Paratus Protection

Marshall puts some context around the issues, reveals the corruption he encounters every day, illuminates a few dark corners in Iraq and offers some answers....

Ahhhh! ShoNuff, the answers to these questions would take a “small” book to answer (think Atlas Shrugged, Homer’s The Iliad or War and Peace) Even if I could answer these questions with the amount of treatment they deserve, I am sure you would see some Presidential hopeful or political pundit quipping, quoting, misquoting, stealing, etc. etc. any reasonable idea I may have proffered in my response.

Having said all that I will try and give you my – and this is important – my personal responses. These do not reflect on our fighting men and women here (I love and honor all of them) nor on the current, post, future or would-like-to-be American administrations. (I don’t love all of them…but I honor our institutions.) Did that sound like a disclaimer?

It’s a sad, sad world we live in when my “free” thoughts have to be qualified in such a way. Oh, and I have not even touched on the potential Muslim backlash (think Van Gogh and that well-placed note attached to his chest.) However, when I am the one holding the rifle and I have 150 men (most of which ARE Muslim), and I’m being called an Islamaphobe – well, that seems like it is an argument that borders on Logicphobia (did I just create a new word??)

So here we go.
“How do I think it will all end?”

First of all that answer depends on the positive participation the world takes in the future of Iraq. If we all take our toys and go home then think… Liberia. If we stay and have a “hands off” approach, dabblin’ only here and there, then think French Algeria. If we are active in producing a functioning government (and I will talk a little more about what things need to happen to define “functioning” in a minute) then there is a positive future ahead. But allow me to put this into some context before I go any further:

1. The Iraqi’s are ultimately responsible for their future. Period.
2. In the history of countries moving from something other than democracy – to a democracy – it is usually the bloodiest time in their history.
3. After the formation of a democracy, civil war usually follows at some stage.
4. The good news in all of this is that no democracy has ever gone to war against another democracy.
5. The instability in Iraq has little to do with the presence of American troops. That is to say that the fighting is not Iraqis against U.S. troops (by and large), but it is the outside influences (i.e., Iran, Syria, and Saudi Arabia) that are fostering the instability. This is causing Iraqi’s to fight against one another.
6. No new democracy has been developed without the interference, influence, money, etc. of other countries….ever.
7. Corruption and intimidation are what is crippling the government of Iraq.
8. A misconception at best, or no concept at all, of democracy exists in Iraq.
9. We (the U.S.) are indeed in Iraq, in part, because of its oil. There are other reasons we want to remain in Iraq, such as forming a strategic ally in the region, reducing its terrorism capabilities, and to apply pressure to the smaller, lesser- known “stan’s” (Tajikistan, Waziristan, etc.) to reduce their terrorist capabilities.
10. Warfare, especially this kind of war (known as the 4th Generation of Warfare) is extremely complex, and the people of the United States have shown neither the stomach nor the understanding of the concept of this new kind of war to extract a win on this battlefield (Iraq is just one of many battle zones).

Again, I could go on and on, but that short list should at least place some context to what I will write in response to some of your questions.

First we must define “winning.” For me and for a majority of the local Iraqi’s I talk with, the idea of winning is to:
• Root out foreign fighters from Iraq conducting violent Jihad
• Have a government that performs at the most basic level.

Giving the boot to foreign fighters in Iraq
The borders of Iraq are not only long, but contain some of the most inhospitable land on earth. Deserts that can devour a small military outpost faster than it can be built. So saying that they are porous is a profound understatement. I have been offering, where I can, to have my company provide border-patrol work along the Syrian border, especially in the area near Alqiem. We have offered to set up observation posts to spot illegal crossings and to coordinate with authorities.

To date, the Iraqi Government has been unwilling to even discuss this with us (not that they should – we are not the end-all, be-all solution to Iraq). But the fact remains that this border is bringing in fighters, material, and drugs to Iraq.

The Iranian border is just the same, though there is less desert and, luckily, more areas for long-term outposts. I am sure there has been more of a sustained effort to secure this border. I have been told by a former Iraqi counter-terrorist official (operator), who specialized on Iranian infiltration into Iraq, that large amounts of cash, huge amounts of drugs and huge numbers of weapons are coming across that border.

So securing the borders is the primary key to isolating the physical influences other countries have on the Iraqi government.

There has recently been a kind of Public Service Announcement effort delivered via Iraqi television and billboards calling terrorism “a sin,” and showing the police and the Iraqi army as protectors. This is a positive effort, and is part of the education process that Iraq so badly needs.

One message shows some young Iraqi boys playing around a deserted stretch of land, and while playing they find a hidden cache of weapons. Here, the announcement shows two outcomes. One has the boys playing with the weapons and a rifle accidentally goes off. The other situation has the young boys contacting the authorities and a “sting” operation is then conducted that nabs the terrorists.

This is the sort of don’t-drink-and-drive-type of public announcements we have in the U.S. (or maybe more like the now-ironically naive messages that showed air raid drills with young girls in poodle skirts hiding under their school desks to be protected form the nuclear blast occurring outside. As if the air raid siren or the desk would be of any actual use to the young girl!)

Sorry, just a little of my well-earned cynicism coming through there...

Governing the government: The “we pay, you play theory."

Simultaneously, there needs to be a massive anti-corruption effort sponsored by the U.S. to jail corrupt officials. If you think terrorism is the main issue in Iraq you are way off the mark; it is corruption. There is a massive organized crime element that extends from Kurdistan to Basara. As I understand the situation, networks of criminal activity rely upon the terrorists and vice versa. The stolen funds, the shielding from prosecution, the intelligence leaks, etc. all come from these negative elements that have their hands in the Iraqi government.

The criminals also act to facilitate fund raising for the terrorists (in part, though not exclusively) through illicit activities. The relationship, though not always direct, is, in my view, definitely a symbiotic relationship.

I have told young lieutenants of the U.S. Army, senior analysts, and specialized teams of Americans that work with Iraqi cities to keep a close eye on the prices of food staples (rice, lamb, potatoes, and tomatoes), home rental prices, and the cost of fuel. In areas where there seems to be unreasonably lower prices, or less-volatile price fluctuations, it may be an indication that organized crime is active in that city/village, and if this area is close to a particular “hot spot” of terrorist activity then it is a good bet that applying pressure on the organized-crime efforts in the city/village will likewise have the effect of adding pressure to the terrorists active in the area.

So what I am saying is this: The relationship between the two activities are very likely linked, and applying pressure on both can have a positive effect on the Iraqi instability as a whole, including disrupting terrorist cells.

I have been asked (or, let’s say it has been suggested to me), that if I bribe a particular official of the Ministry certain aspects of my business would be made easier. I refused. This has caused me a lot of problems, and though I cannot (and will not) speak for other security companies in Iraq, I am sure if they are asked a similar answer will be given.

Local Iraqi businesses have to pay so many people off that there is little benefit for them to get involved with any sort of large investments in the business sector in Iraq. This is true for foreign investment as well, but in that cast it’s usually cited as “a lack of security.”

Some may ask how I know this. The answer is simple: I have been here in Iraq for more than four years now, and after a while you get to know how things are being done.

I also know this because I faced a “mob” figure head on. I told this individual I would not allow him to demand “tax” from my men. (The “tax” would have been forced and amounted to nearly 1/3 of their pay, each pay period.)

The result was a gun being pulled on my brother, and my having to go directly to the “boss” and make it clear that I would never fold, and I would not sit by and take his threats or the beatings of my men without him having to pay a “tax” that I would levy on him – personally.

Sound harsh? Yes, it does. But I still have the x-ray of the young boy they beat in the face with a rifle to “get my attention.” There were no “authorities” to turn to at the time and, well, in the face of this kind of behavior I could do one of three things:

1. Leave (out of the question as that would have only emboldened him and left my men exposed).

2. Pay his tax (or allow it to be levied against my men), which I refused because aside from being simply immoral, I would have been defeating the very effort the United States and our allies were undertaking – to create a viable and honest government and economy in Iraq.
3. I could stay and fight for a basic human right: To live free of intimidation and to try and earn a living that betters a person’s station in life.

I chose the third option. Not because I am a hero (God no! Far from it.) Nor am I Mr. Elliot Ness taking on Al Capone in Chicago. I chose it because it was the right thing to do.

The United States Federal Law Enforcement Agencies have nearly perfected an incredible anti-corruption program over the last 70 years that can be imposed on the Iraqi government. Though the “honeymoon” phase of the war is well over, I believe that the U.S. can force a suitable anti-corruption program on the Iraqi Central Government that is tied to additional funding.

If we are paying for this war, and I still believe in the reconstruction effort here, then anti-corruption efforts such as laws, task forces (headed by Iraqi and U.S. law enforcement officials), sting operations, and bank auditing of Iraqi government officials (especially looking into foreign bank accounts in neighboring countries such as in Dubai) must be undertaken. This effort must extend to all public service posts (not just focusing on Baghdad), and focus on key positions nationwide. This will vastly decrease both corruption and terrorism. It will also increase the actual power of the dollar and increase confidence of both the people of Iraq and the international community in the government of Iraq.

Education:

My last comment will be on an education process that must begin immediately. The people of Iraq must…absolutely must be taught the basic concepts of democracy. Like in the U.S., when we were children we had to watch the “I Am Just a Bill” cartoon with the catchy tune telling us how laws are made. (man, --- what a great song!)

They need to understand that there can, and will, be change as stated in the constitution allowing each person to vote for the people they want in power. So if a Shia, Sunni, Communist, (yes there are many Communists in Iraq) or an Islamist is in power then a political process is there to create change.

Billboards, pamphlets, school programs and television all need to be used to explain what democracy is and how it can be used for change. I have not seen this kind of effort in Iraq to date. In part because there are families, clans and religions that do not want the people to know that, in fact, it is themselves (the people) who have the power to change things they do not like.

Again this initiative could be a requisite for the Iraqi Central Government to get more monies from America.

I told you this would not be an easy or a short response to your question. But squashing the organized crime elements, hitting the borders harder and increasing the basic understanding of democracy would do wonders here.

Certainly, regardless of what your political beliefs are or what you think about our involvement here in Iraq, we can all agree that keeping terrorists out of Iraq, squashing corruption and educating Iraqi’s on the basics of democracy is something we can all get behind. If it is tied to getting more money, then a lot of Iraqi officials will have to get behind it as well.

A side note:

A prediction: Article 140, which is an Iraqi constitutional provision that states that the Kirkuk issue, a question of whether Kirkuk city is part of the Kurdish Regional Government (KRG) or Iraqi Central Government (ICG), must be enacted by the end of 2007.

The answer, whatever it may be, may lead to disaster. The KRG will not stand for any delay in the implementation of 140.

I fear that if there is a delay, for whatever reason, then calls for the Iraqi constitution as “void” and “invalid” will lead to a huge increase in the level of violence and even the intervening of other regional countries (not to mention furthering the goal of Al Qaeda).

On the other hand if the Iraq Central Government keeps Kirkuk as is this may cause the Kurds to break away by not recognizing the authority of the ICG and thus angering the Turks, Taliban, the Iranians, and frustrating any forward motion on the Iraqi reconstruction efforts.

The result would be the realization of America’s worst nightmare: Complexities that are usually kept in Baghdad will now move throughout Iraq or even the region.

If Kirkuk is given over to the Kurds then Turkey would be, shall I say, less than pleased and its toe-hold inside of Northern Iraq may grow.