Correspondents'
Journal
December 21, 2005 — What Iraqis want: a view from Jordan
Thursday, December 15th marked the end of Iraq’s first post-Saddam election. Iraqis in Jordan expressed a clear consensus on priorities for the new government. Security tops the list; prosperity comes in a close second. How to best achieve these priorities, however, is where the consensus ends and the hard work begins.
Living and working amongst our Iraqi friends and neighbors over the past two years has been a remarkable experience—difficult and heart-rending, hopeful and exhilarating. Our respect and belief in Iraq’s people, their resilience and determination, inspires and give us hope.
As we conclude our association with AFSC and our time in Iraq and Jordan, we remember...
January 26, 2005 — Hope and Skepticism about Elections
The city of Zarka has the most heavily guarded of Jordan’s three voter registration centers for Iraqis. We spoke to a young Iraqi refugee there, working for the International Organization for Migration (organizers of expatriate voting) who explained why he, personally, will not participate in the election: "I believe nothing will come of the elections. Many people are fearful to place their names on a list, for they are afraid the lists will be used against them by a future government. Others are afraid of violence at the polls on election day."
A resounding silence has resonated over the humanitarian disaster in Fallujah….
A letter co-authored by U.S. Representative Jim McDermott, M.D. (D-WA) states in part:
The means of attack employed against Fallujah are illegal and cannot be justified by any conceivable ends. In particular, the targeting of medical facilities and denial of clean water are serious breaches of the Geneva Convention.
January 18, 2005 — Looking Ahead Through Iraqi Eyes
Iraqis are demanding a public commitment by the U.S. government to withdraw its forces and terminate its bases within a defined timeline. A timeline may become moot, however, if U.S. forces can’t quickly prevent the present fall into chaos. The recent refusal by the United States to commit to a timeline for the removal of troops, as a pre-condition for Sunni involvement in the upcoming elections, is a serious miscalculation.
December 20, 2004 — Christmas Has the Taste of Ashes for Us
As violence and civil unrest escalate throughout Iraq, minority communities and vulnerable populations are increasingly at risk. Intimidation and attacks by extremists are forcing many in Iraq’s tiny Christian minority to flee, while others refrain from traditional Christmas celebrations, including the chance to worship safely in Iraq’s churches.
We recently returned to Amman, Jordan, to continue AFSC’s work in Iraq, after completing a 12-state speaking tour in the United States. The ongoing violence inside Iraq has forced us—and the international staffs of many humanitarian organizations—to relocate to countries bordering Iraq.
In the past several weeks we have received many messages from our friends in Iraq. We believe they represent the many Iraqis who feel betrayed and angry, yet whose voices continue to be ignored by the U.S. media. Here are some of those voices:
Haythem, a journalist and interpreter:
"I was very fond of the village my family came from before the war, and even after the war. With my most recent visit I felt that death was very near me when I saw all of the soldiers and their M16 rifles and tanks."
Kidnapping relief workers is new twist to insecurity in Iraq
Appeared as an op-ed in the Des Moines Register
October 27, 2004
The blurred distinctions between those providing impartial, humanitarian aid vs. military occupiers who carry out "aid" or "reconstruction" at gunpoint while pursuing political and economic interests create a casualty in Iraq: the crippling, if not demise, of the international aid community.
Our return to the Middle East joyfully coincided with the release of our friends and colleagues, Italian aid workers Simona Torretta and Simona Pari, and their Iraqi coworkers Ra’ad Ali Abdul Azziz and Mahmouz Bassam.
Their abduction forced the majority of the Iraq-based humanitarian community into exile in Amman or Kuwait. Deteriorating security—and the blurring of lines between those providing impartial, humanitarian aid versus military occupiers pursuing political and economic interests—has compromised and curtailed the work of the international humanitarian community.
After a year in Baghdad, AFSC staff reflect on a nation at the
crossroads and in turmoil. From an interview with Rick and Mary
for Quaker Action magazine.
June
2, 2004 — Iraqi Reactions to the June 30 Transfer
of Power
Answers to the question: "What will
happen in Iraq after the June 30 handover of power?"
June
2, 2004 — The More Things Change...
Rick McDowell reflects on the situation in Iraq today as compared
to his first visit there in August 1996. "I cringe when
I hear Iraqis today say that life was better under Saddam," he
writes. Yet, signs of hope remain, and Rick notes: "As
always, we are amazed at the resilience of the Iraqi people."
May
9, 2004 — The Black Hole of War
As we pass the anniversary of President Bush’s "Mission
Accomplished" declaration, the people of the United States
are beginning to recognize our commonality with the Iraqi people
as casualties and victims of war.
April 21, 2004 — Violence
and hatred spread
At the airport, we met a guard from the Coalition contract security firm, Custer Battles. Befitting the name of his company, the gunslinger was armed with a shotgun and a bandolier of shotgun shells across his chest, more reminiscent of the American-Indian wars than contemporary Iraq. Similarly, a friend of ours in Baghdad’s international relief community was startled several days ago when a security guard, protecting a nearby compound, walked down the center of the street wearing a cowboy hat and a sidearm. These surreal images are not lost on the Iraqi people.
Mary and I plan to temporarily relocate to Amman, Jordan, until a measure of security and order has been restored to Baghdad.
As AFSC country representatives, we set three conditions that would determine our decision to evacuate. The first was if Iraqi friends, neighbors, or associates were placed at risk by our presence. The second condition was the kidnapping of foreigners; and lastly, if international relief organizations were targeted by extremists or anti-Coalition forces.
We believe that all three conditions have been realized.
April 9, 2004 — Only Sadness on This Anniversary
Today, April 9, is the one-year anniversary of the fall of Baghdad.
Iraqis line up to give blood and food for the civilians of Fallujah and other besieged cities, while the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) reports shortages of medical staff, surgical equipment, oxygen, blood bags, and food supplies for Fallujah’s hospital. Muqtada al-Sadr, the young firebrand Shiite cleric and leader of the armed revolt, is nothing if not a product of the calamity of internationally imposed sanctions, war, and occupation against Iraq.
If you need evidence of the ongoing war, visit the Orthotics/Prosthesis Workshop at Baghdad 's Center for Rehabilitation and Physiotherapy and meet seven-year-old Hathem. It is difficult to look beyond Hathem's piercing eyes-passionate and questioning. He doesn't remember the night U.S. troops fired into his home, but has the rest of his life to remember his father and learn to live with his amputated leg.
Despite the sparse, bleak conditions, everything is relative in Baghdad. If you've had to make your home in the streets-or a corner of a bombed-out building or a tent in the middle of a rubble-strewn former military base-then four walls, a roof, and a real floor can mean a major improvement.
In words and pictures, the newest dispatch from Rick and Mary—AFSC Country Representatives in Iraq—provides a stark, detailed account of the deteriorating conditions in occupied Iraq. As Rick writes:
Aside from the self-congratulatory rhetoric of the Bush administration, there is little evidence "on the ground" that many Iraqis are benefiting from the U.S.-led invasion and occupation. Iraqis continue in their daily struggle, as President Bush and Prime Minister Blair attempt to justify their pre-emptive war.
As violence escalates and Coalition forces use the new tactic of military aircraft overflights, Rick and Mary report a variety of impressions from the holidays and the start of the New Year. They have called this freeform journal entry No One Untouched.
For earlier journal entries, see the links on the right.
Bios: Doug Hostetter | Mary Trotochaud | Rick McDowell
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