A Blogger's Response from Iraq

Editor's Note: Amy Goodman of Democracy Now recently spoke with Faiza Jarrar, an Iraqi blogger, on the phone from Amman, Jordan. They discussed the war on Iraq, and President Bush’s recent speech. Jarrar's blog can be found at Afamilyinbaghdad.blogspot.com.

AMY GOODMAN: Faiza Jarrar is on the line with us. She is an Iraqi blogger, who actually right now is in Amman, Jordan. Her son Raed is known for his blog RaedInTheMiddle. Faiza Jarrar, your response to the situation right now in Iraq, to the call in this country by Congress members for the President to set a timetable for withdrawal?

FAIZA JARRAR: Yeah. Hello, Amy. I was in the States. I came before two days a month. I went to--

AMY GOODMAN: You were just visiting the United States?

FAIZA JARRAR: Yes, I visited the United States. I stayed for one month, and then, now I am in Amman. Maybe after many days I can go back to Baghdad, I hope.

In the States, I met staff for the Senators, different staff. And I talked with them about Iraq and what is happening in Iraq these [last] two years, and I discovered that they knew nothing about Iraq. And for me, it was very sad, because we can see that the fate of Iraq and Iraqis now is in the hands of people who should be responsible about Iraq and the Iraqi people, and I understand nobody knows what is happening in Iraq and what is the future of Iraq.

And this is very hard for Iraqi people, because, you know, my dear, every day when you see on the media all over the world and inside the state or outside the state, it is always the bombing cars and the occupation force standing away and President Bush giving a speech or justification for staying in Iraq.

And nobody cares about Iraqi people. Where's the Iraqi people? There are more than 25 million population. Who will go to ask them: What is your attitude about this war? What is your future? What is your plan to live? What is your plan for the future of your kids? Nobody will take care about Iraqis or come to ask one of us.

The media is working outside of Iraq, and this is a very dangerous situation, because like Iraqis, a part of the American government, and they are dealing with it like it is their issue, it is not an Iraqi issue.

AMY GOODMAN: Let me ask you something, Faiza Jarrar: The question that is asked in the media in the United States is if the U.S. troops were to leave, wouldn't that leave Iraqis worse off? What is your response to that?

FAIZA JARRAR: Yeah, we talked about this issue many times. First, we are not dreamers or naive. We will not ask the troops to go out of Iraq without arranging or without fixing what they have done in Iraq. Because when I came to Vermont, I studied about peace-building. And then I told my participants...I gave a presentation about Iraq, and I told all of the people that I can see now that the American government made the conflict [build] in Iraq, they didn't make peace- building, because they divided the people between Sunni and Shia, and they kept them fighting for the power or the authority or everything, and telling the world that, 'Look[at] Iraqis, they cannot live together.'

But yesterday they were sisters and brothers. You can't believe this story, because we are living inside Iraq and we know these people are our brothers and sisters. But now there is another agent that somebody tries to put in Iraq.

So if really the American government tries to put a time or schedule for pulling out the troops, they have to make a kind of announcement for the parties inside the government and outside the government to sit together around a table to make a kind of agreement or national dialogue...to start the peace operation in Iraq. After that, yes, you can say the troops can leave Iraq after six months or one year. Just put to the beginning of the operation of peace in Iraq. This is the best solution, we think.