I may have mentioned before that I room with another CALL observer and also an Iraqi army Colonel. Colonel A is a slightly built guy, ylooks younger than his 47 years, pleasant, speaks impeccable English, and struck me as being quite gentle. His father was a high ranking general and he was expected to follow in his footsteps. In 1991, when the first Iraqi war occurred, he was the commander of a ceremonial unit. They did parades, military functions, cross-country exchanges. Half of his unit deserted. He released the remainder to go home and protect their family, and then he went home to do the same. His father met him at the door and called him a coward. Colonel A told me this story not long after meeting me, without much bitterness or embarassment. So much for my stereotypes of macho, face-saving Arabic men.
Anyhow, we've had several more chats and he seems pretty forthright in giving his opinion. Here's a sample:
On Saddam: "Saddam was crazy -- I hated Saddam for what he did to our country and the economy."
On the Iraqi leadership: "[US Ambassador] Bremer was the problem. He brought back all of these Iraqi exiles who had agendas or wanted revenge or just money and they went and put all their buddies into power. That's where all the corruption is coming from."
On the British: "The locals in Basrah want to see what the Americans are like. They don't like the British because the British retreated to their base and didn't come to do anything to protect the people. They let the militias take over everything."
On Iraqi police: "Iraqis don't trust the Iraqi police because there are so many militia in the police. Even I would not go to find a policeman. I would not give my ID to one -- they might take me away. When the Americans detain someone and take them away, we think, "Ok...he might go to Bucca [detention camp in S. Iraq], but he'll be okay." When Iraqi policemen take someone, we may never see that person again."
On Iraqi Army: "Iraqis trust the Iraqi Army more because they don't have the history of being with the militias. They are more independent."
Given, he probably does not represent the average view because he was part of the elite, was well-educated, and has much to gain from the Americans. On the other hand, you could argue that those like him lost the most from our invasion.
I also struck up a conversation with an Iraqi interpreter named "Tom" last night at dinner. He had been a local interpreter and in return for his service, he was given a visa to travel to the US to live. He ended up in N. Pennsylvania (he lamented that it was "way too cold") and after having a hard time getting work, decided to sign up for a second stint, this time in a different category as a US resident. He was really thankful for the opportunities he had gotten through working with the Americans. I was pretty surprised that we had a policy of rewarding local interpreters who did a year service with a visa for them and their immediate family, but it makes sense and I don't think is too much to do for someone who risks their lives by working with us. He said that he was in danger even though his family was in Baghdad because everyone talks and it is very easy for someone to find out that he is working with the US and tell someone in Baghdad to find his family. When I asked him if the Iraqis were ready for us to pull out, he said that the average person did not want the US to leave. They did not trust that the Iraqi security forces and Army would maintain peace and essential services.
I hope to get out in sector before too long to see and ask people for myself, but I don't think people will be that open on the first visit. That is one thing that I have noticed is that other than kids and young people, Americans are notably different in that they are by and large very open and blunt. They ask straight questions and expect straight answers. Doing business like this is refreshing -- you can be quite efficient. But, if you don't know how to deal with people who are more roundabout, Americans can get burned.
Great post, I sent some office supplies yesterday.
ReplyDelete