Semiology of Ayatollah Sistani's Democratic Political Islam Discourse

The Iraqi sectarian-ethnic society has been unified by force since its establishment till Saddam`s downfall which intensified its social divides and tended to political disintegration. New circumstances paved the way for the existing political discourses competition for hegemony and transforming their elements to moments. Regarding the influence of Islam in the Iraqi society, Ayatollah Sistani’s democratic political Islam discourse has a high potential capacity. Although the discourse has many similarities to shi’ite and democratic approaches, its articulation clarifies the uniqueness and novelty of the discourse that “Islam and general consensus” as its nodal point conjoins signifiers and creates a new meaning through its magnetical meaning. Ayatollah Sistani’s discourse has achieved many successes during the critical situation after the collapse of the Baath regime but its stabilized hegemony depends on Iraqi civil society status and its authorities’ accountability which have faced many grave uncertainties. This article analyzes democratic political Islam signifiers and compares and contrasts them with the competing discourses by referring to critical discourse analysis of Laclua and Mouffee.