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French Policy Still Vigorously Criticized By Iraqis
Translation an article from the French newspaper Le Monde by Grant Coulson of the Gantelope

It is almost impossible, save among deposed Baathist leaders, to find anyone who supports Paris’ stance on the crisis.

by Rémy Ourdan

French policy is still vigorously criticized by Iraqis. Contrary to the common perception among Europeans, the fact of having opposed the American occupation has absolutely not increased Europe’s popularity, or that of any country, among Iraqis.

It’s a paradox, but it’s reality. While a large majority of Iraqis publicly long for an end to the U.S. occupation, that same vast majority remains pleased about the fall of Saddam Hussein and recognizes in private that the pull-out of Coalition troops could drag the country into civil war. Iraqis know that Washington lied about WMDs, but they couldn’t care less—the toppling of the tyrant was for them the most positive development in thirty years. In the end, Iraqis have the tendency, out of both habit and pragmatism, of following the lead of the strongest.

In this country where, by tradition and with a grin, you still often hear “France good, USA bad!” there is also very severe criticism of France’s policy of the past year. “If the American approach has led to error after error in Iraq, the Europeans, and the French in particular, are still more idiotic because they base their position solely on the position of Washington. They pay absolutely no attention to Iraq and its inhabitants,” says Fakhri Karim, director of the Al-Mada newspaper, in summing up popular sentiment. “Iraqis think that Europe and France have twice abandoned them, first to Saddam, and then under U.S. occupation. France is interested only in its anti-American position. It has forgotten the Iraqis. Chirac and Villepin should understand that not a single Iraqi considers their position to be courageous
 What did France do to help Iraq liberate itself from the dictator, and to help Iraq regain its sovereignty? Nothing!”

Hilmi Dawood, a Kurdish journalist, both a French-speaker and a Francophile, is also harshly critical. “I was utterly shocked by France’s opposition to the war because, even if nobody likes Bush, either in Europe or Iraq, the essential thing was to liberate us from Saddam,” she said. “I could not understand France’s position. Not to mention the aftermath of the war when Iraqis need help in the face of security concerns and misery, and France is nowhere to be seen.”

Echoing this view on the aftermath of the war are Bilal and Mounaf, political science students who are radically anti-American Sunnis and rather nostalgic about Baathist power: “Once the war was over, we realized that French promises about helping the people of Iraq were nothing but hot air. Nothing came of it. French policy is all talk, no action,” said Bilal. “I think France opposed the war solely for its own selfish interests, because it was Saddam’s friend and received gifts from him,” followed-up Mounaf. Many Iraqis share Mounaf’s conviction that there was a special relationship between Paris and Saddam Hussein’s Baghdad.

Their instructor, Amer Hassan Fayath, described himself as “disappointed.” “Educated Iraqis lament France’s absence,” he said. “The rest couldn’t care less about Europe, because they know the U.S. makes the rules. The position France adopted last year weakened it in the eyes of Iraqis. France proved that her opinion was irrelevant. France was against the war, and the war happened anyway!”

It’s virtually impossible, save among defunct Baathis leaders, to find anyone who supports Paris’ stance on the crisis. No more in the local market than anywhere else: “I want the American invaders out as quickly as possible, but I’m happy that they got rid of the bloodthirsty Saddam for us!” affirmed Hamid, a Shiite fabric salesman. “I’m disappointed, me, an admirer of General de Gaulle and Victor Hugo, that Chirac did nothing to help the Iraqi people.” “We’d like to be friends with the French,” added his friend Majid, “but they supported Chirac who himself defended Saddam right ‘til the end. I’ve never understood why. It’s utterly bizarre...”

Iraqis once employed by France in Baghdad are equally bitter. “They get us together every month to ask us to be patient and to ‘stay faithful to France,’” recounted a Sunni professor with the French Cultural Center (currently closed for security reasons). “What faith? We laid-off professors aren’t being paid. France hasn’t even been able to provide for our livelihood during this troubled year. I’m a Francophile, I don’t care for the Americans, but they offer good jobs and good salaries. They’ve offered me a position. I’d refused until now, hoping that France would get involved in Iraq, but now I’m going to take it. I’m rather angry with myself for going to work for the American occupiers and accepting their money, but I’m even angrier at France!”

“It’s the same misunderstanding that is continuing between Europe and Iraq since the terrorist attack in Madrid. Europe, anti-American and pacifist, is celebrating Spain’s withdrawal from Iraq, as if the Spanish had just won a great victory!” observed a Baghdad journalist. “We Iraqis think that the French and German refusal to help us, and the announced departure of the Spanish are catastrophes. In order for us to recover our spirit after the terrible Saddam years, for us to get past this tête-à-tête with the Americans, we need the involvement of other countries more than ever. The UN, Europe, and France never had much credibility in Iraq, but they lost it all a year ago when they let Bush, whom we detest by the way, topple Saddam on his own, and when they failed to come to our aid when the war ended."


Posted by: tipper 2004-03-20
http://www.rantburg.com/poparticle.php?ID=28686