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Halabja Memorial Controversy
16.3.2006
By Amanj Khalil in Halabja (ICR No. 168, 15-Mar-06)
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Residents plan to block officials from paying
tribute to the town, in protest at unfulfilled
pledges of aid.
Halabja residents are planning a mass sit-in to
prevent officials attending ceremonies honouring
victims of the Kurdish town.
On March 16, Kurdish officials are planning to hold
their annual memorial to the thousands of victims of
an Iraqi army chemical attack on the town eighteen
years ago.
But residents say they are tired of the Kurdish
government’s failure to keep its word over pledges
to improve conditions here.
They are planning to sit along the main road into
the town to stop officials - who will, for the first
time, be accompanied by international delegates -
from entering Halabja. About 500 protesters are
expected to participate.
"Officials visit Halabja just for publicity," said
Mohammed Kareem, 61, a local shopkeeper who lost
five children in the chemical attack. "Halabja looks
the same as the day it was attacked."
"We plan to block any official from entering,
because every year they come and make empty
promises," said Zakaria Mahmood, a 22-year-old
protest organiser.
While Kurdish officials cite Halabja as a symbol of
Kurdish suffering under Saddam Hussein, many
residents complain that the region’s semi-autonomous
government has done little to improve Halabja's
infrastructure.
They complain about poor healthcare and roads, as
well as houses that remain damaged. About 5,000
people died and 10,000 were injured in the March
1988 attack. Thousands still suffer from respiratory
illnesses, cancer and other diseases.
Politicians from the two leading parties in Iraqi
Kurdistan, the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan and the
Kurdistan Democratic Party, have honoured Halabja's
victims and promised to help rebuild the town at its
annual memorials.
In past years around 100 Kurdish politicians have
come from Baghdad and other parts of Iraqi Kurdistan
to attend the event. This year they will bring with
them representatives from the Italian government and
Hiroshima, Japan.
Organisers of the demonstration say participants
will sit silently in the street with blank white
banners, bearing no slogans. They say the time for
using Halabja for slogans of Kurdish oppression is
over.
Residents have noticed a rise in the number of
Kurdish security forces here since rumours began
swirling about the protests. Halabjans are
speculating that they were brought in order to
prevent the demonstration.
Akram Ahmad, the head of Halabja security, said his
men will not try to prevent the protest but will
take necessary precautions to stop violence.
Kurdish officials have called on residents to stay
away from the action, while Shaho Mohammad, Kurdish
government representative in Halabja, said he has
tried to negotiate with the organisers to postpone
it until after the anniversary.
But he believes they are determined to go ahead on
the day of the anniversary.
This is not the first time Halabjans have sought to
demonstrate their frustrations at government
inaction.
Last month, residents poured into the streets,
demanding better municipal services.
"It has been eighteen years," said Kawsar Hameed
Ali, a 46-year-old resident who still suffers from
respiratory and skin problems. "I'm suffering from
diseases and the government hasn't helped me, so how
can we let them visit us?"
Amanj Khalil is an IWPR trainee journalist in
Sulaimaniyah. Fazil Najeeb, an IWPR trainee in
Sulaimaniyah, contributed to this report.
www.iwpr.net
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