WAR: Will someone focus on the real victims?
Everyone is talking about Iraq these days. Not knowing much beyond
the fact that Saddam was evil and that he must die, I did some research on
the internet. I found out some startling facts that made me realize
how economic sanctions affected the Iraqis. Part of me was horrified
and yet another part curiously marveled at the sheer genius of this modern
day war tactic. It has been used so effectively that it merits a new edition
of Sun Tzu's Art of War. Not one friendly life was endangered yet one
million enemies died. As a simple thought exercise, I put myself in the position
of one of these fearsome enemies who were killed during the past decade.
It is a bright summer morning and the searing heat is unbearable. I am three
feet tall and five years old. I can barely walk. Since the first week of my
existence, I have always been naked and hungry. I remember a frail woman putting
my mouth to her breast, but there was never any milk to feed on. She tried
to rock me to sleep when I cried. There were no beds and I kept suckling
on the sweaty piece of cloth hanging off her dress till I went to sleep.
The doctor fed me and other babies with tea and sugar. There is no milk anywhere.
Because of the sugar, we bloated up, our bones became brittle and the doctors
called us sugar babies. The next week of my existence was pretty much the
same as week one. I cried so much that I could no longer make any sound.
I really don't know how I have managed to live so long. My stomach is so
big now that I can hardly see anything past it. My doctor has stopped visiting
me as he is making more money selling cigarettes on the street. There is a
constant buzz of flies all round me. I hear my mother wail. I think my little
brother Wasim just died of starvation. My dad is not strong enough to bury
him. I wonder what will happen to him. Wasim's friend died of Cholera last
week. I heard my dad tell someone that Cholera was unheard of before the
war. There are some people sitting far away who decide what I need and what
I don't. They decided that I don't need chlorine. My dad thinks we need chlorine
to treat the water. If there was chlorine, so many would not have died of
cholera. Other common diseases that kill us children are diarrhea, typhoid,
pneumonia, and whooping cough. I was told that there was a time when all
these were very rare. I wondered who these people are that made these
decisions. I want to talk to them.
One million kids like me have died so far. I wonder when I will die. I look
at my mother for comfort. Her hands are bony but loving and I see her staring
into some place a million miles away. From her steady breathing I know that
she is still alive. People say that all this suffering is because of an evil
man who refuses to obey those people that make these decisions. We are also
denied pencils, chalks, books and toys. So most of the kids do not know how
to count, read or write. I wonder how long could this evil man stay alive.
After all he is also starving isn't he? But he must be so strong as a million
of us have died and he is still alive.
Once in a while a few people come and take my pictures. Salim, the baby
next to me is skinnier so his pictures get taken a lot more. I am sure that
if someone looks at our pictures, they will provide us with more food in
exchange for the oil they take from us. Once my father said that there were
some people who played some really cruel jokes on us. They gave us food,
but took away our trucks so that the food could not be distributed. Why do
they do that? Other people who tried to give us kids toys and medicines were
punished by their governments. I hear a commotion outside. I have to go.
I think it is the food packets. If I am lucky enough to get one, I might
live for one more day.
Endnote:
Most of the information stated above was obtained from the internet.
The following site was particularly useful:
http://www.zmag.org/edwinthalliday.htm