A Family in Baghdad

Good evening..
well this is a link about different stories from HAPPY Iraq
http://weekly.ahram.org.eg/2006/787/sc3.htm

faiza

Friday, April 07, 2006
Good morning…
I am still in America…
It has been more than a month now, and for me, it is as if I have been here for a year, for I have traveled to many cities and met different people. But the majority I met, in all truth, honesty, and without partiality, were against the war, and want to withdraw the troops. The numbers here say that the ratings of the Bush administration is in constant decline, that more than 60% of the American people want to get out of Iraq…
I have seen the American people face to face, and I can say the majority of them are peaceful, simple, loving, friendly people; they have no aggressiveness, no arrogance, and no malice…
Perhaps there is an arrogant, haughty minority; who have vanity, foolishness, and narrow, sick minds, but those aren't among the common people. Unfortunately, those are in the decision-making positions; in the government, the extreme rightist wing, or in the media who are working side by side as means of spreading lies and propaganda, blinding the people's eyes here, making them ignorant, and telling them false stories- provoking them to hate the rest of the people outside the United States, debasing the Other's culture and the Other's civilization, as if there is no right model in the world except the American model, and the rest of the world is sinking in idiocy, stupidness, and disgust. Even God in the other nations is different from the American government's God, because He tells them: Wage wars against other nations in my name…
This is their logic; this is how they used religion to spread hatrids against others, and the religious intolerance with which minds and hearts get narrow, and eyes turn blind…
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I met many different people, some Jews and Christians. Most were friendly and nice. Sometimes I used to tell them: I am a Muslim, and according to the ideas of this government I am supposed to be your enemy, who hate you and cannot live without killing you and wiping you out from existence, according to what they told you here about Muslims… but the truth is- we put our hands into each others hands to make peace on earth. Let us pull the occupation troops out of Iraq; because occupying Iraq didn't anger the Iraqis alone, but made all the Arabic and Muslim people angry.
Before the war, perhaps there was some percentage of admiration and love of America in the hearts of the Arabs and Muslims in the Middle East, but now, after three years of killing, destruction, ruin and the injustice that the Iraqis and their neighbors encountered, the ratings of admiration of America went down to the bottom; This occupation distorted the American people's image. Everywhere here, people ask me: Do the Iraqis know we are against the war, and against the policy of our government?
And I tell them: No, they do not know, they are angry, saying you elected this same administration again. You say- that election wasn't sound, and didn't express the people's wishes. But the Iraqis wouldn't believe this empty talk, they shall ask: how did this happen? And in America, the land of freedom and democracy. Your governments destroyed our lands, and they want to export freedom and democracy to us, so, how do you doubt that the results of the elections in your own country wasn't real?
Who will believe you?
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The Americans say: We are afraid to travel to the Middle East, it would be dangerous for us. I told them: Yes, you are paying the price for the bad conducts of your government. The anger and hatred shall be directed to you, wherever you are. Not because the people of earth are jealous or envious of you, like the government says, but for all the injustices your governments inflicted on people along their history.......... And I am astonished, how can there be some in the government who are not alike with their people?
Who put them there? And how did they get into the postion of power, and decision-making?
The answer is: Money, and its influence. As they buy everything with money, even people's minds, hearts, and their votes in the election time… meaning- things happen in a malicious, distorted way, not as we used to think- transparently, and honestly… and not like what some of the American theorizers say, whose books the state propagate, like the book (The End of History) by Fokoyama, as he says that the western democracy is the best kind of ruling system…
Actually, people should read the book of "Plato's Republic", which I want to call: The Beginning of History, as Plato wrote it some 2500 years ago. In it he speaks on the tongue of (Socrates), saying that this democracy in Athens is a corrupt democracy, as merchants and capital owners control the fate of people, and wise, intelligent people, not a bunch of thieves, should control the fate of people…
Ha,ha,ha…
By GOD, he speaks correctly. And here is America, living the beginning of history, not its end, because the same image repeats itself since the days of poor Socrates… while intelligent, wise, and honest men like Naoem Chomsky are being marginalized and scorned in this country. In fact, this country needs leaders like Naoem Chomsky, even though he is a Jew, but he is the calm, logical type, who doesn't use his religion to provoke hating the "Other". We need this model in our world today, to shift from the state of hatrids and wars, to a state of peace and stability…
Instead of spending billions of dollars in wars, destroying countries, and killing people, we can spend them in improving education and health here and there, caring for the poor, the dislodged, and the elderly here and there, treating the patients of cancer and HIV here and there. The world is suffering from many problems, and we are all humans; we do not like injustice and aggression, we like peace and justice. But it seems that the majority of people who love peace and justice, in America, in Iraq, or any other world country, do not have the decision in their hands, but rather in the hands of a faction that loves violence and hatred, exporting them in every direction, planting divisions and violence among nations to justify wars, plunder, and rob the wealth of other countries…
Who can stop those in their limits?
As long as we want peace for our countries and our children, I think this the responsibility of us all, to stop those, to secure peace and justice on earth, enough blood shedding, hatred, and stupidity…
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Always, when I talk to people, especially the university students, I ask them: What have they told you about us? Did they tell you that the Muslim woman was backwards, oppressed, and treated like an animal by her husband?
Did they tell you positive things about Iraq?
Did they tell you, for example, that education is free in Iraq? Even if you continue to get a Ph.D, its free?
Did they tell you that health care and treatment are free in Iraq?
Did they tell you that the charges of water supply, electricity, telephone bills, and fuel before the war, were as cheap as possibly can?
But in the stupid wars which they pushed Saddam Hussein to go through, they were his partners in everything, especially destroying the Iraqi economy, so everything deteriorated after the embargo; education, health care, and the statues of the Iraqi women…
In the seventies, the oil was nationalized, there was an economic and a social revolution in Iraq, and women joined the labor force everywhere…
I graduated from Baghdad University in 1976, some of my teachers were women, but most were men. But after the Iran war, men went to battle fronts, and the state offices filled with women; engineers, doctors, pharmacists, lawyers, judges, and officials… in Universities; most of the teaching staff were women. In the state supermarkets, most of the working crew were women… in construction sites there were women architects, civil, electrical, and mechanical engineers- all women. In communication central stations, the engineers and staff were all women…
The Iraqi woman became the most important part of society; she became the mother and the father at home, and she became the working hand that moves the economy outside the house….
Can you believe this?
Iraq is not Saddam Hussein, and when I defend Iraq, I defend my people, my culture, and my more-than-7000-years civilization. But your government didn't tell you the good things, but wrote only the bad things for you… they deformed the image of the Iraqi woman. And then, Bush comes along to say he Liberated the Iraqi woman…
Liberated her from what?
In fact, he set the Iraqi woman back, and didn't liberate her; when he destroyed the country's economy and the security condition, so the Iraqi women ran to their houses, or outside the country. Or they were put into occupation prisons, or became widows, or carried the photos of their missing sons or husbands, to walk around the streets, check police stations, prisons, or hospitals, looking for their loved ones…
This is what Bush did to most Iraqi women today….
Should we say to him: Thank you??
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I have a project I will try in any possible way to earn some technical and financial aid to carry out…
I want to produce a documentary film about the Iraqi woman; I want to make interviews with Iraq women- educated and cultured, so they could tell their experience in studying, work, marriage, and all other aspects of life. I want this film to be shown in American universities and women organizations, so they could see face to face the Iraqi women, to know the truth about Iraq and the people of Iraq, through the testimony of Iraqis, not through American magazines, newspapers, or TV stations- a biased, spiteful, deforming media. And if you see an Arab or Iraqi women cursing her country and heritage- DO NOT believe her; for this is a hypocrite, or a psychopath looking for a residency card or an American nationality to solve her personal problems…
When I look at the American society, I see a lot of negative points in it; there is a rent between men and women, the rich and the poor, the white and the black, the residents and the immigrants. There are homeless people, there is a slow decline in economy, that will grow because of the wars and its huge budgets. And there are positive points in society; like the personal freedom, the freedom of opinion and gatherings. When I see an American, criticize his country and say- you are full of mistakes and faults, perhaps that American will become sad and say: Faiza, you are mistaken, you haven't seen the beautiful, bright side of our country. Yes, when an American loves his country, it doesn't mean he loves Bush and his administration. America is one thing, and its government is another…
And so is the case with Iraq…
Iraq, loving Iraq, and defending Iraq is one thing… while Saddam Hussein and defending his is another matter…
Is that clear?
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People here gather for activities, in civil-society Societies, even though they do not have the power of decision in critical and important matters like wars, the budget, and others. But there is a margin for speech, movement, and marches. We do not even have these in our countries- true. But the question is: What is the final result?
In countries where the margin of democracy is very small, like our Arabian countries, the people do not have the decision-making power. The decision isn't in the hands of the people… here, people have the freedom to demonstrate, make speeches, and criticize the government, and the result is…?
The people do not hold the freedom to make decisions in their hands…
Is this the great democracy they destroyed us while marketing it through their media?
People here and there are poor and powerless…
Either this system has too many faults, or it was distorted, and as I think, the latter is the bigger probability…
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The war on Iraq didn't just start since three years, the war started in 1991, till now…
How many Iraqi children died for the lack of food and medicine in the embargo days?
And how many die now in city-bombing. How many of them lost their fathers and mothers? How many lost their eye-sight, an arm, or a leg by cluster bombs?
How many of them contracted Cancer by depleted Uranium?
And the rest, who weren't hit by any of these things, had their little hearts drowning in fear, terror, and agony at seeing soldiers bursting into their homes, and arresting their families…
What did this occupation plant in the hearts of Iraqi children, for three years now?
And what would the children of Iraq say now about America?
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After the embargo, the economy deteriorated, and the inflation increased. The salaries were no longer sufficient for the state employees; poverty increased, and administrational corruption; the country started breaking economically, then socially, and the statues of women started deteriorating…
These aren't just the crimes of Saddam Hussein; the American government also participated in destroying Iraq, and the economical and social lives of the Iraqis when they imposed the embargo upon them.
And what have we reaped until now?
The economy is still breaking, and the society is ripping apart…
And they tell you they liberated Iraq, and the Iraqi women…
Oh, what lies?
All evils start and end with lying…
And this war started with lying, and lying is still going on to justify its continuance…
What is the matter with lying in this country?
When Clinton lied about his personal relationship with Monica, they created a scandal for him, and put him to an investigation to remove him from office…
And now Bush lied, killing hundreds of thousands of Iraqis, destroying their towns and villages, spending billions of dollars from the American tax payers money, and the Iraqi oil money- for nothing. The money is gone, Iraq is destroyed, and nobody calls him to account?
Not only Iraq lives in chaos and a loss of rightness and the correct vision…
This country lives through the same dilemma…
Solutions must be found to get out of the deadlock of lies, and liars…
Just solutions must be found; solutions that would bring peace to Iraq and the Iraqis, after these long sufferings…
The Iraqis are tired, it is about time they should know the meaning of rest…..
* * *

Good evening..
this is a small part of a long letter I got from a new friend , today.
with all the pain in my heart about Iraq.
I saw the same pain in his heart ...
makes me believe we are alike , people from different nations and cultures are alike, we want peace for our families, our countries, our future.
there is bunch of thieves and criminals who are the only benefiters of this war.
faiza
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During the anti-war marches I took my eldest son on one, he was about four at the time and I put him on my shoulders for the long walk. It was a moment of great pride when I heard him taking up the chants of "No War!" Sure hedidn't know what it meant, but I hope he remembers that moment for the rest of his life. When I'm watching the news he asks what's going on, why I'm so angry and I have to explain to him, he then asks why people are doing such things, why are people on TV crying. I explain to him that far away there is a war where very bad people are hurting others and its very dangerous. I then reassure him by pointing out we live in a very safe place, where everyone has enough to eat, where we have clean running water and there are no wars. When I'm doing this I feel nothing but shame. I wish I didn't but Ido.

I hope you manage to come to Britain, Faiza. The reality of what is going on needs to be told, in both directions. We here need to hear the truth, the Iraqi people also need to hear that we do not support this war, that it is not in our name. I hope to God that it ends soon but how we shall ever eradicate the stain on our nation is something I believe to be impossible.