AWI condemns torture, oppression of Iraqis

national | anti-war / imperialism | press release Friday April 30, 2004 14:21 by Tim Hourigan - Anti-War Ireland 087-9777703

Iraqi people need freedom, not iron fist

I was originally going to do up a press release about the AWAC aircraft at Shannon yesterday, but having seen the pictures of torture at Abu Ghraib prison in Baghdad, it was obvious what we needed to say.

PRESS RELEASE
For immediate release.

Iraqi people are not animals to be crushed, they must be allowed to decide their own future – Anti War Ireland.

Anti –War Ireland has condemned the recently exposed bahaviour at the Abu Ghraib prison in Baghdad, following publication of photographs of US soldiers torturing and humiliating Iraqi prisoners for their own amusement.
Thousands of Iraqis have been jailed and held without formal charge or visits from families and solicitors. Some of these are minors who were taken prisoner simply for breaking the curfew imposed by the coalition forces. Amnesty International has listed over 80 cases of boys as young as 11 being jailed.
The recent photos, which only came to light because of the conscience of one soldier, graphically depict the psychological and sexual torture of Iraqi civilians.
This practice is barbaric and can only add to the resentment and humilitation of the Iraqi people towards the military occupation.
President Bush’s words about freedom and democracy for all now ring hollow in the ears of the world. The behaviour of the troops on the ground is what matters most.
The Pentagon has tried to restore confidence by keeping this quiet for months before suspending a small number of soldiers including Brigadier General Janis Karpinski, who was appointed to run Iraq’s prison system in June 2003.
Her replacement, Major General Geoffrey Miller,. is also likely to spark controversy, as he is the former commander of the Guantanamo Bay prison in Cuba.
Anti War Ireland is horrified that the occupation forces treat the occupation as no more than a military adventure.
They seem to view Iraq as a battlespace, and have little recognition that the Iraqi people are traumatised and angry, emerging from years of cruel repression under Saddam Hussein and now dealing with armed occupiers - mostly scared young troops- who treat them with suspicion and too quickly resort to overwhelming force.
Iraqis still live in fear of midnight raids by soldiers, forcing their way in to take a family member away. The difference is that this time the soldiers were foreign uniforms and speak a foreign language.
The last thing the Iraqi people need now is another iron fist approach.
In a country damaged by war and occupied by 145,000 troops and 16,000 hired mercenaries life is hard and dangerous. There is massive unemployment in Iraq, movement is restricted by checkpoints and curfews. Electicity is a part-time affair and the military spending has caused massive inflation in the economy. Iraqi people have been killed at checkpoints by frightened soldiers, and they see Fallujah, a city bigger than Cork, being bombarded for three weeks by thousands of Marines. The US has now asked one of Saddam’s former Generals to command a force to pacify Fallujah.
Instead of having clean water, reliable electricty, elections and jobs, the Iraqi people still live in a war zone.
The Iraqi people must be allowed to set their own future, not the puppet government set up by Washington including convicted fraudster, Ahmed Chalabi, and several members of the Iraqi National Congress who provided the sources for the WMD stories before the war. Even the new Iraqi flag was designed in London.
On June 30th, limited power will be transferred to an interim government chosen by Washington, backed up by tanks and guns, but not trusted by Iraqis.
-ENDS-

Contact Tim Hourigan
087-9777703

or Caoimhe Butterly
087-2134160



Verification of facts -
To verify appointment of Guantanamo Bay official see, amonsgt others

http://www.boston.com/news/world/articles/2004/04/30/guantanamo_official_to_monitor_prison/

for blurb on suspended prison commander,
http://www.thisislondon.co.uk/news/articles/10521599?source=Evening%20Standard

includes quotes like “since we took over the prisons, they’re so good the Iraqi’s don’t want to leave”

for insight into jailing of Iraqi boys, see
http://www.commondreams.org/headlines03/0709-06.htm