Nine years ago your military invaded Iraq claiming two justifications:  the existence of weapons of mass destruction and the goal of spreading democracy.  The first pretext was proved absolutely false, which even former-president George Bush has admitted. This was shameful.  But in the name of spreading democracy, what Iraqis have witnessed instead it that the US spreads killing, looting, sectarian strife, militias, and terrorism. You imposed reactionary ideas, especially about women, so that sexual trafficking and prostitution are now increasing here. Our schools and universities have been destroyed and education has deteriorated. The US authorities you put in power over us, and later the government the US imposed upon us through the elections you administered have devastated our communities’ resources.

During the US occupation, Iraq experienced levels of crime and political chaos never before witnessed here, even during the conquest of Baghdad by the Mongol ruler, Hulagu Khan. Civilized life declined. The gains of decades of struggle to improve life in Iraq were wiped out. Evidence of centuries of historical development in Iraq, nothing was safe from the occupation; even the bones of the ancient Babylonians were dug up and stolen, and the ruins of Sumer and Akkad were thoughtlessly destroyed as you turned them into army barracks.  Your soldiers dug up the ground around the ruins, destroying even the clay tablets on which human beings first wrote letters thousands of years ago.

Not satisfied with merely destroying Iraq, the occupation forces created political structures that planted seeds of hate and enmity, and opposed all that was modern, advanced and striving for freedom. These new political structures created conflicts and renewed old disputes, throwing our society into a vortex of violence and corruption, destroying what had been a modern, urban culture.

Your withdrawal now – which we still do not trust to be total or final – will not solve the problems that our society faces. It will not end the crisis that the US created. We will need many long years to forget the painful memories and suffering of being victims of occupation. We will need decades to restore what you have destroyed and tens of years to save the generations future. You have left behind an environment polluted by radiation and soil poisoned with chemicals. Our children and our elders are dying from diseases caused by your weapons and destruction. They cry out for treatment, but there is no cure for their suffering. Many hope for death just to end their pain.

You have spent hundreds of billions of dollars that you collected in taxes from Americans who rejected war. Your country now suffers high unemployment. You forced the youth of the US to die in battles or to kill innocent people,  while your own citizens opposed war and rejected your war policies. American workers declared their opposition to war with Iraq before the invasion. They joined anti-war groups and waged campaigns to stop the war. Your leaders may boast of victory but after withdrawal they will leave behind sorrows that don’t end. How can you withdraw without acknowledging the crimes that you have committed?

You owe the Iraqi people compensation. You must be responsible for the suffering of the innocent victims of your war. The people of Iraq retain the right to make these demands, even if your agreement with the Iraqi government does not mention our right.

Our voices are the voices of millions of Iraqi workers, the voices of the masses in our country. We are expressing our outrage over what is happening. At the same time our voices reflect the wishes of billions of people throughout the world – especially the American public who called for freedom from fighting wars and who asked to live in peace with other peoples.  The thousands of people who are on Wall Street in the name of the “Occupy Movement” share this message of peace not war, a message that rejects humans abusing one another. Instead, we call for equality and an end to injustice – a call being heard throughout the world. We stand together with our colleagues in the Occupy Movement against the US war policies and the capitalist system that promotes them.

Fallah Alwan

President of the Federation of Workers’ Councils and Unions in Iraq

29-10-2011

Nine years ago your military invaded Iraq claiming two justifications:  the existence of weapons of mass destruction and the goal of spreading democracy.  The first pretext was proved absolutely false, which even former-president George Bush has admitted. This was shameful.  But in the name of spreading democracy, what Iraqis have witnessed instead it that the US spreads killing, looting, sectarian strife, militias, and terrorism. You imposed reactionary ideas, especially about women, so that sexual trafficking and prostitution are now increasing here. Our schools and universities have been destroyed and education has deteriorated. The US authorities you put in power over us, and later the government the US imposed upon us through the elections you administered have devastated our communities’ resources.

During the US occupation, Iraq experienced levels of crime and political chaos never before witnessed here, even during the conquest of Baghdad by the Mongol ruler, Hulagu Khan. Civilized life declined. The gains of decades of struggle to improve life in Iraq were wiped out. Evidence of centuries of historical development in Iraq, nothing was safe from the occupation; even the bones of the ancient Babylonians were dug up and stolen, and the ruins of Sumer and Akkad were thoughtlessly destroyed as you turned them into army barracks.  Your soldiers dug up the ground around the ruins, destroying even the clay tablets on which human beings first wrote letters thousands of years ago.

Not satisfied with merely destroying Iraq, the occupation forces created political structures that planted seeds of hate and enmity, and opposed all that was modern, advanced and striving for freedom. These new political structures created conflicts and renewed old disputes, throwing our society into a vortex of violence and corruption, destroying what had been a modern, urban culture.

Your withdrawal now – which we still do not trust to be total or final – will not solve the problems that our society faces. It will not end the crisis that the US created. We will need many long years to forget the painful memories and suffering of being victims of occupation. We will need decades to restore what you have destroyed and tens of years to save the generations future. You have left behind an environment polluted by radiation and soil poisoned with chemicals. Our children and our elders are dying from diseases caused by your weapons and destruction. They cry out for treatment, but there is no cure for their suffering. Many hope for death just to end their pain.

You have spent hundreds of billions of dollars that you collected in taxes from Americans who rejected war. Your country now suffers high unemployment. You forced the youth of the US to die in battles or to kill innocent people,  while your own citizens opposed war and rejected your war policies. American workers declared their opposition to war with Iraq before the invasion. They joined anti-war groups and waged campaigns to stop the war. Your leaders may boast of victory but after withdrawal they will leave behind sorrows that don’t end. How can you withdraw without acknowledging the crimes that you have committed?

You owe the Iraqi people compensation. You must be responsible for the suffering of the innocent victims of your war. The people of Iraq retain the right to make these demands, even if your agreement with the Iraqi government does not mention our right.

Our voices are the voices of millions of Iraqi workers, the voices of the masses in our country. We are expressing our outrage over what is happening. At the same time our voices reflect the wishes of billions of people throughout the world – especially the American public who called for freedom from fighting wars and who asked to live in peace with other peoples.  The thousands of people who are on Wall Street in the name of the “Occupy Movement” share this message of peace not war, a message that rejects humans abusing one another. Instead, we call for equality and an end to injustice – a call being heard throughout the world. We stand together with our colleagues in the Occupy Movement against the US war policies and the capitalist system that promotes them.

Fallah Alwan

President of the Federation of Workers’ Councils and Unions in Iraq

29-10-2011

Nine years ago your military invaded Iraq claiming two justifications:  the existence of weapons of mass destruction and the goal of spreading democracy.  The first pretext was proved absolutely false, which even former-president George Bush has admitted. This was shameful.  But in the name of spreading democracy, what Iraqis have witnessed instead it that the US spreads killing, looting, sectarian strife, militias, and terrorism. You imposed reactionary ideas, especially about women, so that sexual trafficking and prostitution are now increasing here. Our schools and universities have been destroyed and education has deteriorated. The US authorities you put in power over us, and later the government the US imposed upon us through the elections you administered have devastated our communities’ resources.

During the US occupation, Iraq experienced levels of crime and political chaos never before witnessed here, even during the conquest of Baghdad by the Mongol ruler, Hulagu Khan. Civilized life declined. The gains of decades of struggle to improve life in Iraq were wiped out. Evidence of centuries of historical development in Iraq, nothing was safe from the occupation; even the bones of the ancient Babylonians were dug up and stolen, and the ruins of Sumer and Akkad were thoughtlessly destroyed as you turned them into army barracks.  Your soldiers dug up the ground around the ruins, destroying even the clay tablets on which human beings first wrote letters thousands of years ago.

Not satisfied with merely destroying Iraq, the occupation forces created political structures that planted seeds of hate and enmity, and opposed all that was modern, advanced and striving for freedom. These new political structures created conflicts and renewed old disputes, throwing our society into a vortex of violence and corruption, destroying what had been a modern, urban culture.

Your withdrawal now – which we still do not trust to be total or final – will not solve the problems that our society faces. It will not end the crisis that the US created. We will need many long years to forget the painful memories and suffering of being victims of occupation. We will need decades to restore what you have destroyed and tens of years to save the generations future. You have left behind an environment polluted by radiation and soil poisoned with chemicals. Our children and our elders are dying from diseases caused by your weapons and destruction. They cry out for treatment, but there is no cure for their suffering. Many hope for death just to end their pain.

You have spent hundreds of billions of dollars that you collected in taxes from Americans who rejected war. Your country now suffers high unemployment. You forced the youth of the US to die in battles or to kill innocent people,  while your own citizens opposed war and rejected your war policies. American workers declared their opposition to war with Iraq before the invasion. They joined anti-war groups and waged campaigns to stop the war. Your leaders may boast of victory but after withdrawal they will leave behind sorrows that don’t end. How can you withdraw without acknowledging the crimes that you have committed?

You owe the Iraqi people compensation. You must be responsible for the suffering of the innocent victims of your war. The people of Iraq retain the right to make these demands, even if your agreement with the Iraqi government does not mention our right.

Our voices are the voices of millions of Iraqi workers, the voices of the masses in our country. We are expressing our outrage over what is happening. At the same time our voices reflect the wishes of billions of people throughout the world – especially the American public who called for freedom from fighting wars and who asked to live in peace with other peoples.  The thousands of people who are on Wall Street in the name of the “Occupy Movement” share this message of peace not war, a message that rejects humans abusing one another. Instead, we call for equality and an end to injustice – a call being heard throughout the world. We stand together with our colleagues in the Occupy Movement against the US war policies and the capitalist system that promotes them.

Fallah Alwan

President of the Federation of Workers’ Councils and Unions in Iraq

29-10-2011

رسالة الى الرئيس باراك اوباما

فلاح علوان.

 منذ ما يقارب التسع سنوات اجتاحت قواتكم العراق تحت ذريعتين؛ الأولى وجود أسلحة الدمار الشامل والثانية نشر الديمقراطية . أما الذريعة الأولى فقد ثبت بطلانها وكذبها وهو ما اعترف به جهارا الرئيس السابق جورج بوش، وهو ما يشكل عارا في ابسط الأحوال. وأما بخصوص نشر الديمقراطية؛ فقد انتشر عوضا عنها القتل والسلب والنهب والحرب الطائفية وسيطرة المليشيات المسلحة والإرهاب والفساد وفرض التراجع على حياة الناس وبالأخص النساء، وانتشار الاتجار بالبشر وشبكات البغاء، وانهيار المؤسسات الثقافية وتراجع التعليم.

 لقد تم نهب ثروات المجتمع، من السلطات التي قمتم بإيصالها إلى الحكم والتي أخذت تتقن البقاء في الحكم عن طريق فن إدارة الانتخابات. لقد انتشرت أنواع من الجريمة والعربدة السياسية والتوحش، لم تمر بالبلاد من قبل، ولا حتى في عصور انحطاطه السياسي قبل قرون. وتراجعت المدنية بإبعاد مخيفة، ولم تنج مكتسبات الأجيال التي تشكل حصيلة عقود من النضال والتطور التاريخي، ولم ينج من الاحتلال والخراب ولا حتى عظام البابليين القدامى التي نبشت بحثا عن الآثار واللقى النفيسة، ولا أطلال السومريين والاكديين الغابرين والتي حولتموها إلى ثكنات لتدريب جنودكم الذين حفروا بالشفلات بحثا عن الآثار ودمروا حتى الرقم الطينية التي كتب عيها الإنسان الأحرف الأولى منذ ألوف السنين.  لم يكتف الاحتلال بهذا الخراب فحسب، بل جلب إلى السلطة قوى سياسية زرعت الكراهية والعداوة، ومحاربة كل ما له صلة بالحداثة والتقدم والتحرر، وأحيت نزاعات وصراعات الماضي السحيق، وأدخلت المجتمع في دوامة العنف  والتأخر والفساد وتدمير أسس المدنية.

بعد كل هذا، فان انسحابكم المعلن والمشكوك فيه لن يكون كافيا أبدا لحل الأزمات والمشاكل التي أدخلتم المجتمع فيها، حيث يلزمنا سنين طويلة لننسى الآلام وذكريات ضحايا الاحتلال والنزاعات، وعشرات السنين لإعادة ما دمرتم، وعشرات السنين لتامين مستقبل الأجيال، وإعادة بناء ما خربتم.  لقد خلفتم بيئة ملوثة بالإشعاعات وتربة تسممت إلى الأبد بأسلحتكم. مازال الأطفال والكبار المصابون بالأمراض المستعصية القاتلة جراء أسلحتكم، يستنجدون ولا علاج، ويتألمون حتى يريحهم الموت من معاناتهم.لقد أنفقتم ترليونات الدولارات من أموال دافعي الضرائب من المواطنين الأمريكان الرافضين لحروبكم، وتسببتم في البطالة والإفلاس والتقشف وانعدام الأمن الحياتي والمعاشي في صفوف الشعب الأمريكي. لقد دفعتم الشباب الأمريكي للموت في الجبهات أو ليقتل الأبرياء مرغما تحت ذريعة مكافحة الإرهاب، إن المحاربين القدامى يناضلون ضد الحرب، ويرفضون سياستكم علنا. أن عمال امريكا أعلنوا وقوفهم ضد الحرب قبل اندلاعها، ونظموا أنفسهم في حملات ومنظمات ضد الحرب.  ستتبادلون التهاني والتحايا ويعود بعض قادتكم العسكريين بهيأة منتصرين، مخلفين الماسي التي لا تمحى، فأي انسحاب هذا دون أن تسجل أي جريمة ضد ما قمتم به؟ إنكم مدينون لشعب العراق بالتعويض عما أصابه، والتزام المسؤولية الكاملة عن ضحايا حربكم.

 إننا نحتفظ بحق المطالبة بحقوقنا هذه سواء نصت اتفاقيتكم مع الحكومة الحالية في العراق على ذلك أو على خلافه، وسواء اتفقتم عليه أو لم تتفقوا. إن صوتنا هو صوت ملايين العمال والكادحين في العراق، وهو صوت عموم الجماهير في البلاد، وهو نابع من حسهم ومعاناتهم لما جرى ويجري لهم. وهو في نفس الوقت صوت وضمير مليارات البشر معنا في عموم العالم وخاصة بين جماهير امريكا الداعين للحرية ومناهضة الحروب والعيش بسلام مع العالم. إن ألاف الذين يعتصمون في الوول ستريت في “حركة احتلوا الوول ستريت”، هي رسالة سلام بالضد من الحروب ورسالة رفض لاستغلال الإنسان للإنسان، ورسالة عالمية تدعو للمساواة وإنهاء الظلم، وقد وجدت صداها العاصف في كل العالم، ونحن نقف صفا واحدا مع رفاقنا في الوول ستريت ضد سياساتكم ونظامكم الرأسمالي.

عاشت الحرية …. عاشت المساواة

فلاح علوان :

رئيس اتحاد المجالس والنقابات العمالية في العراق

29-10-2011

Nine years ago your military invaded Iraq claiming two justifications:  the existence of weapons of mass destruction and the goal of spreading democracy.  The first pretext was proved absolutely false, which even former-president George Bush has admitted. This was shameful.  But in the name of spreading democracy, what Iraqis have witnessed instead it that the US spreads killing, looting, sectarian strife, militias, and terrorism. You imposed reactionary ideas, especially about women, so that sexual trafficking and prostitution are now increasing here. Our schools and universities have been destroyed and education has deteriorated. The US authorities you put in power over us, and later the government the US imposed upon us through the elections you administered have devastated our communities’ resources.

During the US occupation, Iraq experienced levels of crime and political chaos never before witnessed here, even during the conquest of Baghdad by the Mongol ruler, Hulagu Khan. Civilized life declined. The gains of decades of struggle to improve life in Iraq were wiped out. Evidence of centuries of historical development in Iraq, nothing was safe from the occupation; even the bones of the ancient Babylonians were dug up and stolen, and the ruins of Sumer and Akkad were thoughtlessly destroyed as you turned them into army barracks.  Your soldiers dug up the ground around the ruins, destroying even the clay tablets on which human beings first wrote letters thousands of years ago.

Not satisfied with merely destroying Iraq, the occupation forces created political structures that planted seeds of hate and enmity, and opposed all that was modern, advanced and striving for freedom. These new political structures created conflicts and renewed old disputes, throwing our society into a vortex of violence and corruption, destroying what had been a modern, urban culture.

Your withdrawal now – which we still do not trust to be total or final – will not solve the problems that our society faces. It will not end the crisis that the US created. We will need many long years to forget the painful memories and suffering of being victims of occupation. We will need decades to restore what you have destroyed and tens of years to save the generations future. You have left behind an environment polluted by radiation and soil poisoned with chemicals. Our children and our elders are dying from diseases caused by your weapons and destruction. They cry out for treatment, but there is no cure for their suffering. Many hope for death just to end their pain.

You have spent hundreds of billions of dollars that you collected in taxes from Americans who rejected war. Your country now suffers high unemployment. You forced the youth of the US to die in battles or to kill innocent people,  while your own citizens opposed war and rejected your war policies. American workers declared their opposition to war with Iraq before the invasion. They joined anti-war groups and waged campaigns to stop the war. Your leaders may boast of victory but after withdrawal they will leave behind sorrows that don’t end. How can you withdraw without acknowledging the crimes that you have committed?

You owe the Iraqi people compensation. You must be responsible for the suffering of the innocent victims of your war. The people of Iraq retain the right to make these demands, even if your agreement with the Iraqi government does not mention our right.

Our voices are the voices of millions of Iraqi workers, the voices of the masses in our country. We are expressing our outrage over what is happening. At the same time our voices reflect the wishes of billions of people throughout the world – especially the American public who called for freedom from fighting wars and who asked to live in peace with other peoples.  The thousands of people who are on Wall Street in the name of the “Occupy Movement” share this message of peace not war, a message that rejects humans abusing one another. Instead, we call for equality and an end to injustice – a call being heard throughout the world. We stand together with our colleagues in the Occupy Movement against the US war policies and the capitalist system that promotes them.

Fallah Alwan

President of the Federation of Workers’ Councils and Unions in Iraq

29-10-2011

Il ya neuf ans votre armée a envahi l’Irak affichant deux justifications: l’existence d’armes de destruction massive et le but de répandre la démocratie. Le premier prétexte a été prouvé absolument faux, ce que même l’ancien président George W. Bush a admis. Ce fut honteux. Mais au nom de la propagation de la démocratie, ce dont les Irakiens ont été témoins ce sont les Etats-Unis propageant le meurtre, le pillage, les conflits sectaires, les milices et le terrorisme.Vous avez imposé des idées réactionnaires, en particulier sur les femmes, de sorte que le trafic sexuel et la prostitution sont maintenant en augmentation ici. Nos écoles et nos universités ont été détruites et l’éducation s’est détériorée. Les autorités américaines que vous avez mises au pouvoir au-dessus de nous, et plus tard, le gouvernement que vous nous avez imposé par les élections que vous avez administrées ont dévasté les ressources de nos communautés.

Pendant l’occupation américaine, l’Irak a ​​connu des niveaux de criminalité et un chaos politique jamais vu ici, même lors de la conquête de Bagdad par le souverain mongol, Hulagu Khan. La vie civilisée a décliné. Les gains de décennies de lutte pour améliorer la vie en Irak ont ​​été anéantis. Rien n’a été à l’abri de l’occupation, pas même les traces de siècles d’évolution historique en Irak, les os des anciens Babyloniens ont été déterrés et volés, et les ruines de Sumer et d’Akkad ont été détruites sans réfléchir quand vous les avez transformées en casernes pour votre armée. Vos soldats ont creusé le sol autour des ruines, détruisant même les tablettes d’argile sur lesquelles des êtres humains ont écrit pour la première fois il y a des milliers d’années.

Ne se contentant pas de détruire l’Irak, les forces d’occupation ont créé des structures politiques qui ont planté les graines de la haine et de l’inimitié, et se sont opposées à tout ce qui était moderne, avancé et luttant pour la liberté. Ces nouvelles structures politiques ont créé des conflits et renouvelé de vieilles querelles, jetant notre société dans un tourbillon de violence et de corruption, détruisant ce qui avait été une culture urbaine moderne.

Votre retrait aujourd’hui – et nous ne croyons pas qu’il sera total ou final – ne résoudra pas les problèmes auxquels notre société est confrontée. Il ne mettra pas fin à la crise que les Etats-Unis ont créé. Nous aurons besoin de longues années pour oublier les souvenirs douloureux et la souffrance d’être victimes de l’occupation. Nous aurons besoin de décennies pour restaurer ce que vous avez détruit et de dizaines d’années pour sauver les générations futures. Vous avez laissé un environnement pollué par les radiations et des sols empoisonnés par des produits chimiques. Nos enfants et nos aînés meurent de maladies causées par vos armes et vos destructions. Ils réclament en pleurant un traitement, mais il n’y a pas de remède à leur souffrance. Beaucoup espèrent la mort simplement pour mettre fin à leur douleur.

Vous avez dépensé des centaines de milliards de dollars que vous avez recueillis par les impôts des Américains qui ont rejeté la guerre. Votre pays souffre aujourd’hui de chômage élevé. Vous avez forcé la jeunesse des Etats-Unis à mourir au combat ou à tuer des gens innocents, tandis que vos propres citoyens se sont opposés à la guerre et ont rejeté votre politique de guerre. Les travailleurs américains ont déclaré leur opposition à la guerre contre l’Irak avant l’invasion. Ils ont rejoint des groupes anti-guerre et ont mené des campagnes pour arrêter la guerre. Vos dirigeants peuvent se vanter de la victoire, mais après le retrait, ils laissent derrière eux des chagrins qui ne finissent pas. Comment pouvez-vous vous retirer sans reconnaître les crimes que vous avez commis ?

Vous devez compensation au peuple irakien. Vous devez être responsable de la souffrance des victimes innocentes de votre guerre. Le peuple de l’Irak conserve le droit à faire ces demandes, même si votre entente avec le gouvernement irakien ne mentionne pas notre droit.

Nos voix sont les voix de millions de travailleurs irakiens, les voix des masses de notre pays. Nous exprimons notre indignation face à ce qui se passe. En même temps nos voix reflètent les désirs de milliards de personnes partout dans le monde – en particulier le public américain qui a appelé à être libéré des guerres et qui a demandé à vivre en paix avec les autres peuples. Les milliers de personnes qui sont à Wall Street au nom du mouvement “Occupy” partagent ce message de paix et refus de la guerre, un message de rejet contre les hommes qui s’abusent les uns les autres. Au lieu de cela, nous appelons à l’égalité et la fin de l’injustice – un appel entendu à travers le monde entier. Nous sommes solidaires avec nos collègues du mouvement Occupy contre les politiques de guerre des Etats-Unis et le système capitaliste qui les promeut.

Fallah Alwan

Président de la Fédération des Conseils et Unions de Travailleurs en Iraq

29-10-2011

Nine years ago your military invaded Iraq claiming two justifications:  the existence of weapons of mass destruction and the goal of spreading democracy.  The first pretext was proved absolutely false, which even former-president George Bush has admitted. This was shameful.  But in the name of spreading democracy, what Iraqis have witnessed instead it that the US spreads killing, looting, sectarian strife, militias, and terrorism. You imposed reactionary ideas, especially about women, so that sexual trafficking and prostitution are now increasing here. Our schools and universities have been destroyed and education has deteriorated. The US authorities you put in power over us, and later the government the US imposed upon us through the elections you administered have devastated our communities’ resources.

During the US occupation, Iraq experienced levels of crime and political chaos never before witnessed here, even during the conquest of Baghdad by the Mongol ruler, Hulagu Khan. Civilized life declined. The gains of decades of struggle to improve life in Iraq were wiped out. Evidence of centuries of historical development in Iraq, nothing was safe from the occupation; even the bones of the ancient Babylonians were dug up and stolen, and the ruins of Sumer and Akkad were thoughtlessly destroyed as you turned them into army barracks.  Your soldiers dug up the ground around the ruins, destroying even the clay tablets on which human beings first wrote letters thousands of years ago.

Not satisfied with merely destroying Iraq, the occupation forces created political structures that planted seeds of hate and enmity, and opposed all that was modern, advanced and striving for freedom. These new political structures created conflicts and renewed old disputes, throwing our society into a vortex of violence and corruption, destroying what had been a modern, urban culture.

Your withdrawal now – which we still do not trust to be total or final – will not solve the problems that our society faces. It will not end the crisis that the US created. We will need many long years to forget the painful memories and suffering of being victims of occupation. We will need decades to restore what you have destroyed and tens of years to save the generations future. You have left behind an environment polluted by radiation and soil poisoned with chemicals. Our children and our elders are dying from diseases caused by your weapons and destruction. They cry out for treatment, but there is no cure for their suffering. Many hope for death just to end their pain.

You have spent hundreds of billions of dollars that you collected in taxes from Americans who rejected war. Your country now suffers high unemployment. You forced the youth of the US to die in battles or to kill innocent people,  while your own citizens opposed war and rejected your war policies. American workers declared their opposition to war with Iraq before the invasion. They joined anti-war groups and waged campaigns to stop the war. Your leaders may boast of victory but after withdrawal they will leave behind sorrows that don’t end. How can you withdraw without acknowledging the crimes that you have committed?

You owe the Iraqi people compensation. You must be responsible for the suffering of the innocent victims of your war. The people of Iraq retain the right to make these demands, even if your agreement with the Iraqi government does not mention our right.

Our voices are the voices of millions of Iraqi workers, the voices of the masses in our country. We are expressing our outrage over what is happening. At the same time our voices reflect the wishes of billions of people throughout the world – especially the American public who called for freedom from fighting wars and who asked to live in peace with other peoples.  The thousands of people who are on Wall Street in the name of the “Occupy Movement” share this message of peace not war, a message that rejects humans abusing one another. Instead, we call for equality and an end to injustice – a call being heard throughout the world. We stand together with our colleagues in the Occupy Movement against the US war policies and the capitalist system that promotes them.

Fallah Alwan

President of the Federation of Workers’ Councils and Unions in Iraq

29-10-2011

Nine years ago your military invaded Iraq claiming two justifications:  the existence of weapons of mass destruction and the goal of spreading democracy.  The first pretext was proved absolutely false, which even former-president George Bush has admitted. This was shameful.  But in the name of spreading democracy, what Iraqis have witnessed instead it that the US spreads killing, looting, sectarian strife, militias, and terrorism. You imposed reactionary ideas, especially about women, so that sexual trafficking and prostitution are now increasing here. Our schools and universities have been destroyed and education has deteriorated. The US authorities you put in power over us, and later the government the US imposed upon us through the elections you administered have devastated our communities’ resources.

During the US occupation, Iraq experienced levels of crime and political chaos never before witnessed here, even during the conquest of Baghdad by the Mongol ruler, Hulagu Khan. Civilized life declined. The gains of decades of struggle to improve life in Iraq were wiped out. Evidence of centuries of historical development in Iraq, nothing was safe from the occupation; even the bones of the ancient Babylonians were dug up and stolen, and the ruins of Sumer and Akkad were thoughtlessly destroyed as you turned them into army barracks.  Your soldiers dug up the ground around the ruins, destroying even the clay tablets on which human beings first wrote letters thousands of years ago.

Not satisfied with merely destroying Iraq, the occupation forces created political structures that planted seeds of hate and enmity, and opposed all that was modern, advanced and striving for freedom. These new political structures created conflicts and renewed old disputes, throwing our society into a vortex of violence and corruption, destroying what had been a modern, urban culture.

Your withdrawal now – which we still do not trust to be total or final – will not solve the problems that our society faces. It will not end the crisis that the US created. We will need many long years to forget the painful memories and suffering of being victims of occupation. We will need decades to restore what you have destroyed and tens of years to save the generations future. You have left behind an environment polluted by radiation and soil poisoned with chemicals. Our children and our elders are dying from diseases caused by your weapons and destruction. They cry out for treatment, but there is no cure for their suffering. Many hope for death just to end their pain.

You have spent hundreds of billions of dollars that you collected in taxes from Americans who rejected war. Your country now suffers high unemployment. You forced the youth of the US to die in battles or to kill innocent people,  while your own citizens opposed war and rejected your war policies. American workers declared their opposition to war with Iraq before the invasion. They joined anti-war groups and waged campaigns to stop the war. Your leaders may boast of victory but after withdrawal they will leave behind sorrows that don’t end. How can you withdraw without acknowledging the crimes that you have committed?

You owe the Iraqi people compensation. You must be responsible for the suffering of the innocent victims of your war. The people of Iraq retain the right to make these demands, even if your agreement with the Iraqi government does not mention our right.

Our voices are the voices of millions of Iraqi workers, the voices of the masses in our country. We are expressing our outrage over what is happening. At the same time our voices reflect the wishes of billions of people throughout the world – especially the American public who called for freedom from fighting wars and who asked to live in peace with other peoples.  The thousands of people who are on Wall Street in the name of the “Occupy Movement” share this message of peace not war, a message that rejects humans abusing one another. Instead, we call for equality and an end to injustice – a call being heard throughout the world. We stand together with our colleagues in the Occupy Movement against the US war policies and the capitalist system that promotes them.

Fallah Alwan

President of the Federation of Workers’ Councils and Unions in Iraq

29-10-2011