To All Friends Everywhere: Greetings from the members of the 2002 Quaker/AFSC Delegation to Iraq. We return filled with the spirit of hospitality and generosity that we received from the People of Iraq. But we are deeply troubled by the living conditions they face.
Seven of us have traveled to Iraq in violation of US law and UN sanctions under the auspices of the American Friends Service Committee's Campaign of Conscience for the Iraqi People. We have made this journey as an act of conscience. We are returning to the US to share our experience and to challenge Friends and others to expand efforts to lift the US-led sanctions and to speak out against further military action in Iraq.
Our delegation included Quakers from four Yearly t days, we met with an amazing variety of experts from Non-Governmental Organizations (NGOs), United Nations agencies, Iraqi government ministries, as well as technicians, doctors, artists, and teachers. Our official visits included UN Humanitarian Coordinator Tun Myat, UNICEF Representative in Iraq Carel de Rooy, former Iraqi Ambassador to the UN Sayeed Al-Masawi, and Deputy Prime Minister Tariq Aziz.
Many of our most insightful and memorable interactions, however, were with taxi drivers, shop owners, fellow airline passengers and other informal acquaintances. We endeavored to be ambassadors of good will and peace, and we have gathered their stories to share with you.
While most of our time was spent in Baghdad, we traveled to Basrah (the country's third largest city) on an Iraqi Airlines flight, flying through the situation in the sectors of education, health, and water and sanitation.
(1) The Iraqi education system continues a steep decline. Prior to 1990, education was completely free, and 92% of Iraqi children attended primary school.
Iraq had one of the highest literacy rates in the Middle East. Today 23.7% of the children no longer attend school due to economic reasons, while those who do attend suffer from a limited curriculum, increased class size and an almost total lack of books and supplies.
(2) Each day, UNICEF estimates that 500,000 tons of raw sewage is dumped into Iraq's fresh water systems, due to the unavailability of replacement equipment.
Seventy percent of childhood deaths are attributed to preventable illnesses, including diarrhea and gastroenteritis brought on by dirty water.
Fewer resources had made the population even more dependent on government programs (including food distribution) for survival. It is the people of Iraq who are suffering and who will face certain tragedy in an expanded war.
As Quakers, we must seek to be faithful and rise to the enormity of the task. We call upon Friends to exercise leadership in the struggle to protect the Iraqi people and liberate them from the burden of US-imposed policies. We encourage the following actions:
1. Campaign of Conscience - continue to support the humanitarian efforts of the Campaign as a small gesture of support and hope for the people;
2. Peace Pledge - speak out boldly against any plans for expanded military operations in Iraq by signing the Peace Pledge and sending letters to Congressional representatives; war will disrupt the distribution of the OFFP food basket and cause inthe Iraqi people and refuses direct dialogue while undermining UN negotiations.
We are committed to sharing our experience among Friends and other groups in the US. We must seek to break the isolation of the Iraqi people and work to bring Iraq back into the community of nations. These goals can be accomplished only by changing US policy and averting an expansion of military action. Even as we resist the demonization of Saddam Hussein, we must also resist the demonization of President Bush and other US government officials. The way of Truth requires us to recognize our own complicity in policies carried out in our name if we do not speak and act boldly to oppose them.
In the Light,
Joanne Comerford, Western Massachussetts AFSC
