Ugandan in Iraq
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- Colonel Ingus
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Ugandan in Iraq
by Colonel Ingus » Sun May 16, 2004 9:25 pm
A Ugandan-born US soldier, Sergeant Frank Musisi, currently deployed in volatile Iraq often takes time off his military duties to send e-mails to his girlfriend in Kampala. In this one he tells of how Arabic won him Iraqi friends
DEAR Nakamatte, Accept my apology for not writing to you earlier. It is approximately 88 days since I last communicated with you and I hope you will understand that the situation on the ground would not permit me to write. I have also come to realise that in a war environment like Iraq, writing becomes a luxury.
Down here, living conditions for some of us have improved a little as we have moved from the dusty sleep tents to the “Balad Hilton” — the newly built sleep trailers.
Although not to United States standards, the trailers are beyond ordinary Iraqi standards and way better than living conditions in much of Africa and indeed most Third World countries.
Thanks to the American taxpayer, I have also been given a mobile air-conditioned office container worth $50,000.
Though a drop in the bucket from the $86b allocated by the US Congress to the global war on terrorism, the office container is a great relief from the dusty tents and gusty summer Iraqi winds. This boosts our morale and increases productivity.
I have been able to follow events in my native country by reading not only The Monitor but also The New Vision online. Indeed it was from The New Vision headlines that I learned of the death of Hon. James Wapakhabulo, the former foreign minister and the Barlonyo massacre, during which LRA rebels killed refugees in northern Uganda. This was after receiving an email from Kevin Scully, a former college roommate at the University of California, Irvine.
But the security situation here remains a nightmare for everyone.
One cannot drive from here to Baghdad, only 50 miles south, without fear of being blown up by an IED, (Improvised Explosive Device), or ambushed by the Iraq “insurgents”! Indeed many soldiers have been maimed and are either back in the US recovering from their injuries, or have paid the ultimate sacrifice! Ordinary Iraqis, including innocent children, have also been victims of these outlaw elements. Thanks for your prayers. Though there have been some close calls, I am still alive and continuing to do my job.
Many soldiers are here to do their job, complete the mission and go back to their loved ones. Few would even dare to try to understand life in Iraq but some of us have taken a keen interest in this country. This requires one to look deeper and probe the few Iraqis that are willing to talk to you.
Ever since I got here I have been contemplating the future of this country, wondering when ordinary Iraqis will lead a normal life like many of us do back in the US or in any other civilised society. I am afraid to tell you that this will take a long time. It will require a lot of hard work and planning by both the coalition authority and the Iraqis themselves.
Having grown up in a Third World country, Uganda, during the times of dictatorships and civil wars gives me an upper hand here in understanding the different groups and their cultures, in comparison to a native born American soldier.
Indeed soldiers were surprised one day in April when ordinary Iraqi day labourers, “hajis”, soldiers call them here, passed by my office, and when they saw me standing outside, they all started calling my name in a song-like chorus, “Musisi, Musisi, Musisi, … !”
This was because two days earlier I had communicated with some of them in Arabic when they were contracted for a job by my unit. I recited an Islamic lunchtime prayer that I had memorised as a child during a visit to my mother’s sister, a Muslim, who lives in Masaka.
The hajis were impressed when I requested them during a lunch break to pause before they had their meals so that I could pray to Allah to bless their food! After I had prayed, all of them came and hugged me. They requested a camera so that we could take pictures. Since then, I’ve become their good friend.
When you listen to them and hear their stories and concerns, you find that most of them want to go on with their lives and wish the violence would stop.
But sorry for them, the majority have no influence or control over this. You see a population yearning to better themselves and dreaming of bigger things to come.
However, one thing I found surprising and contrary to media reports in the US is that the Sunnis and Shi’ites do not hate each other, and in fact they have lived in harmony for a long time. This is evident during work here.
They seem to get along easily. But their hatred for the Kurds of northern Iraq and Turkey is so deep that they would not even drink bottled water made in Turkey or Kurdistan!
I was surprised one day when I brought a truckful of bottled drinking water to the hajis who had been contracted to help build our new hospital operational site and they refused to drink it. I asked them why.
They told me straightaway that it was not Islamic and they would only drink water from Saudi Arabia or the US! I then told them that the US water was not Islamic, but they told me they would drink it anyway.
Unknown to us, non-Arabic speakers, there were the labels on the boxes that read “Made in Turkey” and “Kurdistan”! They also told us that they would use that water from Turkey and Kurdistan to wash their feet and hands before they prayed. To my surprise they did it in my presence. Some soldiers were furious and said that if soldiers were drinking that water, hajis too should drink it.
But I calmed them down by telling them, “Well this is their country and may be we need to respect their beliefs and culture.” I finally got the hajis the “Saudi Arabia” water, which they readily enjoyed.
The issue of understanding Iraq’s different cultures and beliefs is going to be very crucial in our success here. It is complicated for many Americans because back in the US if you have the money, you can get virtually everything you need. Everything is driven by market forces of demand and supply but in Iraq one has to be very sensitive even when buying an item from the Iraqis.
Whereas the military is doing a superb job here fighting the insurgents and restoring order, the political leadership in the coalition headquarters is failing totally in terms of reaching out to the Iraqis.
A military solution alone will not be the answer; we need a political and economic solution as well. Our success in Iraq is going to depend more on winning the souls and minds of the Iraqis.
This involves understanding and appreciating their rich culture and not trying to dictate everything to them but also having them on board. I have said this before and will say it again: Iraqis need to be at the forefront of leadership and control of their destiny.
Take the case of Muqta al-Sadr, the Shi’ite Muslim cleric, who is wanted by the coalition authority on charges of ordering the murder of a rival sheik.
The Iraqis I have talked to think we made a big deal out of nothing because after we started looking for Al-Sadr publicly we made him a hero and rallying figure here. Some of them do not even understand why we want to arrest the cleric and when I told them that he is accused of ordering the killing of a rival cleric, they said, “Well, many people in Iraq have died.”
The Iraqis have no doubt in our military’s ability to capture or kill Al-Sadr, but they question, “After you capture or kill him what do you gain, more friends or foes?” The Iraqis think that we do not understand their culture at all.
Some Iraqis said, “Driving tanks and shedding blood around the holy mosques in Najaf is like driving a tank and shedding blood in the Vatican, in Italy.” Do you think the Catholics will forgive you for that?” they asked.
They say capturing or killing al-Sadr in the holy city of Najaf, around Imam Ali Mosque where he has sought refuge, will make him a “martyr”, not only here but in countries like Syria, Iran, Lebanon, Jordan and even the Palestine, and this will make rebuilding Iraq very difficult for us. This is one of the cases where the Iraqis need to be at the forefront for they know the sensitivities involved.
Another issue I found very interesting is listening to the Iraqis say that we missed a great opportunity to heal and reconcile their country during the “honeymoon” when we captured Baghdad.
They accuse us of excluding all those who were Baath party members from jobs in the government and civil service thus, rendering the majority jobless. I am told that even to be a schoolteacher in Saddam Hussein’s Iraq one had to be a member of the Baath party!
I am further told that the government, controlled virtually the entire economy and in order for you to support your family, you had somehow to belong to the Baath party whether you believed in it or not!
The political leaders in the coalition also have to help in this by appealing to more Arab-speaking nationals from coalition countries to come and help in the rebuilding of Iraq.
My experience here is that Iraqis will open up to you if you speak Arabic and we need more of these people to help in the coalition forces’ public relations efforts. We need to appeal to and reach the average Iraqi on the street in order to make a difference in their lives.
Despite the hardships and suffering the Iraqi people are going through, the majority think well of the US and are of the view that we intend to help them. There is room for us to manoeuvre and bring tangible results to these people. We need to fill the vacuum that Al-Sadr is taking advantage of with his demagoguery.
It is this group of average Iraqis on the street that will disrupt and derail our efforts.
The majority of Iraqis still have hope in their country and we need to work with them so that they can take over their country’s leadership.
We need to show that we are here for the long haul; we will not abandon them and go away before their country is restored to its former glory of being the centre of the elite in the Middle East and cradle of civilisation.
Until we communicate next time, I have to go. Greetings to my fellow countrymen and women; their prayers are well appreciated.
DEAR Nakamatte, Accept my apology for not writing to you earlier. It is approximately 88 days since I last communicated with you and I hope you will understand that the situation on the ground would not permit me to write. I have also come to realise that in a war environment like Iraq, writing becomes a luxury.
Down here, living conditions for some of us have improved a little as we have moved from the dusty sleep tents to the “Balad Hilton” — the newly built sleep trailers.
Although not to United States standards, the trailers are beyond ordinary Iraqi standards and way better than living conditions in much of Africa and indeed most Third World countries.
Thanks to the American taxpayer, I have also been given a mobile air-conditioned office container worth $50,000.
Though a drop in the bucket from the $86b allocated by the US Congress to the global war on terrorism, the office container is a great relief from the dusty tents and gusty summer Iraqi winds. This boosts our morale and increases productivity.
I have been able to follow events in my native country by reading not only The Monitor but also The New Vision online. Indeed it was from The New Vision headlines that I learned of the death of Hon. James Wapakhabulo, the former foreign minister and the Barlonyo massacre, during which LRA rebels killed refugees in northern Uganda. This was after receiving an email from Kevin Scully, a former college roommate at the University of California, Irvine.
But the security situation here remains a nightmare for everyone.
One cannot drive from here to Baghdad, only 50 miles south, without fear of being blown up by an IED, (Improvised Explosive Device), or ambushed by the Iraq “insurgents”! Indeed many soldiers have been maimed and are either back in the US recovering from their injuries, or have paid the ultimate sacrifice! Ordinary Iraqis, including innocent children, have also been victims of these outlaw elements. Thanks for your prayers. Though there have been some close calls, I am still alive and continuing to do my job.
Many soldiers are here to do their job, complete the mission and go back to their loved ones. Few would even dare to try to understand life in Iraq but some of us have taken a keen interest in this country. This requires one to look deeper and probe the few Iraqis that are willing to talk to you.
Ever since I got here I have been contemplating the future of this country, wondering when ordinary Iraqis will lead a normal life like many of us do back in the US or in any other civilised society. I am afraid to tell you that this will take a long time. It will require a lot of hard work and planning by both the coalition authority and the Iraqis themselves.
Having grown up in a Third World country, Uganda, during the times of dictatorships and civil wars gives me an upper hand here in understanding the different groups and their cultures, in comparison to a native born American soldier.
Indeed soldiers were surprised one day in April when ordinary Iraqi day labourers, “hajis”, soldiers call them here, passed by my office, and when they saw me standing outside, they all started calling my name in a song-like chorus, “Musisi, Musisi, Musisi, … !”
This was because two days earlier I had communicated with some of them in Arabic when they were contracted for a job by my unit. I recited an Islamic lunchtime prayer that I had memorised as a child during a visit to my mother’s sister, a Muslim, who lives in Masaka.
The hajis were impressed when I requested them during a lunch break to pause before they had their meals so that I could pray to Allah to bless their food! After I had prayed, all of them came and hugged me. They requested a camera so that we could take pictures. Since then, I’ve become their good friend.
When you listen to them and hear their stories and concerns, you find that most of them want to go on with their lives and wish the violence would stop.
But sorry for them, the majority have no influence or control over this. You see a population yearning to better themselves and dreaming of bigger things to come.
However, one thing I found surprising and contrary to media reports in the US is that the Sunnis and Shi’ites do not hate each other, and in fact they have lived in harmony for a long time. This is evident during work here.
They seem to get along easily. But their hatred for the Kurds of northern Iraq and Turkey is so deep that they would not even drink bottled water made in Turkey or Kurdistan!
I was surprised one day when I brought a truckful of bottled drinking water to the hajis who had been contracted to help build our new hospital operational site and they refused to drink it. I asked them why.
They told me straightaway that it was not Islamic and they would only drink water from Saudi Arabia or the US! I then told them that the US water was not Islamic, but they told me they would drink it anyway.
Unknown to us, non-Arabic speakers, there were the labels on the boxes that read “Made in Turkey” and “Kurdistan”! They also told us that they would use that water from Turkey and Kurdistan to wash their feet and hands before they prayed. To my surprise they did it in my presence. Some soldiers were furious and said that if soldiers were drinking that water, hajis too should drink it.
But I calmed them down by telling them, “Well this is their country and may be we need to respect their beliefs and culture.” I finally got the hajis the “Saudi Arabia” water, which they readily enjoyed.
The issue of understanding Iraq’s different cultures and beliefs is going to be very crucial in our success here. It is complicated for many Americans because back in the US if you have the money, you can get virtually everything you need. Everything is driven by market forces of demand and supply but in Iraq one has to be very sensitive even when buying an item from the Iraqis.
Whereas the military is doing a superb job here fighting the insurgents and restoring order, the political leadership in the coalition headquarters is failing totally in terms of reaching out to the Iraqis.
A military solution alone will not be the answer; we need a political and economic solution as well. Our success in Iraq is going to depend more on winning the souls and minds of the Iraqis.
This involves understanding and appreciating their rich culture and not trying to dictate everything to them but also having them on board. I have said this before and will say it again: Iraqis need to be at the forefront of leadership and control of their destiny.
Take the case of Muqta al-Sadr, the Shi’ite Muslim cleric, who is wanted by the coalition authority on charges of ordering the murder of a rival sheik.
The Iraqis I have talked to think we made a big deal out of nothing because after we started looking for Al-Sadr publicly we made him a hero and rallying figure here. Some of them do not even understand why we want to arrest the cleric and when I told them that he is accused of ordering the killing of a rival cleric, they said, “Well, many people in Iraq have died.”
The Iraqis have no doubt in our military’s ability to capture or kill Al-Sadr, but they question, “After you capture or kill him what do you gain, more friends or foes?” The Iraqis think that we do not understand their culture at all.
Some Iraqis said, “Driving tanks and shedding blood around the holy mosques in Najaf is like driving a tank and shedding blood in the Vatican, in Italy.” Do you think the Catholics will forgive you for that?” they asked.
They say capturing or killing al-Sadr in the holy city of Najaf, around Imam Ali Mosque where he has sought refuge, will make him a “martyr”, not only here but in countries like Syria, Iran, Lebanon, Jordan and even the Palestine, and this will make rebuilding Iraq very difficult for us. This is one of the cases where the Iraqis need to be at the forefront for they know the sensitivities involved.
Another issue I found very interesting is listening to the Iraqis say that we missed a great opportunity to heal and reconcile their country during the “honeymoon” when we captured Baghdad.
They accuse us of excluding all those who were Baath party members from jobs in the government and civil service thus, rendering the majority jobless. I am told that even to be a schoolteacher in Saddam Hussein’s Iraq one had to be a member of the Baath party!
I am further told that the government, controlled virtually the entire economy and in order for you to support your family, you had somehow to belong to the Baath party whether you believed in it or not!
The political leaders in the coalition also have to help in this by appealing to more Arab-speaking nationals from coalition countries to come and help in the rebuilding of Iraq.
My experience here is that Iraqis will open up to you if you speak Arabic and we need more of these people to help in the coalition forces’ public relations efforts. We need to appeal to and reach the average Iraqi on the street in order to make a difference in their lives.
Despite the hardships and suffering the Iraqi people are going through, the majority think well of the US and are of the view that we intend to help them. There is room for us to manoeuvre and bring tangible results to these people. We need to fill the vacuum that Al-Sadr is taking advantage of with his demagoguery.
It is this group of average Iraqis on the street that will disrupt and derail our efforts.
The majority of Iraqis still have hope in their country and we need to work with them so that they can take over their country’s leadership.
We need to show that we are here for the long haul; we will not abandon them and go away before their country is restored to its former glory of being the centre of the elite in the Middle East and cradle of civilisation.
Until we communicate next time, I have to go. Greetings to my fellow countrymen and women; their prayers are well appreciated.
"They that can give up essential liberty to obtain a little temporary safety deserve neither liberty nor safety." ... Benjamin Franklin
by Chacal » Sun May 16, 2004 10:40 pm
Very enlightening. Thanks Ingus.
Chacal
[SIZE="1"][color="LightBlue"]Reporter: "Mr Gandhi, what do you think of western civilization?"
Gandhi: "I think it would be a great idea."[/color][/SIZE]
[SIZE="1"][color="LightBlue"]Reporter: "Mr Gandhi, what do you think of western civilization?"
Gandhi: "I think it would be a great idea."[/color][/SIZE]
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