Marsh Arabs Fleeing Persecution

by Gerald Graham

Large numbers of Marsh Arabs are fleeing the wetlands of southern Iraq and the unique life
among the reeds their ancestors have known for thousands of years.

Devastated during the protracted Iran-Iraq war of the eighties, they are now being systematically
persecuted by the Iraqi military, partly in retaliation for their opposition to Saddam Hussein
during the Gulf War and partly because of their Shiite faith.

Unfortunately, their plight has been overshadowed by the problems of the more numerous Kurds
of northern Iraq.

At the end of Gulf War hostilities in 1991, the U.S., U.K, and France (the so-called P3 countries)
imposed a no-fly zone above the 38th Parallel in northern Iraq to protect the Kurds from the Iraqi
Air Force. Meanwhile, the UN Human Rights Commission appointed Max Van der Stoell,
former Dutch foreign minister, as Special Rapporteur to look into allegations of Iraqi human
rights abuses throughout the country. Although he was never allowed into Iraq, his August 1992
report documented widespread use of torture, political killings, and other forms of oppression
directed against, among others, the Marsh Arabs of the south.

A short time later, the P3 countries created a southern no-fly zone below the 32nd Parallel. But
because of lack of enforcement, and because there are no safe havens, Iraqi forces manage to
circumvent the order. The Marsh Arabs continue to be regular targets of helicopter gunships and
mortar and heavy artillery barrages. Even worse, the vast marshlands which support their entire
economic and social structure are being systematically drained by Iraq, ostensibly to provide
more farmland in the region.

In March, 1993, Canada co-sponsored a UN Human Rights Commission Resolution which once
again decried human rights abuses throughout Iraq, including the south. The resolution instructed
Iraq to stop persecuting its own people, extended the mandate of the Special Rapporteur and
called for the stationing of human rights monitors in the country.

Meanwhile, fleeing the bombs, thirst and eventual starvation, the Marsh Arabs seek refuge in the
towns and villages of their fellow Shiites along the border with Iran. Unless there is international
pressure on Iraq, more people will follow until an ancient way of life is lost forever.

Canada's official contribution to the international Iraq relief effort has totaled $27 million. Most
of this has gone to various UN agencies, the International Committee of the Red Cross, CARE
Canada and the Mennonites. A Canadian physician, Dr. Eric Hoskins, also went to the area as
part of a Harvard medical group Finally, Toronto based Ed Med Supplies successfully petitioned
the Canadian government to allocate $2 million from Iraqi assets frozen in Canada toward the
purchase of medical equipment and supplies.
The plight of the Marsh Arabs is not well known in Canada outside of those who have read
Wilfred Thesiger's classic "The Marsh Arabs," or Gavin Young's "Return to the Marshes." Their
unique way of life, let alone Saddam Hussein's attempts to annihilate them, go unnoticed. Some
form of campaign is needed to publicize their cause.

From Peace and Environment News, Ottawa, Canada, November 1993