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Opinion

Hussein's execution may worsen tensions

Reid Midgett
Opinion Columnist

We have finally done it. We have liberated Iraq from the clutches of tyranny and terror and delivered its people from despair. We have given hope to those without democracy and punished those who oppose it.

The head tyrant himself has been captured and finally given his sentence. He will likely be executed for his crimes against humanity.

Saddam Hussein is a terrible man. He killed thousands of innocent people, ruled his country through fear and thwarted democracy. 

Even after his capture, he displayed arrogance and confidence that defied his captors and the men whose duty was to decide his fate.

And so he will die for his crimes against humanity. He will be hanged, sending a clear message to all his former subjects.

Immediately after the sentence, fighting broke out in a Sunni area of Baghdad. Obviously, the terrorists who supported Hussein were not happy with the revelation of his slated execution. 

And they will continue to fight whether Saddam is around, perhaps more fiercely because of their anger in regard to his death.

Perhaps this was the wrong decision at the wrong time for Iraq. In a time of political instability and rampant crime, Baghdad is in need of structure and peace, and the execution of the former ruler will not hasten that. 

It may end up making things much worse; the news is certain to exacerbate the already high levels of domestic terrorism.

Iraq is already in a state of political uncertainty, with most of the world urging the United States to ease out of the country. 

More potential chaos could prove fatal to the country and further worsen geopolitical tensions.

There is no mistaking the fact that Hussein deserves to pay for his crimes. Yet forcing this decision at a time of such instability in Iraq seems like a poor choice. 

This ruling was determined in a period of a possible shift in partisan politics in America.

The Republicans fear they will lose the majority in Congress to the Democrats. Perhaps this is yet another political maneuver in an effort to boost the Republican’s chances at holding their seats.

Yet it seems unlikely that our government would risk the safety of a struggling nation in order to ensure its control.

One cannot deny the state of Iraq’s economy and government is poor and that it is an increasingly dangerous country.

Yet this may be just the beginning, for one can only imagine the terror that will occur in the aftermath of Hussein’s execution.

His followers will not stop merely because they have lost their leader; if that were true, they would have lowered their weapons when he was captured.

His influence is still present in the crippled country he once kept stable. The end of Hussein will not bring the end of terrorism in Iraq.

Midgett, a communication junior, 
can be reached via dccampus@mail.uh.edu