexican, Chinese, Indian ... we're all just Arab!

We think he meant to say, 'we're all people!' But we're not sure.

And the hostess, without missing a bat, just told him: 'May God bless you!' She did not try to explain that the Chinese are definitely not Arab.

Iraqi man running his mouth

May God help us all. The BBC Arabic is currently running a panel discussion. It's called 'Duniyana', which I guess translates into "Our World." Our only misfortune is that this time around, an Iraqi man has been invited on to it. 

Blah, blah, blah, I'm not against the Shia! he says hastily, while everyone else rolls their eyes. 

He's the kind of man who talks fast, mumbles, lets his words roll out like oil, and takes the conversation from left to right so fast that you have no idea what he's saying. 

BBC Arabic interview with UN High Commissioner for Human Rights

Malak Jaafar on the BBC Arabic interviewed the new UN High Commissioner for Human Rights. He is a Muslim and from Jordan, and people say he's very smart. But that means nothing at all when Malak is eyeballing you:

The name of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights is Zeid Ra'ad al Hussein.

I caught the interview shortly after it started:

Mr. Zeid was talking about the attack on the French newspaper in Paris. He said: I condemned the attack. I also said the cartoons were insulting to Muslims. But an insult does that mean that we fight back in this violent way. It means that we fight back through our own freedom of speech. It's hard to find the line between freedom of speech and harassment through speech. Right now there are big marches against Islam in cities like Dresden, for example. We Muslims have to reach out and talk to these people.

Malak: So are you saying that Muslims are remiss in to entering into dialogue with the people in these demonstrations?

High Commissioner: Good question. After the attacks, there were strong condemnations from Arab governments. But so far, we have not seen big demonstrations against Daa-esh (the Arabic acronym for ISIS) or other brutal acts. This is strange. When the war broke out in Gaza, we saw demonstrations in Jordan every day against the war and against the attack. But there are no demonstrations against what Daa-esh is doing?

Malak: Why is that? Do you think it shows that people are actually in agreement with Daa-esh?

High Commissioner: By God ... There is no doubt that there is a political side in the Middle East that does like them. But when we read of the outrageous crimes against women, kids, sheikhs, it's hard to understand how we could have reached this point.

Malak: You and your predecessor Navi Pillay spent a lot of time speaking out. But what can you do beyond that?

High Commissioner: Well, we gather information from victims, we talk to people who were hurt. We gather the information and we give the information to the International Court, to the Security Council.

Malak: But you've been down that road before.

High Commissioner: Yes, yes, of course. At that point, the responsibility becomes that of the Security Council.

Malak: So basically, the upholding of human rights is completely political; it lies entirely within the politics playing out on the Security Council.

High Commissioner: Yes, this is true. But our agencies can still provide guidance, we can help provide solutions. Of course, we are often foiled ...

Malak: You make reports. How credible are they? People have said that your reports from Syria, for example, often depend on witnesses. A large amount of your reports depend on on-the-ground correspondents. [I guess Malak was suggesting that these are not always credible.]

High Commissioner: I am pretty certain that our information reflects what is happening on the ground. But I've also been clear that if anyone finds anything wrong in the report, they have to tell us. Maybe casualty numbers in the report are exaggerated. If you tell us, we will investigate.

Malak: Did you ever find mistakes before?

High Commissioner: Yes, of course. We're just people. But over all, I am certain that things are more often correct than not. Sometimes when we hear of demonstrations, we actually will hesitate to report them right away, because we want to fact-check first.

Malak: These reports have big numbers of casualties in them. Don't you think it would be good to do like the Red Cross does, which does not always point fingers about who is doing what and instead conveys that information quietly to the parties involved?

High Commissioner: Well, I think that about 60% of our work is done just with the concerned authorities. I think only about 20% ends up being done in public. So the majority of our work is about trying to help find a solution. But I'll give you an example. There was a government, we sent them a report. We wanted to hear an answer from them. But after a year, there was still no answer. So I told the head of the government that we cannot wait any longer, we will have to go to the press now. The very next day, I got a letter from them.

Malak: Were they afraid?

High Commissioner: Sometimes they are. We mostly try to work cooperatively with governments. We don't want to threaten.

The conversation then turned to the International Criminal Court.

Malak: Well, really, the role that the International Criminal Court can play in all this is absolutely stalled. We just saw how Omar Bashir's case was tossed. (Omar Bashir is the president of Sudan who was charged with genocide in Darfur, you can learn more about him here.)

High Commissioner: Listen, be patient with us. When the ICC was created, we knew that this was a project that would need a lot of time. We thought it might take 30 years. Because of course there's going to be regressions and obstacles.

Malak: So do you think it will be 30 years we can try Omar Bashir, Syria's president Assad and etc in the courts?

High Commissioner: My dear lady. Listen. When Charles Taylor left power in Liberia, there was an idea that he was going to escape all his crimes and charges, but things changed. He was sent to the Hague, he was tried, he's now in prison. So things can change. When Omar al Bashir's charges were dropped, we were very clear why. It was not because there is not a case, it's because we had no cooperation. Especially from the countries on the Security Council.

Malak: Right, it always comes back to the Security Council.

High Commissioner: Right, so we need to keep putting pressure on these countries. And Arab countries are full of blood, bloods of innocents, of violations of women and children. We just cannot keep on this way!

Malak: Well, there's a movement that says: while war crimes are not condoned amongst the average Arab, there's  a whole different idea of what children's rights and women's rights should look like. So what do you think about that?

High Commissioner: Well... [And I don't think I understood what he said. Except for one bit:] In Jordan, for example, the other day eleven people were sentenced to death and executed. And I sent them my grievances about it. When I talk to NGOs in Arab countries, to Arab civil society, I found that there were ??? ... When we talk about what's happening in Yemen, in Libya, in Iraq, in Syria ... the temporary visas given to people ... there's frictions, but in general, we all hope for progress. We always hear about what is happening in South Sudan, or Mali, and as the years pass, we feel as though ... [he was just big words that I don't know.]

And so the half hour ended.

Arabic news during the winter holidays

I've been watching the BBC Arabic on and off.

The biggest stories have been shelling in Syria, lots of killing in Daesh-stan, and other harsh happenings.

On Christmas Day, the celebrations in Bethlehem were the fourth or fifth headline, and they showed the Christian leaders looking very happy and kissing the Palestinian leader Mahmoud Abbas.

Today, they had a re-broadcast of a call-in show. It was Iraqis who had fled Mosul and surrounding areas because of Da-esh (ISIS). One man was explaining how he hadn't been able to back to his home in Mosul. The BBC Arabic moderator asked him: do you want to go abroad?

No, no, said the man. We want to go back to our homes.

The last caller was a man saying that: Da-esh killed all my sisters!

But the BBC Arabic moderator was not impressed. "Thank you, thank you," he said. "Program's over, we're going to have to leave it here."

After that program, for the first time I can remember, they had a hijabed woman giving the news. Usually, the BBC Arabic women given the news are not hijabed, and but I guess they are all on break this week.

I remember this lady because she was in charge of giving the Olympic updates during the 2012 London Olympics.

She's great, they should have her on even when the office is not empty.

A politician from Sweden on the Arabic News

I managed to listen to the BBC Arabic for maybe two hours total this past month, and just by luck, I caught an interview with a Swedish politician.

Her name is Abir Al-Sahlani, and she was interviewed by Malak Jaafar in mid-November:

Abir Al-Sahlani

Malak is always a very tough interviewer, so she started out by asking about some corruption charges that Ms. Abir had faced in Sweden. It was a charge she had been cleared of, but it looks like it cost Ms. Abir the chance to run for office during the last election this summer. 

Abir: I was cleared of the charges, but I decided not to run I knew the whole campaign would focus on this one issue, and I didn't want to deal with that.

Malak asked if there had been a conspiracy in the Center Party (to which Ms. Abir belongs) against her, or if they had been split over how to deal with her.

Abir: There's always opposition when you're a politician; and sometimes it's opposition with integrity, and sometimes it's opposition without integrity. I believe I faced opposition without integrity.

Malak: From who?

Abir: From people who did not want me to have a voice in the government, including people within the party. I think I annoy a lot of people inside the party, and in Sweden, and in the Arab world, too.

Malak: does the chief of the Center Party not really care for you?

Malak's sharp eyes don't miss much

Abir: No, I consider the head of the party to be my personal friend, and it's not entirely her decision, anyways. In a country like Sweden, in which there's been no wars for about 300 years, the political system is very structured and organized. Decision-making is not very centrally-controlled. Even lower-level party members have a say, and so do committees. So it's not necessarily the head of the party who decides all things.

Malak: So, what remains of your role in the Center Party? Have you been frozen out?

Abir: Not at all. I am on the Leadership Council for the party, on which there's only 21 members. And I'm the representative in the party for Stockholm.

Malak: But still, you gave in and didn't run for Parliament.

 Ms. Abir thinking about her battles

Abir: Well, I sometimes think: not all battles have to be mine to fight. I'm a person, and I have a certain amount of energy. I need to put that energy into battles where there's a bigger chance I might win.

Malak: And what are your battles?

Abir: Mostly equality between people. I don't like for people to look at me and think: oh, she's weak. Oh, we need to feel sorry for her. Of course, it's true that I met with tragedy as a child. My parents were politicians in Iraq. I attended political meetings while in my mother's womb, and when I was a year and a half old, I was threatened with assassination from my parents' political enemies.

[Iraq, you make me proud every time!]

Abir continues: As a 15-year-old child, I left Iraq all on my own, without family. I came to Sweden, and by the time I was 16, I had taken on the responsibility and succeeded in gathering all my family there. Otherwise, we would never have been able to live all together. But, I want people not just to focus on all this, I want to show that I'm stronger, that I am capable, that I accomplish. I want to break the idea of Middle Eastern women as a pitiful victim.

Then Malak brought up Abir's failed campaign to win a seat in the Iraqi parliament back in 2004. Abir explained: she had spent very little time on the ground in Iraq prior to that. A proper campaign would have been interacting with people and earning their trust. But she did not have a chance to do that, and she cannot expect that people are going to vote for her just because her name is on the ballot.

Then they went into a whole discussion of post-war Iraq in 2003/2004 and what went wrong, and Abir says: maybe Saudi and Iran didn't really want democracy in Iraq, and maybe Turkey and Syria, too, maybe no one wanted democracy to succeed in Iraq, and the Americans made mistakes and ...

But I'm going to skip the rest of that, and pick back up where Malak asks the question you always always have to ask someone who grew up between two different cultures:

Malak: People say that in Iraq, you have become a stranger, having lived for so long apart from the country. And in Sweden, people view you as a refugee. You talk a lot about integration. Do you feel as though wherever you go, you will not be able to properly fit in, whether in Iraq or in Sweden?

Abir: Where should I go, the moon? I am a product of Iraq. I am Iraqi. I am a product of the Middle East. That is the reality. That is our situation. I didn't come from the moon. When I see mothers who send their children to school, only for them to die there from violence, I feel for that mother, whether she is Iraqi or Somali or Tajiki. It doesn't matter. But when we are talking about democracy, this is experience, and it is not an insult to any country, or any religion, or any group of people. I think these are values that all people hold dear. And Inshallah anyone from the outside can come to Iraq and maybe fix our problems, whoever it maybe be, just let the problems get fixed.

Malak: But it's still true that people want to vote for someone who looks like them, and has the same shared experience. So was your path to politics within the Center Party of Sweden driven by just Iraqis living in Sweden who voted for you?

Abir: Not really. There's not a lot of Iraqis in the Center Party. Let me repeat, I stand for liberal values, for democracy, for humanity, and maybe voters, whether they were Swedish or Iraqi, identified with that and that's how I got voted in and that's what I represent.

Then they started talking about integration. I really really really loved what she said at this point, so much, that I would have started shouting, except for I was in the office.

Abir said: When I talk about integration of immigrants in Sweden, I don't mean it in the sense of I have to change culturally. I just mean that I should be a part of Swedish politics, a part of Swedish civil society. It doesn't have anything to do with starting to eat pork, or starting to drink, or wearing skimpy clothes, or naming your kids Karin or Ester, because those things anyways do not really define Swedish society. Swedish society is much richer than that. Swedish society is humanity. It's the equality between man and woman. It's that there's no difference between whether you're white or black or blonde or dark or red. It's that you have a right in this society, and that you can live your life in all its ways, inside of the laws.

Explaining all good things about Sweden!

More good things about Sweden!

And I (me, not Abir) just want to add that actually, plenty of Muslims drink alcohol; and I always dislike it when we look at the west and say, oh, look how different they are, and what weird customs they have, when the same exact stuff is happening in Arab countries. As for being blonde, I have a cousin who's blonde. There are Arabs who are blonde. Not brilliant sun-shine blonde, but soft honey blonde. And, as for names: I also have a cousin named Cinderella (no joke). And I knew a Muslim Syrian girl here in the US who was named Suzanne. And I met a Muslim girl in Jordan who was named Sally. They both wore hijabs and were very proud Arabs. So even the names don't really mean much anymore. 

I met a Swedish girl in Jordan who was called Karin, and she was so nice, and so sweet, and so open to inviting people over to her place. And she was doing tons of activities with kids. Why shouldn't an Arab or a Muslim called their daughter Karin after the Karin I met in Jordan?

Back to the interview. I think Malak's next question was something like: you are a Muslim woman, and the Swedish Center Party was just using you as a face to prove that they were welcoming of immigrants, but otherwise, they don't really get any use out of you.

Malak and her piercing eyes

Abir said: no, I don't let anyone to use me in any way. I act for myself. I have Swedish voters who vote for me. In the 2009 elections for the European Parliament I received over 7000 votes just for me, Abir, not for the Center Party. Of course, I am Iraqi, and Arab, and Muslim, and all of that; I am not ashamed of being an immigrant. But first and foremost, I am Abir.

Malak: Tell me about the second generation Muslims growing up in Europe and who are going to fight with Da-esh (or ISIS) in Iraq and Syria.

Abir: I think those kids are lacking in identity, both inside society and inside their families. I think that a lot of those kids probably have had to take on the roles of parenting their parents. By leaving Europe, these kids gave up democracy, freedom, and respect. I think a lot of them were searching for an identity, and they went to mosques to find this identity, and some of those mosques likely have extremist views.

Malak: You know, a lot of those kids don't even think that their home countries in Europe are democratic or free.

Abir: Sure, when I talk about integration, I don't just talk about what immigrants have to do, but I also ask for governments and countries to open up space and room for these immigrants. People have to realize that tax-paying and law-abiding people are not just white. In fact, tax-paying and law-abiding people might look just like me. Or it might be a lady wearing a hijab or a man with a beard wearing a dishdasha. All of those people might follow the law, too. Most of us are like that.

Abir lays out her points

Malak: On to a new topic. In western countries, there's a very bad image of Islam these days. Why can't people like you, who are in politics and have a voice, try to change this picture?

Abir: Really, I have tried to promote dialogue about Islam. We are lacking this. Everyone has their own opinion and has an opinion, and is quick to accuse others of things. I asked the Islamic leaders in Sweden to clarify their positions regarding Da-esh, or ISIS, in Syria and Iraq. They're the leaders, so why not give their clear positions. I experienced a very negative response. They said: why do we Muslims always have to clarify our positions every time something happens? So I think there's two issues. One is, we Muslims always find ourselves accused of things, and that is hard to deal with. Secondly, I don't think they have a good idea of what it means to be a leader. If you are a leader, then you have a responsibility. I gave them an example. I told them that as immigrants, you want all the political parties in Sweden to say that we are not going to be against immigrants. You want them all to be very clear about what their position is. This principle applies just the same way to you. You are leaders, so you have to state your positions. 

Another thing: Muslims in the west always feel accused and oppressed. Why? How can we solve that problem? I said: why can't we Muslims in Sweden decide on a Swedish Islam? Could we decide what is right and what would work best for us? I didn't suggest that we should become very different. But I was told: no, we can't do this. But why? To me, this is crucial. 

Malak: Do you think that there should be a British Islam and French Islam and a Swedish Islam?

Abir: I don't mean that precisely. I just mean that we should have more than just a single school of Islam, which right now is the Wahabi school setting the standards. We should have a dialogue about these things.

Malak: In Swedish mosques, do you sense that there are certain people bankrolling the building and running of the mosques, and that the views of those people end up being promoted.

Abir: I can tell you one thing at least: I used to go to Friday prayers in the biggest mosque in Sweden. They would always say: pray for the martyrs in Gaza. But when it comes to Iraq, they never said pray for the martyrs in Iraq. They would just say: Iraqis are killing each other. Why in Gaza are they martyrs, and why in Iraq are they not?

Malak: And what do you think the reason for that is?

Abir: Sectarianism. (By which I think she means the big Shia-Sunni fight.)

And thus ended a Swedish politician's turn on the BBC Arabic. How exciting! You can watch the full interview by clicking here (it will take you to the video on the BBC Arabic's YouTube page.)