Coll 17/10(4) 'Internal: political situation; relations with HMG' [‎375r] (749/1031)

Gentlemen, / believe that the honour of military officers is such as forbids
them to allow themselves to act as tools of individuals seeking to exploit the
army for their own personal benefit. A military officer believes that he is born
to serve his country—and his country alone—and not to serve private individuals
and undermine the existence of the State in the service of personal interests.
I do not wish to hold in review past painful events, which began to he
repeated of late. I beg leave of my colleague, his Excellency Nuri-al-Said, to
say that even his fourth Cabinet was formed on the same lines. I say so, though
it may hurt his Excellency, because I feel I must frankly state the truth, in
order that we shall take lesson and be on our guard lest past painful events should
be repeated.
I shall now turn to another page of painful events: The former Cabinet
resigned on Friday. In the afternoon and evening of that day handbills
indicating the time and places for a demonstration against the neiv Goverurnent,
were distributed by individuals moving about either on foot or in motor cats.
On the following day meetings for demonstration purposes were held, but only
in Government schools by the students of such schools. It is to be deplored that
Government school students should embark on such activities.
The Cabinet has been in office for over twenty days, almost a month, but
has taken no action to indicate that it intends putting an end to such lamentable
proceeding s.
Gentlemen, the school students are themselves innocent of such activities.
They must have been driven on that course by others. Now who can these others
be ? I have little doubt that it was some schoolmasters who had instigated the
students. Where is the Ministry of Education? Will that Ministry continue to
maintain silence in the face of such proceedings? Does she propose to promote
the spirit of chaos among the rising generation? _
I do not propose to speak at length about the Cabinet s programme of poke},
for it is acts and deeds and not programmes that really matter, and I expect good
and wholesome deeds from the Hashimi Cabinet, and also the suppiession of .all
harmful activities. ^
In their programme of policy the Cabinet speak of their desire that the
Houses of Parliament shall exercise a controlling influence over the acts of the
Government. We, however, find that the first action taken by the Government
following on their declaration to this effect has been to prohibit the publication
of statements made in the Chamber of Deputies, not a word of which has been
published in the papers.
Someone may perhaps contend, as some did on certain previous occasions,
that it is up to newspapers themselves to publish or not to publish such statements.
I however feel convinced that had newspapers been allowed to publish these
statements’they would have published them to the last word and letter.
1 now wish to qo back to the deplorable events of the past, which 1 hope will
not be repeated in future. I fervently request the responsible ones, in particular
the Minister of Defence, to put definite end to proceedings of the nature
alluded to I join his Excellency A l Madfai his remark that we must not
the fire with ashes and then declare that there is no fire.
I am afraid that, if we continue to hide fire with ashes, we shall one day
regret this sort of conduct on our part, but regret would then be of no avail.
Ridha-al-Shabibi.
I had liked to declare myself content with the valuable words of his Excellency
Al Madfai in which he expressed his views on Iraq's foreign relations and on the
form which, according to his convictions, these relations should assume But 1
altered my mind upon hearing the speech made by his Excellency Al Suwaidi
countering the views on Iraq’s foreign policy put forward by his Excellency
Al Madfai. I myself belong to the group of men who have been maintaining
an attitude of strict neutrality in regard to the present war and international
struo-rie. I was, and am still, of opinion that Iraq s interest lies entirely in
her teaders adopting and always maintaining the same attitude m both then
utterances and their acts. , , . . * u
We however observe that since the outbreak of the war our country has
been it ’is to be deplored, divided into two camps, one upholding one party to
the war and one the other. Rival propaganda has no doubt been influential in
bringing about this dissension.