Mousa Baraka
4 comments
I did not mean for my last post to be so depressing, and I would not have posted it had I known it was going to be this long until I posted again. But internet is not widely available in Iraq. Most communications between government institutions take place through memos/letters and people running around town with them. I met one person who said, “I have heard about the internet, but what is it? Where can I buy it?” Anyone who knows the basics is considered an expert. One person asked me to open them a facebook account, because they had forgot theirs in their bag (I later found out that they meant their email and password). He began to doubt my expertise in using a computer when I told him I would not be able to access his account without any passwords.
But it is understandable internet is such a problem when electricity is still unstable. It comes about an average of 10-12 hours a day in Baghdad, and most people have some sort of alternative generator (shared or personal) for some of the rest of the time. Some people – mostly who can’t afford it – steal it from others. But what I have more recently discovered is the effect of electricity, or the lack thereof, on social relations. In the summer, in the scorching heat, when air conditioning isn’t available, people’s patience threshold falls dramatically. Moreover, if you have a small generator that can only power one air conditioning unit, then you and your family end up sleeping in one room every night. If this lasts for over a month, then it begins to affect both the physical and emotional relationship between husband and wife.
Speaking of tension, political animosities are at an all time low in Iraq at the moment. I have avoided the topic of politics as much as possible, but since the formation of the new government (or partial government) there has been a lot of good will between the different political factions in Iraq. Even the most extreme groups are saying that Iraqis should give this new government an opportunity to serve its people. Not to say that this has had any real impact on the ground. Like most places, there is a general apathy towards what is going on in the highest levels of government, and the street-wide perception is that politicians are corrupt thieves and liars (except for the one or two politicians who they believe in), which in some cases is a reasonable view. Political moderates are a rare commodity in Iraq. Once justifiable criticism of the new government is the lack of female presence.
Iraq has a ‘women’ problem (I feel very conscious of being a man at this point). There are an estimated 5 million women between widows, divorcees or simply unmarried. The population in Iraq is generally youth and female heavy. Polygamy is not a solution to this problem. So called ‘halal prostitution’ is more widespread than one might imagine in a place like Iraq. On that note, religion itself is not an important as might be expected. There aren’t many public violations of religious or cultural doctrines, but that doesn’t mean that faith has permeated the hearts of people.
I will be back in the UK soon, and will write one final reflective piece.
====
I have been in Baghdad for two weeks now. In the last three days over 30 police officers and army soldiers have been murdered on the streets of Baghdad. The methods in which they were killed involves a new development: drive bys with a silencer. Terrorists are now targeting their violence on those who hold this finely balanced security situation together.
I asked a police officer why the sudden change, before they were blowing up random innocents, now they’ve turned to assassins. His theory was that the programme on Al-Iraqiya tv, called Al-Iraqiya Exclusive, where the police and army go round showing off the work they’ve done, taking credit for the death and arrest of terrorists.
I remember watching a film called Elephant (2003), a film about the Columbine High School massacre, and a documentary that followed. A psychologist was asked how to stop these massacres, stop these seemingly normal people go in to schools, malls etc. and shooting people randomly. His answer was simple: stop putting them on tv when they do. While Al-Iraqiya exclusive might make some citizens feel more secure, some things are best kept secret (makes me think about WikiLeaks).
I’m sorry, but I’m going to end on an even more depressing note this time; death. People seem to be dying all the time here, the sad news comes constantly. I’ve been spending most my days here in a university. Last week we attended a funeral for the family of a student here. His two sons, his brother, his sister, his sister in-law and many cousins. 11 of them all at once, not in a terrorist attack, but in a coach crash. Rarely is the death I hear of due to a terrorist attack; health problems, accidents, freak of nature. But what saddens me most, is people’s reactions to it, or more accurately, their non-reactions. People have become so accustomed to it, that even a story as sad as this only takes a couple minutes of conversation.
When something so gloomy and depressing becomes so normal, it is no wonder that people begin to take joy from the smallest things in life. Things, I will mention tomorrow. There’s not much else I can say today.
=============
December 29, 2010
Mousa Baraka
Even with everything I said yesterday, Baghdad is without a doubt booming. Construction is going on everywhere. The price of building has gone up tenfold if not more from the increased demand. A piece of land that was worth $100,000 is now worth $500,000. Anyone who owned anything in most parts of Baghdad is now better off. If you didn’t (which is most people, particularly those less off), then you missed out.
Wages have also gone up significantly over the last seven years. People who used to earn 3,000 Iraqi Dinars (ID), now earn closer to the 300,000. This is still not enough to live for most people, especially with rent prices having gone up so much. You have to live in really poor areas on the outskirts of Baghdad with that sort of money, and with the traffic, getting in to work can be difficult.
But Baghdad is also a much freer place. Democratic norms have not taken hold just yet, but people are expressing themselves in ways they could not before. There are stories of religious “gangs” going round destroying years of art, culture and history, forcing young girls to wear scarves; but these stories are relatively small in comparison to the population here (5 million in the city, and another 2 million in the province of Baghdad). People import all sort of things, from western movies, mobile phones (which they love here), academic resources and lots more. People criticize the government freely on the hundreds of cable channels now available to most households, religious ceremonies are held everywhere, and alcoholics roam the streets of Abu Nu’as.
Universities and schools are also opening up everywhere. Iraqis are conscious of the fact they lived in an information black hole for years. Finishing school is a priority for some, but many are also enrolling in the dozens of universities opening up. Sadly, the purpose of competing your studies is still very basic for most people; they want certificates to get good, better paying jobs. The government recently announced that thousands of civil servants had been working on falsified university degrees. Most governmental schools are awful, and everyone who can afford it sends their kids to private schools. Some of the governmental universities, such as Mustansiriya, the oldest university in Baghdad, have all sorts of problems going on. One thing that hasn’t changed in universities is the fact that they are still the best place to pick up a date, or meet your partner. While life is free outside, cultural norms do not allow for young guys and girls to meet freely outside on the streets. Universities provide a safe haven for them. Families do still have picnics outside, although only a small number and in few places.
With all this influx of technology and wealth, inflation too is very high. Prices have gone up for everything, particularly the day to day goods. A good kebab sandwich costs at least 5,000 ID, and that’s almost as much as Charcoal Grill. By the way, the food here always contains meat. Diets are very unhealthy. We need a Gandhi here soon before everyone dies of high blood pressure, especially given that everyone also smokes. I hear food is better in some of the expensive restaurants in Baghdad, like al-Mat’am al-Lubnani. I haven’t been there yet but I hear its $70 a head.
But even if prices are high, there are hundreds of governmental and non-governmental institutions that help the poor, particularly those relatives of a shaheed. The state tries not to leave anyone behind. It’s still very much centralized and has a socialist mentality, evident by the bitaqa tamweeniya (voucher) that everyone gets for food and other basic goods. With the heightened security around, the state permeates every area of life. Even private companies are required to submit detailed information about what they do, and the process of setting up a company here is strenuous. No wonder the private sector here is still small. Civil society, however, is thriving.
With the wealth of the state (primarily through oil), a mentality of a small number of very determined and dedicated Iraqis to bring about change, and the new found freedoms within Iraq, this country has a lot of potential. Whether it is fulfilled is still an open question.
I’m off to Najaf and Karbala soon, where I hear life is very different.
===
It has been exactly three years since I last came here. We were still in a “civil war” back then, the government had not found its feet, and the promise of prosperity was still far from being fulfilled.
I was told that everything was now safe. I was told that people were now happier. I was told that things had changed. They have, but not by much. Life in Baghdad is still very much like it was three years ago.
The first thing you notice here is the amount of traffic. Everyone seems to have a car, if not three or four. Any mid-level government official will have at least three cars that travel around with him every time he leaves his house (when I say him, I’m not being gender bias, trust me). Together with the endless roadblocks and security check points, getting around Baghdad is a nightmare.
There are few places beautiful enough that you wish to walk round. There are slums all over the place, rubbish bags left lying around, dirt and dust covering everything. People don’t care about the environment. Keeping Baghdad clean is one of the largest collective action problems I have ever seen. How anyone can change this I have no idea
Working hours are short, most departments and offices close at two thirty. Combine this with a non-existent work ethic, getting things done around here is very difficult. If you have a mu’amallah (document/form/project) that needs two ministries to sign off on it, you might as well forget about getting it done in one day. Within any one department they’ll send you round from office to office aimlessly.
The concept of being on time is alien. People have watches, but they’re attitude towards appointments is amusing really. Appointments are usually booked in three blocks, before lunch, after lunch, after dinner.
Very few people want to take responsibility for helping you with something in any department, and those that do want something in return. Corruption is rampant. Its so entrenched, that they no longer see it as corruption. Its part of the system.
Everyone also seems to have a problem, many of them genuine. Most want jobs, usually government jobs, because it means easy hours, good pension, and usually not doing much at all. I exclude from this of course the army and police. They stand on the front lines every day. Baghdad without a doubt is still a military city. The word of the military goes, the convoy of any mid level army officer is at least ten cars and tanks. I came through Beirut, and saw the number of military men around the embassies. If you think that is bad, come to Baghdad.
I do not wish to give a bleak picture of Baghdad. Of course, not all of this applies to everyone and everywhere. But this seems to be the norm. This is what I have seen. This is only one post in a series, so don’t judge just yet.
But combine all of the above, and you’ll find the Baghdad is a city of struggle. Daily life here is a difficult for everyone, from the worst off right to the top. Yet people cope. People still live (not without casualties). People still have hope, and there is something admirable in that.
===
January 3, 2011
Mousa Baraka
Putting these two cities together in one post is in itself problematic. There are very significant differences in population, economics, culture, that make it impossible to do them justice in this short post. But I do it nonetheless, particularly because for most people in Baghdad (where I’m based), its all part of one and the same experience of Ziyara.
Life in these cities is very different from Baghdad. While there are still endless checkpoints, security is not an issue for most people. You can roam around freely even in the late hours of the night.
Religious tourism is one of the bounties that God has bestowed upon our country (oil is a double edged sword – I will explain why in later posts – while our shrines are not). In economic terms, religious tourism is a renewable source of wealth. There are an estimated 3,000 Iranians who enter Iraq every day for ziyara. Each of them spends at minimum $28 for the basics of food, accommodation, travel etc. Assuming that they spend a further $2 purchasing gifts and other items (apparently they buy everything and anything in Karbala because it’s from there), that means that everyday there is an injection of nearly $90,000 into the economies of Karbala and Najaf, just under $33 million a year (and they said Iranian interference is always unwelcome!). This is based on very conservative assumptions and excludes tourists from other parts of the world, as well as visitors from other parts of the country.
As a result, construction is booming, and buying a square metre of land in Karbala is more expensive than most parts of Mayfair. Moreover, the infrastructure (unlike in some other parts of Iraq) is also developing at a steady pace (most the time its construction without infrastructure). The airport in Najaf has been a welcome development to the southern region, and bridges and roads are improving at a faster pace (relative to the size of these provinces) than in other places.
Sadly, these developments have not overrun to nearby villages and towns. I was lucky enough to go and visit my own hometown properly for the first time, a large town about half an hour from Najaf. I was saddened by the experience. Jobs are scarce, most people are farmers or small scale tradesmen. The sewage system is open, and all the roads turn to mud when it rains (it rained the day we arrived, and everyone was thanking me as if I brought it with me from London!). Stray dogs and cats fill the streets (this is the case all over Iraq, but more so in these towns). Over here, it’s your tribe that matters, and not your name.
Much of the south is tribal. Honour killings still occur, and large scale meetings and negotiations between tribes to settle disputes (very much like states) are the talk of the land. Tribes provide important social security and other protective networks for people. They even have their own law, which co-exists with (not contradicts) national law. I just missed out on going to a meeting of my own tribe with another, which had killed two teenagers from our tribe nearly three years ago now. They reached a settlement of 100 million Iraqi Dinars to be paid to our tribe, and our tribe would not kill any of them in retaliation (after three years of negotiation)! The settlement however did not encompass dropping the standard legal proceedings with regards to the case. Two systems of law coexisting with each other.
Most of them do not read or write. And yet I still find myself envying them. Their life is simple. Their worries are not as complex as those who live in Baghdad. They have a generosity and code of conduct that humbles any visitor (even if it is only men who benefit). I can’t help but think what my life would have been life, had my family never left.
I will end with the magic of Ziyara. It is impossible to put the experience itself into words, and so I’m not going to try to; but I will say that I was lucky enough to be leaving Najaf during the commemoration of the death of Imam Zayn Al-Abideen. On our way to Baghdad, I saw hundreds of people walking in the direction our car was travelling in from Kufa. Most of them looked like the same tribes people I have been talking about, dressed in black and white shmaghs, and the women (who made up majority of the walkers) in black abayas. I asked why, and I was told that they are walking to the send their condolences to the son of Imam Zayn Al Abideen, Zaid, whose grave was about 20 km north of Kufa. When we passed the grave, we say even more people walking south from Hilla and the surrounding areas.
Their image sends a chill up my spine just thinking about it. Their devotion is marvelous, and the way they live and breathe the Imams is beyond comprehension. The freedom now bestowed upon these people to commemorate and celebrate their devotion since 2003 is impossible to value.
====
Baghdad – Final ReflectionsJanuary 12, 2011
Mousa Baraka
Leave a comment
Go to comments
I will use these final reflections to illustrate my overall feelings regarding my trip to Baghdad, and to respond to two justifiable criticisms of my posts so far: being impersonal and too negative. My previous posts stated facts and shared anecdotes. This’ll be different.
Let me begin by saying this, my three weeks in Baghdad were one of the most amazing experiences in my life. Life is without a doubt a struggle for most Iraqis, but that doesn’t mean it is without its own charm, joy and happiness. People still smile, they socialise, and the Iraqi sense of humour hasn’t diminished even with the difficulties; in fact it’s probably grown. I spent a lot of time with Iraqi people that are kind, generous, and have a tenacity and endurance that is commendable.
I am also very hopeful about Iraq’s future. As I said, much of Iraq is booming. Infrastructure creation and development doesn’t take place overnight, but we are heading in the right direction. The more the government can move towards de-centralisation, towards giving the private sector and civil society genuine opportunities to become partners in re-building the country, the faster Iraq will develop. As the culture of corruption is slowly weaved out, little can stand in the way of a prosperous Iraq besides time. For those of us living in Britain, we are still suffering from the economic recession, budgets are being cut, services destroyed. In Iraq, everything is on the up. Baghdad is a beautiful city now with its diversity and its scenery. It has a charm that is rarely found in the Middle East, and it will only get better.
I realised how much impact we can have coming from abroad with a sincere will and passion to make things better. I spent most my days in a university – lecturing, teaching, meeting students. I saw the impact talking about freedom, democracy and citizenship can have on these young people. Young Iraqis in particular are very aware that they have been missing out on a lot having grown up in Baghdad, and their openness to new ideas is lovable.
Most of all, I really felt like I was welcomed and fitted in when I was there, contrary to previous trips. I spent most my time with young people, with average Iraqis, far from the political elite. Iraq’s new generations don’t have the same insecurities and animosities towards those coming from abroad. Iraqis are not stupid, they can tell when someone is coming to genuinely help, and those who are there to exploit for personal gain.
I am an Iraqi and the only person who can tell me I am not is myself. I can have an impact, and people are willing to listen. There is a lot of potential, and I am hopeful about the future.
For whoever hasn’t had the opportunity to go and spend real time there, you must do so. I’m going again soon. I’m just sad I wasn’t there last night to share their misery.
No comments:
Post a Comment