CPTnet
17 November 2007
IRAQ UPDATE: 28 October-10 November 2007
Sunday 28 October Anita David, Peggy Gish, Cliff Kindy and Michele Naar-Obed
arrived in Suleimaniya, Kurdish Iraq. The visa clearance from the Residency
Office had not arrived, so all but David continued without passports for
four more days. David's year-long visa was still in effect from the
previous winter.
Local contacts had arranged housing, so team members moved in quickly. Then
the process of recharging cell phones, purchasing phone cards, exchanging
dollars for dinars, buying household supplies and re-contacting friends
began.
Monday, 29 October
Team met with Khalid Jamal, director of the Ministry of Awqaf and Religious
Affairs. He shared about a recent visit to South Africa where he learned
about the reconciliation process that took place between racial and ethnic
groups after Apartheid, one he hoped might serve as a model for Kurdish
Iraq.
Tuesday, 30 October
Downtown, the team heard martial music and correctly assumed that the
military was recruiting in response to the Turkish incursion into the
Kurdish area in pursuit of PKK Kurdish insurgents.
Wednesday, 31 October
While in the center of Suleimaniya, the team saw three U.S. military humvees
moving slowly through the heavy traffic, unusual since the U.S. military
presence is almost invisible in this part of the country. A shopkeeper
explained that U.S. officers come to meet with the Ministry of Interior
twice a month. Kindy noticed for the first time the continuing presence of a
Kurdish military vehicle parked at the intersection near the team's housing.
Thursday, 1 November
Team members found poor e-mail service at various internet cafes. Team met
to begin a re-examination of long-term goals and priorities for the project.
Friday, 2 November
Gish and Kindy met with Dr Fouad Baban, a local physician and member of the
Kurdish Parliament. He said that Saddam Hussein had not used depleted
uranium (DU) when the Anfal assaults on Kurdish villages took place in the
1980s. He understood that DU dust from the U.S. attacks in 1991 and during
the 2003 invasion had spread on the wind into northern Iraq and was
increasing cancer rates and birth defects. Baban invited the team for a
casual dinner meeting the next night where they were able to share common
concerns for justice and non-military tools to effect changes.
Sunday, 4 November
Naar-Obed made arrangements for language classes the team
would attend for three days each week, two hours per day.
The team worshiped at the Chaldean Evangelical Church. They met several
folks who had come to Suleimaniya from Iran and Baghdad, some because of
threats on their lives (See 10 November 2007 CPTnet release, "IRAQ:
Reflections on Sunday worship.") They have joined the population of
internally displaced persons (IDPs) in Kurdish Iraq because of the relative
calm and safety in this region.
Monday, 5 November 2007
Gish, Naar-Obed and Kindy got their visas extended for one month. The team
opened a bank account. Naar-Obed mastered the telecommando (Italian remote)
for the television so that team could receive Al Jazeera and BBC news.
Wednesday, 7 November Team met with Venus Shamal, the head of the Kurdish
Human Rights Watch office. She provided an in depth overview of the events
of the past eight months as she shared about KHRW work with prisoners, IDPs,
and political human rights.
David, Gish and Naar-Obed visited the encampment of youth in a park.
Twenty-five youth started the camp in early September, demanding that the
government work at economic, health, education, housing and political
concerns. They were interested in learning about and gaining support from
CPT.
Thursday, 8 November
Kindy picked up CPT business cards that will be used to introduce CPT to the
local community. Naar-Obed and David purchased a printer for the office.
The director of the KHRW office asked CPT to help with one day of the
four-day training of twenty-four officers in the Kurdish prison system.
Saturday, November 10
Team members had their first Kurdish language lesson.
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