Correspondents'
Journal
June 2, 2004
What will happen to Iraq after the June 30 handover of power?
When you ask Iraqis what will change after the handover of power
later this month, many give you a quizzical look and tell you “nothing.”
It
should be noted that these responses were given prior to the
appointment of the new government. Here are other responses randomly
asked of people we’ve met over the past days.
A neighbor and mother of three:
“What
will happen on June 30? I don’t know, dangerous, very dangerous.”
Looking
at her young daughter, who narrowly escaped being kidnapped,
she said, “We can live without electricity and food forever,
we cannot live without our children.”
Owner of barber shop:
“The U.S. must use sense
to restore Iraq. Please God save us from a massacre. Maybe those
who had power before will gain control — everything is possible.”
A young man who works as a private
house guard:
“I
lost three brothers to war, one in Iran and two in the Gulf War.
I am the only one left. It’s OK. I want peace only peace,
but the future is dark and we do not know.”
Engineer and owner of cell phone store:
“I think
conditions will begin to slowly improve.”
A computer programmer:
“On June 30 nothing will
change because nothing is designed to change. What is freedom?
Pepsi, cell phones and satellite dishes? Things will change when
a force from outside confronts us. The U.S. is on the inside
and we are not able to respond.”
“There is no hope; Saddam’s regime was better.”
Hotel manager:
“When people return to work, things
will be better.”
Local merchant:
“Maybe another
session of looting will follow the transfer.”
Doctor:
“What is American doing with its tanks
and walls and conspiracies, the killing of innocents?”
Former official in the Ba'ath government:
“No
one is working for Iraq; everyone is working for them self.”
Businessman:
“Take your soldiers off of our streets
and into their barracks and things will be better.”
An artist:
“I belong to a 1,700-member union
of artists. I woke up and we had a new flag. No one asked the
artists of Iraq to design the flag. It is hopeless. Democracy?
The U.S. says you are Ba’ath so can cannot work and you
were in the military and you cannot work and … There is
no freedom or democracy in Iraq.”
“We’ve had 35 years of bad government, it can only
improve.”
Director of an Iraqi NGO:
“We need to install
someone strong. We are fed up with the estimated 400 political
parties, which are polarizing and further destroying our country.”
- Rick McDowell
^ Top of page |
Email this page