Ambition and Anxiety as Najaf Readies for Limelight

Nine months after Najaf was named the 2012 capital of Islamic culture, official dreams of showcasing the Shia holy city are being weighed against citizens’ doubts about hosting a major international event.

Najaf was granted the title of cultural capital by the Organisation of the Islamic Conference, OIC, an influential group of 57 nations that seeks to promote solidarity among Muslims worldwide.

The city is expected to host the OIC’s two-week long summit in October 2012, as well as a range of cultural events over the following months.

“We want to hold a big festival for the whole year,” said Sheikh Ali Merza, the head of the committee tasked with readying Najaf for the event.

He said the facilities being built for 2012 included a convention hall, library, theatre, museum, cultural centre and five large hotels.

According to Merza, the projects – estimated to cost nearly 70 million US dollars – would be of lasting value to the city, attracting and accommodating more visitors, particularly religious tourists.

“When tourists come to Najaf, the whole country will benefit from it,” he said.

Najaf is revered as the burial place of Imam Ali, the son-in-law of the Prophet Mohammed, and the city’s ancient shrines have long been a magnet for Shia Muslim pilgrims. In the last decade, the city has also sometimes been a battlefield for militias and the United States military.

Najaf is largely secure now, though its holy sites are occasionally targeted by bombers. Shia militias still have clout on the streets although they do not exercise it openly.

In common with much of Iraq, Najaf’s public services are in poor shape, weakened by years of conflict, neglect and corruption.

While residents hope their city’s elevation to cultural capital will bring lasting improvements to the infrastructure, scepticism is also widespread.

“I’m surprised money has been allocated for this project while our city has poor sewage, little electricity and bad drinking water,” said Mahdi Talib, a teacher.

“It’s better if officials spend money on solving our problems. I don’t know what ‘capital of Islamic culture’ means, and I don’t see how it will benefit us,” he continued.

Moammal Sali, a professor at Kufa University, said the city deserved the accolade of cultural capital and would benefit from the new construction projects – provided they got beyond the planning stage.

“Our concern is that we haven’t seen any improvements on the ground,” he said. “We’ve just heard that committees have been formed and projects are under discussion.

“It will be a real embarrassment in front of the Islamic world if we’re not ready in time.”

Ahmed Raheem, a teacher, said he had regarded his city as a cultural capital even before it was formally designated one.

However, he said he was less sure about the municipality’s ability to do the city justice.

“I don’t trust the Iraqi officials with the preparations,” he said. “I don’t think the authorities are doing their best to accomplish this goal.”

Merza insisted the residents’ concerns were misplaced. He acknowledged that major construction work had yet to commence but said this was because the process of awarding contracts needed to be thorough.

“Choosing firms through bids takes time, it’s not easy,” he said. Once the tenders were approved, he added, the work would speed up.

“Until this moment, nothing has happened on the ground,” he said. “But we have faith in modern technology’s ability to do a year’s work in months. We are counting on foreign firms to meet the target.”

“We can reach our objective in time. We have another year and a half left.”

Merza added that the flagship construction projects would be accompanied by scores of smaller schemes aimed at sprucing up the city and improving its civic infrastructure.

“We have 40 small projects that will focus on fixing the electricity supply and improving the streets and green areas,” he said.

The central government has reportedly allocated 570 billion Iraqi dinars (about 50 million US dollars) for projects linked to the event.

The sum accounts for 70 per cent of the money Najaf expects to spend on preparations for 2012 and the remainder is likely to be drawn from donations by religious bodies and individuals.

Merza dismissed concerns that visitors might be put off because of Iraq’s reputation for unrest.

“We have prepared a security plan with the federal government and neighbouring provinces,” he said. “In general, security in Najaf is better than in other Iraqi provinces.”

Mohammed Ridha, a real estate worker, said his city’s nomination as a cultural capital showed it had overcome adversity.

“The election of Najaf is a blow to terrorists who have targeted the city and a triumph for the Iraqi people,” he said.

Other cities to have recently been nominated capitals of Islamic culture include Dushanbe and Baku.

This report was produced an IWPR-trained journalist in Najaf who preferred not to be named.