Even though Saddam Hussein has finally been sentenced to hang, it would be foolish to assume the demise of one broken dictator will quell the conflict in Iraq.
We agree that he and his co-defendants should be punished for their crimes according to their country's laws. It declares the rule of justice trumps the capricious whims of a despot, but Hussein's death will not bring an immediate cessation to the violence in Iraq.
Three years ago, some people were na?ve enough to believe Hussein's capture would put an end to the violence, but a five-minute skim of today's world headlines easily contradicts this assumption. Although justice will be appeased, we must not fool ourselves into believing Hussein's death will end the strife and conflict in Iraq because he is not the powerful leader he once was.
The Hussein we've seen at trial is a different man than when he was leader of the Iraqi people. In front of the Iraq court that tried him, we've seen a mere shadow of his former greatness. Instead of his trademark army fatigues, he wore a gray suit; instead of a narrow, jet-black mustache and a black beret, he sported a beard spackled gray with old age and a neatly combed head of hair; instead of proud Iraq president, he was a man sentenced to death by hanging for the execution of 148 of his own countrymen.
During his sovereignty, Hussein was a true tyrant in every sense of the word. History will remember his reign as an era marked by mass slaughter, gassings and ethnic cleansings, a cruel reminder that one man can cause a nation, and the world, to suffer. His presidency perfectly mirrored King Mosiah's words: 'For behold, how much iniquity doth one wicked king cause to be committed, yeah, and what great destruction!'
The Iraqi people have endured much conflict and bloodshed to bring Hussein to trial, and their struggles are far from over because Hussein's death could tip the country into an all-out civil war. Even as the death sentence was announced, Iraqis loyal to the ex-president declared, 'If our president and his colleagues are executed, rivers of blood will flow.' Their expressed sentiment parallels Mosiah's wisdom: 'Ye cannot dethrone an iniquitous king save it be through much contention, and the shedding of much blood. For behold he has his friends in iniquity, and he keepth his guards about him.'
Make no mistake; this will be a triumph for justice, but Hussein's execution will not be the final chapter in Iraq's struggle.