[Vision2020] 06-01-04 LA Times: For Iraqis, a Symbol of Unkept Promises

Pat Kraut pkraut@moscow.com
Tue, 1 Jun 2004 14:50:54 -0700


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OK, theres one bad report and of course the LA Times found it and =
couldn't wait to report it. So all the reports by the returning GI's are =
wrong or just 'eye witness reports' and unreliable? It is a large =
country...don't you suppose there might be some people happy about the =
whole thing?? You sure won't find it in the LA Times or CNN or most of =
the other main stream news. I happened to see some video of the area =
from another source recently and there are many who understand how great =
it is that Saddam is no longer there and are very excited about what we =
have done. But, I wouldn't have expected anything else from this site =
than more Bush is a rotton scoundrel and we are losers for having taken =
out Saddam. So many of you are so busy being A+ers that your incapable =
of seeing whole picture. Some good, some bad but in the long run it will =
all come together. I do have faith in us and in OUR president.=20
PK
  ----- Original Message -----=20
  From: Art Deco aka W. Fox=20
  To: Vision 2020=20
  Sent: Tuesday, June 01, 2004 8:10 AM
  Subject: [Vision2020] 06-01-04 LA Times: For Iraqis, a Symbol of =
Unkept Promises


  =20

-------------------------------------------------------------------------=
-----
  http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/world/la-fg-school1jun01.story =

  THE CONFLICT IN IRAQ
  For Iraqis, a Symbol of Unkept Promises
  By Nicholas Riccardi
  Times Staff Writer

  June 1, 2004

  BAGHDAD - Past the charred remains of a U.S. military truck, down a =
pitted road lined with rubble sits Shura Primary School.=20

  Outside, the squat schoolhouse glistens with fresh lime-green paint, =
courtesy of the renovation spree launched by the U.S.-led coalition. =
Inside, the floors are buckled, the blackboards are scarred, and the =
bathrooms are little more than open-air sewage pits. There is one =
working water fountain for 1,125 students, who must pick their way =
through a parking lot strewn with mounds of trash to get to the school's =
front doors.=20

  "They promised to make it a paradise," said Hana Abbood, a teacher of =
Arabic language at Shura. "But all they've changed is the paint."

  To many Iraqis in the area, the sorry state of the school is a symbol =
of how the coalition has failed them.

  As much as civilian casualties or detainee abuse, the erratic =
reconstruction of their country has turned Iraqis against the =
occupation. Many people welcomed last year's invasion, hoping that the =
world's only superpower could elevate their wretched standard of living. =


  But a year later, the promised $18 billion in U.S. reconstruction =
money is only now hitting the streets. Projects have been delayed by =
insurgent attacks and rampant corruption, committed by Iraqis but blamed =
on the Americans. Baghdad's boulevards are lined with trash. Geysers of =
sewage erupt in even the wealthiest neighborhoods of the capital. =
Unemployment is epidemic nationwide.

  Misgivings are particularly sharp in neighborhoods such as the one in =
northwest Baghdad that surrounds the Shura school - predominantly Shiite =
Muslim areas that were neglected under the Sunni Muslim-led government =
of President Saddam Hussein, which have turned against the occupiers.=20

  In an acknowledgment of the problem, the military has begun to step up =
basic services in northwest Baghdad, from sewer service to garbage =
pickup.=20

  The complaints of inadequate rebuilding frustrate occupation officials =
and the dwindling ranks of Iraqis who support them, because progress is =
not nonexistent. Although schools such as Shura sit in disrepair, =
numerous others have been renovated. The coalition has dramatically =
boosted the salaries of teachers and other government workers and =
sparked a consumer mini-boom.

  "Everybody in Iraq wants to eat and have a new salary and a new =
address as soon as possible. They do not want to say thanks to the =
Americans for getting rid of that bloody tyrant, Saddam Hussein, which =
will not be repaid for 10 generations," said Hasanein F. Muallah, who is =
in charge of school construction for the Education Ministry. "The Iraqis =
are impatient. They need to have everything right now."=20

  Dan Senor, the main spokesman for the coalition, said citizens =
overestimated the power of the United States.=20

  "It's perfectly understandable, but sometimes the Iraqi people have =
unrealistic expectations of what the Americans can do," he said. "They =
don't understand how a country that could defeat the Iraqi army cannot =
get the power back on. But the fact is that the nation's infrastructure =
was in a lot worse shape than we thought."=20

  Another issue is that the occupation has decreased Iraqis' sense of =
personal security. Many say the roving bands of kidnappers and bandits - =
not to mention the heavily armed U.S. soldiers - are more terrifying =
than Hussein's secret police.

  To the teachers and students at Shura, a new paint job and higher pay =
seem like a poor trade.

  "The lives of Iraqis are getting worse," teacher Abbood said as her =
classroom of 11- and 12-year-old girls nodded in agreement. "Now these =
pupils are frightened that someone will throw a bomb at them, or kidnap =
them.

  "The walls, the paint, yes, they have improved, but the general =
situation at the school - the curriculum, the books, the food - has not =
changed for the better."=20

  Shura Primary has long stood out as an eyesore in a neighborhood full =
of eyesores.

  It lies at the edge of Baghdad, in the heart of the Ghazaliya =
district, a warren of fraying apartment buildings, modest houses and =
potholed byways.=20

  The school is not hooked up to Baghdad's sewer system, so the septic =
tanks from the restrooms drain into a reservoir beneath the front =
courtyard. The sewage seeps up through the ground and into the path of =
students. The classrooms have no window screens to keep out the swarms =
of flies and mosquitoes, and no air conditioning.=20

  When Hussein's government fell in April 2003, U.S. military officers =
and civilians began appearing at Shura. They handed out new book bags =
and pens for some of the students and promised to improve conditions.

  Nearly a year later, in March, contractors showed up and began =
painting the building and shoring up the walls. They tore out the =
student restrooms in the rear courtyard and began to lay the foundation =
for a new bathroom. Several weeks later, the work abruptly stopped.

  The floor of the students' bathroom is now littered with construction =
debris; the children must relieve themselves on the rubble. The door to =
the teachers' bathroom was removed and has yet to be replaced. Cracks =
run up through the walls where new wiring is supposed to go.=20

  "The Americans promised to improve our conditions," student Nura Ahmed =
said, "but we think they were all lying."

  The problem with the Shura project is one that bedevils much of the =
country: corruption.=20

  The culprit, according to Iraqi education officials, is a former =
teacher who persuaded the U.S. military to give her an office and let =
her choose which schools should be refurbished, and by which =
contractors. The woman, identified as Ezra Abdul Razak, allegedly =
demanded bribes from the contractors. She has since vanished, and an =
Iraqi judge is investigating the case.

  Meanwhile, the contractors have not been paid and have halted work on =
Shura and nearly 100 other schools.=20

  The Al Kake company is one of the contractors owed money - more than =
$500,000. It suspended work on 13 schools, including Shura. Dakhil =
Muhsin Mohammed, Al Kake's president, said that even though the fraud =
appeared to have been committed by Iraqis, the Americans bore =
responsibility.

  "You occupy this country, you should do your utmost to make sure =
things work," said Mohammed, who has a certificate of appreciation from =
the U.S. military prominently displayed in his office. "I don't blame =
people when they criticize the Americans for not doing things that are =
tangible."=20

  Abbas Musawi is one of those critics. Last year, the member of the =
Ghazaliya neighborhood council praised the U.S. occupiers so vocally =
that he was the target of an unsuccessful assassination attempt by =
insurgents.

  "I was so enthusiastic," he recalled. "I was always telling the people =
that all you have to do is be patient, because these people are going to =
rebuild this country."

  A year later, Musawi says he's seen almost no changes. He has resigned =
in disgust from his post in a central organization of neighborhood =
councils. He displays a photograph of radical anti-American cleric =
Muqtada Sadr outside his shop and proudly pointed to the other pictures =
lining the streets of the neighborhood. When U.S. troops tore the photos =
down after Sadr's armed supporters fought them in the area last month, =
Musawi helped replace the pictures with hundreds of new ones.

  "Nothing has changed in this neighborhood," said Musawi, driving past =
acres of smoldering roadside trash. "They've moved tanks and weapons =
thousands of miles and they can't bring trucks to take this away?"

  Later, Musawi sat in the office of Shura's headmaster and his =
colleague on the Ghazaliya council, Ibrahim Mohammed Abdullah, and =
inspected its empty door frames and crumbling tiles.=20

  The men complained that the occupation authority did not seek enough =
input from Iraqis, who could guide them through the corruption-riddled =
world of local contracting. They rattled off stories of the graft that =
has infected the reconstruction process, including a local project in =
which the contractor did not repair sewer lines yet pocketed $25,000 =
from the Americans.

  "We're talking about schools and sewage," Musawi said. "Wait until we =
reach the phase of rebuilding the Iraqi Ministry of Defense. There will =
be weapons contracts. Imagine the corruption."=20

  In her classroom, Abbood said Iraqis would focus on results.

  "Our traditions and religion teach us to be a peace-loving society," =
she said. "We will be grateful to those who help us. But those who only =
bring terror and killing, beware."=20


-------------------------------------------------------------------------=
-----

-------------------------------------------------------------------------=
-----
  Times staff writers Charles Duhigg and Patrick J. McDonnell and Suhail =
Ahmed of The Times' Baghdad Bureau contributed to this report.




  If you want other stories on this topic, search the Archives at =
latimes.com/archives.

  Article licensing and reprint options




-------------------------------------------------------------------------=
-----


  Copyright 2004 Los Angeles Times=20

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<DIV><FONT face=3DArial size=3D2>OK, theres one bad report and of course =
the LA=20
Times found it and couldn't wait to report it. So all the reports by the =

returning GI's are wrong or just 'eye witness reports' and unreliable? =
It is a=20
large country...don't you suppose there might be some people happy about =
the=20
whole thing?? You sure won't find it in the LA Times or CNN or most of =
the other=20
main stream news. I happened to see some video of the area from another =
source=20
recently and there are many who understand how great it is that Saddam =
is no=20
longer there and are very excited about what we have done. But, I =
wouldn't have=20
expected anything else from this site than more Bush is a rotton =
scoundrel and=20
we are losers for having taken out Saddam. So many of you are so busy =
being=20
A+ers that your incapable of seeing whole picture. Some good, some bad =
but in=20
the long run it will all come together. I do have faith in us and in OUR =

president. </FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=3DArial size=3D2>PK</FONT></DIV>
<BLOCKQUOTE dir=3Dltr=20
style=3D"PADDING-RIGHT: 0px; PADDING-LEFT: 5px; MARGIN-LEFT: 5px; =
BORDER-LEFT: #000000 2px solid; MARGIN-RIGHT: 0px">
  <DIV style=3D"FONT: 10pt arial">----- Original Message ----- </DIV>
  <DIV=20
  style=3D"BACKGROUND: #e4e4e4; FONT: 10pt arial; font-color: =
black"><B>From:</B>=20
  <A title=3Ddeco@moscow.com href=3D"mailto:deco@moscow.com">Art Deco =
aka W. Fox</A>=20
  </DIV>
  <DIV style=3D"FONT: 10pt arial"><B>To:</B> <A =
title=3Dvision2020@moscow.com=20
  href=3D"mailto:vision2020@moscow.com">Vision 2020</A> </DIV>
  <DIV style=3D"FONT: 10pt arial"><B>Sent:</B> Tuesday, June 01, 2004 =
8:10=20
AM</DIV>
  <DIV style=3D"FONT: 10pt arial"><B>Subject:</B> [Vision2020] 06-01-04 =
LA Times:=20
  For Iraqis, a Symbol of Unkept Promises</DIV>
  <DIV><BR></DIV>
  <DIV><FONT size=3D4>
  <DIV align=3Dcenter><A href=3D"http://www.latimes.com/"><IMG =
height=3D38=20
  alt=3Dlatimes.com =
src=3D"http://www.latimes.com/images/standard/lat_both.gif"=20
  width=3D205 vspace=3D3 border=3D0></A> </DIV>
  <HR noShade SIZE=3D3>
  <A=20
  =
href=3D"http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/world/la-fg-school1jun01.=
story">http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/world/la-fg-school1jun01.s=
tory</A>=20

  <H4>THE CONFLICT IN IRAQ</H4>
  <H1>For Iraqis, a Symbol of Unkept Promises</H1>By Nicholas =
Riccardi<BR>Times=20
  Staff Writer<BR><BR>June 1, 2004<BR><BR>BAGHDAD =97 Past the charred =
remains of=20
  a U.S. military truck, down a pitted road lined with rubble sits Shura =
Primary=20
  School. <BR><BR>Outside, the squat schoolhouse glistens with fresh =
lime-green=20
  paint, courtesy of the renovation spree launched by the U.S.-led =
coalition.=20
  Inside, the floors are buckled, the blackboards are scarred, and the =
bathrooms=20
  are little more than open-air sewage pits. There is one working water =
fountain=20
  for 1,125 students, who must pick their way through a parking lot =
strewn with=20
  mounds of trash to get to the school's front doors. <BR><BR>"They =
promised to=20
  make it a paradise," said Hana Abbood, a teacher of Arabic language at =
Shura.=20
  "But all they've changed is the paint."<BR><BR>To many Iraqis in the =
area, the=20
  sorry state of the school is a symbol of how the coalition has failed=20
  them.<BR><BR>As much as civilian casualties or detainee abuse, the =
erratic=20
  reconstruction of their country has turned Iraqis against the =
occupation. Many=20
  people welcomed last year's invasion, hoping that the world's only =
superpower=20
  could elevate their wretched standard of living. <BR><BR>But a year =
later, the=20
  promised $18 billion in U.S. reconstruction money is only now hitting =
the=20
  streets. Projects have been delayed by insurgent attacks and rampant=20
  corruption, committed by Iraqis but blamed on the Americans. Baghdad's =

  boulevards are lined with trash. Geysers of sewage erupt in even the=20
  wealthiest neighborhoods of the capital. Unemployment is epidemic=20
  nationwide.<BR><BR>Misgivings are particularly sharp in neighborhoods =
such as=20
  the one in northwest Baghdad that surrounds the Shura school =97 =
predominantly=20
  Shiite Muslim areas that were neglected under the Sunni Muslim-led =
government=20
  of President Saddam Hussein, which have turned against the occupiers.=20
  <BR><BR>In an acknowledgment of the problem, the military has begun to =
step up=20
  basic services in northwest Baghdad, from sewer service to garbage =
pickup.=20
  <BR><BR>The complaints of inadequate rebuilding frustrate occupation =
officials=20
  and the dwindling ranks of Iraqis who support them, because progress =
is not=20
  nonexistent. Although schools such as Shura sit in disrepair, numerous =
others=20
  have been renovated. The coalition has dramatically boosted the =
salaries of=20
  teachers and other government workers and sparked a consumer=20
  mini-boom.<BR><BR>"Everybody in Iraq wants to eat and have a new =
salary and a=20
  new address as soon as possible. They do not want to say thanks to the =

  Americans for getting rid of that bloody tyrant, Saddam Hussein, which =
will=20
  not be repaid for 10 generations," said Hasanein F. Muallah, who is in =
charge=20
  of school construction for the Education Ministry. "The Iraqis are =
impatient.=20
  They need to have everything right now." <BR><BR>Dan Senor, the main =
spokesman=20
  for the coalition, said citizens overestimated the power of the United =
States.=20
  <BR><BR>"It's perfectly understandable, but sometimes the Iraqi people =
have=20
  unrealistic expectations of what the Americans can do," he said. "They =
don't=20
  understand how a country that could defeat the Iraqi army cannot get =
the power=20
  back on. But the fact is that the nation's infrastructure was in a lot =
worse=20
  shape than we thought." <BR><BR>Another issue is that the occupation =
has=20
  decreased Iraqis' sense of personal security. Many say the roving =
bands of=20
  kidnappers and bandits =97 not to mention the heavily armed U.S. =
soldiers =97 are=20
  more terrifying than Hussein's secret police.<BR><BR>To the teachers =
and=20
  students at Shura, a new paint job and higher pay seem like a poor=20
  trade.<BR><BR>"The lives of Iraqis are getting worse," teacher Abbood =
said as=20
  her classroom of 11- and 12-year-old girls nodded in agreement. "Now =
these=20
  pupils are frightened that someone will throw a bomb at them, or =
kidnap=20
  them.<BR><BR>"The walls, the paint, yes, they have improved, but the =
general=20
  situation at the school =97 the curriculum, the books, the food =97 =
has not=20
  changed for the better." <BR><BR>Shura Primary has long stood out as =
an=20
  eyesore in a neighborhood full of eyesores.<BR><BR>It lies at the edge =
of=20
  Baghdad, in the heart of the Ghazaliya district, a warren of fraying =
apartment=20
  buildings, modest houses and potholed byways. <BR><BR>The school is =
not hooked=20
  up to Baghdad's sewer system, so the septic tanks from the restrooms =
drain=20
  into a reservoir beneath the front courtyard. The sewage seeps up =
through the=20
  ground and into the path of students. The classrooms have no window =
screens to=20
  keep out the swarms of flies and mosquitoes, and no air conditioning.=20
  <BR><BR>When Hussein's government fell in April 2003, U.S. military =
officers=20
  and civilians began appearing at Shura. They handed out new book bags =
and pens=20
  for some of the students and promised to improve =
conditions.<BR><BR>Nearly a=20
  year later, in March, contractors showed up and began painting the =
building=20
  and shoring up the walls. They tore out the student restrooms in the =
rear=20
  courtyard and began to lay the foundation for a new bathroom. Several =
weeks=20
  later, the work abruptly stopped.<BR><BR>The floor of the students' =
bathroom=20
  is now littered with construction debris; the children must relieve =
themselves=20
  on the rubble. The door to the teachers' bathroom was removed and has =
yet to=20
  be replaced. Cracks run up through the walls where new wiring is =
supposed to=20
  go. <BR><BR>"The Americans promised to improve our conditions," =
student Nura=20
  Ahmed said, "but we think they were all lying."<BR><BR>The problem =
with the=20
  Shura project is one that bedevils much of the country: corruption.=20
  <BR><BR>The culprit, according to Iraqi education officials, is a =
former=20
  teacher who persuaded the U.S. military to give her an office and let =
her=20
  choose which schools should be refurbished, and by which contractors. =
The=20
  woman, identified as Ezra Abdul Razak, allegedly demanded bribes from =
the=20
  contractors. She has since vanished, and an Iraqi judge is =
investigating the=20
  case.<BR><BR>Meanwhile, the contractors have not been paid and have =
halted=20
  work on Shura and nearly 100 other schools. <BR><BR>The Al Kake =
company is one=20
  of the contractors owed money =97 more than $500,000. It suspended =
work on 13=20
  schools, including Shura. Dakhil Muhsin Mohammed, Al Kake's president, =
said=20
  that even though the fraud appeared to have been committed by Iraqis, =
the=20
  Americans bore responsibility.<BR><BR>"You occupy this country, you =
should do=20
  your utmost to make sure things work," said Mohammed, who has a =
certificate of=20
  appreciation from the U.S. military prominently displayed in his =
office. "I=20
  don't blame people when they criticize the Americans for not doing =
things that=20
  are tangible." <BR><BR>Abbas Musawi is one of those critics. Last =
year, the=20
  member of the Ghazaliya neighborhood council praised the U.S. =
occupiers so=20
  vocally that he was the target of an unsuccessful assassination =
attempt by=20
  insurgents.<BR><BR>"I was so enthusiastic," he recalled. "I was always =
telling=20
  the people that all you have to do is be patient, because these people =
are=20
  going to rebuild this country."<BR><BR>A year later, Musawi says he's =
seen=20
  almost no changes. He has resigned in disgust from his post in a =
central=20
  organization of neighborhood councils. He displays a photograph of =
radical=20
  anti-American cleric Muqtada Sadr outside his shop and proudly pointed =
to the=20
  other pictures lining the streets of the neighborhood. When U.S. =
troops tore=20
  the photos down after Sadr's armed supporters fought them in the area =
last=20
  month, Musawi helped replace the pictures with hundreds of new=20
  ones.<BR><BR>"Nothing has changed in this neighborhood," said Musawi, =
driving=20
  past acres of smoldering roadside trash. "They've moved tanks and =
weapons=20
  thousands of miles and they can't bring trucks to take this=20
  away?"<BR><BR>Later, Musawi sat in the office of Shura's headmaster =
and his=20
  colleague on the Ghazaliya council, Ibrahim Mohammed Abdullah, and =
inspected=20
  its empty door frames and crumbling tiles. <BR><BR>The men complained =
that the=20
  occupation authority did not seek enough input from Iraqis, who could =
guide=20
  them through the corruption-riddled world of local contracting. They =
rattled=20
  off stories of the graft that has infected the reconstruction process, =

  including a local project in which the contractor did not repair sewer =
lines=20
  yet pocketed $25,000 from the Americans.<BR><BR>"We're talking about =
schools=20
  and sewage," Musawi said. "Wait until we reach the phase of rebuilding =
the=20
  Iraqi Ministry of Defense. There will be weapons contracts. Imagine =
the=20
  corruption." <BR><BR>In her classroom, Abbood said Iraqis would focus =
on=20
  results.<BR><BR>"Our traditions and religion teach us to be a =
peace-loving=20
  society," she said. "We will be grateful to those who help us. But =
those who=20
  only bring terror and killing, beware." <BR><BR>
  <HR width=3D"20%">
  <I>
  <HR width=3D"20%">
  <I>Times staff writers Charles Duhigg and Patrick J. McDonnell and =
Suhail=20
  Ahmed of The Times' Baghdad Bureau contributed to this=20
  report.<BR><BR></I></I><BR clear=3Dall><BR>
  <DIV class=3Dcopyright align=3Dcenter>If you want other stories on =
this topic,=20
  search the Archives at <A=20
  =
href=3D"http://www.latimes.com/archives">latimes.com/archives</A>.<BR><A =

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