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2002, when Bush's war-propaganda started and still many countries, even in Europe, consider Iraq as a country of terrorists, Islamic fundamentalists, or, at best, some maleducated bedus, I tried to change that view with some web-presentation, quite well visited up to now (in German: Iraqi culture, kitchen receipts, maps etc).
Now Iraq, including its television and other media, is doing its best, to confirm the picture of a country ruled by ignorant criminals.
I'm quite aware of the fact, that much more Iraqis are taken hostage than foreigners and that much more Iraqis are dying due to this "new economy". But the problem is, if 1 foreigner is abducted, that gets much more international attention than the abduction of 10 Iraqis – and all this attention harms the picture of Iraq as a nation suppressed first by Saddam, occupied now by the USA and its allies; a nation struggling for freedom and a better future. The picture that the world gets nowadays is a different one, the one of a country where ruthless, ignorant criminals may behave as they like.
The majority of the abducted foreigners do not have anything in common with Bush's imperial politics. The Japanese are not fighting troops, but development assistants. Germany is facing lots of troubles with its former friend, the USA, as it refused to participate in that war. Germany, France, Russia and others are asked to forfeit enormous sums of money for goods and services that Iraq received, but never paid for. Still - all those countries brought forward large sums for the future development of Iraq (Madrid Conference), but are waiting for the establishment of halfway reliable institutions, as they are definitely not going to refinance all efforts after each elections and change of government. Such money is urgently needed, as the large sums the USA invests, seem largely to go into US-companies and US-camps, into the pockets of US and as well of a few national haramis (thieves)).
To blame foreigners for everything what goes wrong in a country is an old tradition, not only in Arabic countries, but as well with the conservative parties of Switzerland, Austria, France and elsewhere – and it is as stupid a policy in any Arabic country as it is in Switzerland.
Hostage taking does not solve any problem of Iraq, but does all, to destroy any positive image Iraq – as occupied country - might have got in the meantime.
Moreover. Hostage takers uttering the name of God or behaving as acting in the interest of Islam, are doing the opposite. They are damaging any sympathy the Muslim communities might have acquired. Hostage takers play into the hands of Bush and his cronies, into the hand of all people that have claimed that Iraq is a nest of terrorists, inhabited by wild, uneducated and ruthless sheep farmers just waiting for the blessings of western (US) culture..
Hostage takers should be punished hard. The hardest punishment for them might be to send them back to school until they are able to read and understand newspapers, at least in Arabic language. Appropriate might be as well to do as the Holy Quran commands: Eye for eye, tooth for tooth > head for head.
Or - hostage takers should be taught the Quran, as there's absolutely no way to justify hostage taking with the word of Good, and as they are propagating an image of a medieval and cruel form of Islam as it is done normally by the enemies of the Muslimin.
Martin Herzog, Baghdad, 13.04.04
p.s: The Russians have been released in the meantime. The hostage takers admitted to have committed an error. If you now think, stupid criminals are a problem, don't forget, that stupid presidents are a much larger one.
Interesting as well is the case of the released Japanese hostages. Both decided to stay in Iraq, what shows, that they have been taken hostage for political reasons and been treated nicely. Both face no criticisms from the Japanese population, that does not understand why they don't appreciate the efforts undertaken by the Japanese government, to release them. I must say I like their behavior and consider it as the right one. Their abduction was a misunderstanding, the misunderstanding has been solved - so what? The media are always overdoing, over representing dangers, as they have to deliver some interesting stories to a largely bored viewers waiting for a kick. This leads to reactions at embassies, recommending evacuation, this leads to evacuations - and standstill.
I wonder how the UN are going to work in Iraq. Having worked for them myself during 6 years, I know how difficult it gets to do field work, if there is only the shadow of danger looming over a country. With the existing attitude and the constant "overshooting" of the coalition, the press and the organisations working in Iraq, they will be sitting in some bunkers as the US-consultants and their influence on the further development might be about the same: We have to wait for better times.
In the meantime China is following the same road. 3864 kidnappings happened there in 2004, what is even a 1000 more than in Columbia (well ... not taking into account, that China is slightly bigger than Columbia ...). The main reason: The highly unequal distribution of wealth. With a Gini-coefficient of 0.45 (Switzerland 0.3) China is now at the top of countries with high levels of injustice.
p.s. p.s.: Apropos Intelligenz und Berechtigung zu Widerstand
Dass ein Krieg für die Einführung von Demokratie eben so wenig intelligent ist wie die Entführung von Privatpersonen zur Beendung des Kriegs war ja bekannt und wird immer deutlicher. Dass beide kriminell sind ebenso. So hat doch Bush in einer Verfügung festgestellt, dass rechtliche Schritte gegenüber Oelfirmen ein Risiko für die nationale Sicherheit darstellen, ihn also dazu berechtigen über Notrecht zu einem präsidialen Erlass ermächtigen. In diesem (EO 13303) wird jegliche juristische Klage gegen Oelfirmen als null und nichtig erklärt, was Klagen über den Missbrauch der Oelfonds wie der Tätigkeit der Oelfirmen praktisch unmöglich macht. Während er früher mal sagte: Das Irakische Oel gehört den Irakis, gab er es mit diesem Erlass der Plünderung durch US-Firmen preis. Bush's Notstandsgesetz erklärt also praktisch US-Gesetze als staatsfeindlich. Dümmer geht's nümmer ... aber das dachten viele ja schon längst.
http://www.wsws.org/articles/2003/aug2003/preo-a19_prn.shtml
Obwohl die Irakische Widerstandsbewegung als solche wegen der zur Zeit grassierenden Enführungen bei den wenigsten Sympathisanten des Irak auf Bewunderung, oder auch nur Anerkennung stösst, muss das Recht auf, beinahe die Pflicht zu, Widerstand unter solchen Umständen voll anerkannt werden. Eine weitere Begründung notwendigen Widerstandes findet sich in der grosszügigen Pfründenverteilung des Bush-Regimes an seine Freunde: http://www.export.gov/iraq/contracts/contracts03.html