Baghdad installation of al-Jawahiri statue reignites debate over design

BAGHDAD, Iraq — A dispute over the recently unveiled statue of Iraqi poet Mohammed Mahdi al-Jawahiri in central Baghdad has resurfaced, with the sculptor defending the design. Sculptor Nida Kazim described the project during a weekly session of the Iraq Palm Tree Organization, saying the idea first came to him during the Mervid Poetry Festival under the former regime but was blocked for political reasons. Kazim said the concept took firmer shape after 2003 and was submitted to the Baghdad Municipality in 2006, where it was initially rejected on financial grounds. The project later moved forward with the approval of former Prime Minister Mohammed Shia al-Sudani, according to the sculptor. Kazim added that the Ministry of Culture provided a limited workshop on condition the statue not be produced abroad, and said he was satisfied with the final result. Organization president poet Mujahid Abu al-Hayl described Kazim as one of the last masters of portrait sculpture. The five-meter-tall statue, mounted on a three-meter pedestal, was installed along Abu Nawas Street in Baghdad.