The demonstrators in Tahrir Square in Baghdad and those in southern cities received a big boost Nov. 7 when the religious officials in charge of the two holy shrines of Abbasiya and Husseiniya in Karbala called upon their staff to march out of the shrines to show solidarity with protesters. They focused their demands on bringing the killers of demonstrators to justice, as well as changing the electoral law in order to restore people’s trust in the process. This march of support comes 40 days after the start of demonstrations Oct. 1 in Baghdad and southern cities, which have seen more than 308 people killed and over 14,000 injured, according to figures from the Human Rights Commission.

The Friday prayer sermon by Grand Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani in Karbala on Nov. 8 reinforced the message that the country’s top Shiite religious authority fully supports the demonstrations. At the same time, however, it also gave the authorities a lifeline when Sistani demanded the adoption of a road map with a clear timetable for reform without further “stonewalling and deferment” in combating corruption and moving away from political quotas as “the country is at grave risk.” This means the government needs to adopt a road map for solutions and be given enough time to implement it. However, there were no details provided on who would draw up the road map, what it would contain and who would supervise its implementation.

While the religious authority also asked that demonstrators who were killed be remembered and demanded that “perpetrators be brought to account,” such calls have fallen on deaf ears so far. Political parties dominated by the Popular Mobilization Units are categorically refusing any move toward disarming groups that fall outside government institutions, nor are they willing to accept any responsibility for the suppression of demonstrators or the use of deadly force. Likewise, nobody from the government has publicly admitted to the “extreme use of violence,” nor are the authorities prepared to even tolerate such a debate or discussion.

The process of reform has hit a deadlock with no solution on the horizon until now; the road map the Shiite authority is asking for is non-existent. Despite the fact that many political parties have submitted their own version of ideas for reform, they all lack support from the demonstrators because the political parties are reluctant to budge from their positions or let go of some of the privileges they have gained. Many of these parties believe the demonstrations are temporary and will end soon — some of them think it can be dealt with by force, they presume people will not have the stamina to keep up the pressure.