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Peace in Iraq, it beats war! KurdishMedia.com - By Jeff Klein 16 February 2003 Yesterday was a big day of protest. Hundreds of thousands took to the streets in various cities worldwide in the name of protesting “war on/against Iraq.” The “war” being protested, of course, is American intervention aimed at a change of regime in Iraq. The opposite of “war on/against Iraq”, is “peace in Iraq”. At the moment, the “war” has yet to begin, so Iraq is in a state of “peace”. In the very least, I would assert that this is an imperfect peace. It is a peace in which an entire nation lives paralyzed in fear. A peace in which every single family has lost a loved one to the dictatorship that controls them against their will. A peace where you can and will be removed from you ancestral home if you are not of the “correct” ethnicity. A peace where your mother, daughter, or sister may be raped by the dictatorship’s security officials to punish her or shame her into cooperating with the regime of Saddam Hussein al-Tikriti. A peace where it is common to hear of citizens getting their tongues cut off to uttering an “incorrect” word. I am thankful that I do not have to live under such “peaceful” conditions, for this peace sounds like an unimaginable hell! I live in New York, the site of one of the world’s largest “peace” demonstrations. Coincidentally, the demonstrations stood between my apartment and my office. Thus, I found myself walking with the demonstrators to work. I spoke with one man on my way to work who was a Quaker opposed “war on/against Iraq”. I asked him if he supports the Iraqi dictatorship and he said, “Of course not.” I asked him what should be done about this regime, and he told me that the “Saddam would not live forever” and the regime would eventually wither away. I found myself at a loss for words. I could not even reason with such a man. I asked him if he knew what Anfal was, and he said he had no idea. I have a feeling that the majority of demonstrators had no idea what Anfal meant. How can one claim to have an educated opinion on Iraq without knowing a thing about the most terrible atrocity perpetrated by the regime. I was thoroughly convinced that there was no way to reason with the demonstrators. Nonetheless, I wanted to do something. I printed 200 copies of a press release by the Iraqi Prospect Organization (IPO), a group of Iraqi exiles fighting for democracy in their homeland. They said, “Anti-war demonstrators lack the support of the Iraqi people.” I handed these out to demonstrators, and received more than one hostile response. One lady said, “I suppose this is directly from the Iraqi people.” I answered, “If you took the time to read it, you would know that!” She said, “Whatever.” I said, “Look at the contact information. Is Ahmed a Western name?” (A reference to the President of the IPO, Mr. Ahmed Shames.) She did not want to hear anything further, and rudely dismissed me. It seemed to me that the demonstrators had no desire to hear anything that ruined their perfect image of being pro-peace and opposing forces of evil. It is so much fun to march with thousands and oppose US President George W. Bush that the majority of people do not realize what they are supporting. No one who claims to act in solidarity with the people of Iraq can take a position that perpetuates the genocidal dictatorship of the Ba’ath party. I hope that soon the Iraqi people will not have to live under the “peace” of Saddam and the “peace” of the demonstrators. I hope that, in the near future, they will experience a new peace, one in which they can speak their minds and live where they choose. Sent by Mail at easy.com, an easyGroup company. _______________________________________________ Sent via the discussion list of the Campaign Against Sanctions on Iraq. To unsubscribe, visit http://lists.casi.org.uk/mailman/listinfo/casi-discuss To contact the list manager, email casi-discuss-admin@lists.casi.org.uk All postings are archived on CASI's website: http://www.casi.org.uk