ERBIL,
Iraq - Saddam Hussein's former chef says the
dictator kept him under constant surveillance and
jailed him twice for the scantest reasons. But even
so, he retains lingering affection for the so-called
"Butcher of Baghdad," who goes on trial this week in
the mass slayings of 143 Kurds.
"Every time I see him on TV, I feel comforted," said
the chef, an Iraqi Christian who spoke on the
condition that he and the fast-food restaurant he
runs in Irbil not be identified. "The man affects me
emotionally."
The restaurant, started two years ago, is a roaring
success, with young Kurdish couples crowding in to
order pizzas and chicken sandwiches.
But the mustachioed chef said his thoughts often
turn to the culinary caprices of his former boss,
who had a taste for traditional Iraqi dishes
normally found only in Bedouin villages. |
Former dictator Saddam Hussein
Photo : AP
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The chef's attitude reflects an enduring emotional
link that some Iraqis still feel with Saddam, who
was ousted by U.S.-led forces in 2003. Beneath his
bed, the chef keeps a locked suitcase with photos of
himself in the kitchen of Saddam's palace and
several small gifts from him.
"If Saddam had been a candidate [in January's
elections], I would have voted for him, my eyes
closed, with no hesitation," the chef said.
Catering to Saddam's culinary whims was often a
terrifying duty; he was more than willing to punish
even the most trusted members of his entourage for
any small transgression, the chef said.
"When he was upset, he always had to find a
scapegoat," the chef said.
Once, Saddam jailed him for 15 days after he was
interviewed by an American TV journalist who asked
too many personal questions. "The second time, he
threw me to jail because I had violated the security
rules by parking my car too close to the palace,"
the chef said.
Saddam's temper flared whenever there was bad news
from the United States. "Whenever [President] Bush
had a new speech, we were sure that Saddam would be
ill-tempered," the chef said.
Saddam rarely traveled without his own cooks for
fear he would be poisoned. Over the years, the chef
traveled with Saddam to Egypt, Yemen, Jordan, Saudi
Arabia and Kuwait.
In the Baghdad palace, the chef said, he was under
constant surveillance. Samples of each meal were
taken to laboratories to be tested for poison.
"We also had to test the meals we had cooked in
front of one of Saddam's people," the chef said. In
1996, one of his colleagues was caught trying to
poison the president and was immediately executed,
he said.
Despite the humiliations and terror, the chef
remains fascinated by the deposed dictator. Although
other Iraqis remember Saddam's torture chambers,
mass graves and rape rooms, the chef recalls the
gifts from Saddam -- a French tie, a pair of British
shoes and some medals.
"As a president, he had to be tough. The Iraqi state
needs a tough man as a head, otherwise it falls into
chaos," the chef said. "But on a daily basis, he was
very nice with us."
Saddam's culinary tastes tended toward traditional
Iraqi meals, and he had a special weakness for camel
milk, brought by couriers from small Bedouin
villages near his hometown, Tikrit. He wolfed down
the milk with bread and honey during breakfast, the
chef said.
"Sometimes he would wake us up at 5 or 6 in the
morning to grill some fish that he had just caught,"
the chef said. "When he was in a good mood, he was
sometimes coming to cook with us. He used to say
that it made him relax."
The chef has been living for more than two years in
this city in Iraqi Kurdistan, where he moved with
his wife and 6-year-old daughter.
His small restaurant, which opened shortly after he
arrived, has become a gathering place for
fashionable young couples who munch on burgers while
listening to Lebanese pop tunes.
But the customers know little about the owner,
except that he is Christian and that he comes from
the capital. The chef said he hopes to keep it that
way.
"Kurds who were tortured under Saddam would boycott
my restaurant if they knew I fed their killer," he
said. "Shi'ites are hunting anyone who worked for
Saddam. That is why I don't even dare going back to
Baghdad."
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