OT - But not political - Our guys in Iraq

[Ysabel Kid]

I received this via e-mail yesterday from someone who knows the author.

The US Military forces are still one of the greatest agents for good on the planet!

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Hi folks.

Here's a good news story from Iraq. This is something I wrote and
submitted to the Public Affairs Office for approval, so you can forward
it if you like.

Last week I had a surprisingly uplifting experience in an interesting
place: a facility in Baghdad where several thousand people our forces
have captured during our operations in Iraq remain in detention. The
Soldiers who conducted our tour set the impressive tone for our visit.
Most of them were Reservists. As I have seen for many years, it is hard
to tell who is from the Active Army, National Guard, or Army Reserve;
Soldiers from all three Components live up to the same standards. They
are consummate professionals who take their responsibilities seriously,
and for these Soldiers their first responsibility is to treat the
detainees in their care with dignity and respect. That is the good news
story I would like to relate.

All of the detainees were taken into custody because they were connected
in some way with attacks on US and Coalition forces or on the Government
of Iraq. Most of them actually killed Americans or Iraqis, or actively
aided the killers. Yet even though these men (and a handful of women
kept in a separate facility) have acted as our enemies, each receives
humane treatment from the moment they enter this facility. They live in
well-built barracks, with plenty of space for exercise and plenty of
food. Each detainee receives much better medical and dental care than
almost all Iraqis, and we were told that some even ask to remain in
detention a little longer just so they can complete prescribed
treatments.

That basic life support alone is a good story, but it does not end
there. Our intent is not merely to house enemies until we decide what
to do with them, but to prepare them to take their places as productive
and peaceful members of Iraqi society. This requires a concerted effort
to create the conditions by which the detainees can be reconciled to the
Government of Iraq, and hopefully to the US as well. Education is an
indispensible component of that effort. The detainees have opportunity
to take literacy classes in Arabic and English, as well as
self-improvement classes in skills such as sewing and art. There are
also classes in civics to promote an understanding of the
responsibilities of citizens in a democracy, and there are frequent
religious discussions led by moderate Islamic clerics. (Interestingly,
there is a small Christian population among the detainees; they have
opportunity to attend Christian worship services on a weekly basis.) In
many cases, particularly for the women, these are opportunities that
would not be readily available.

We visited an art class where the instructor told us he had taken his
material from the course offerings in a US university and had translated
them into Arabic. His students were producing some interesting and
creative drawings, several of which featured pro-US themes or emphasized
US and Iraqi friendship. We saw more examples of the creativity and
skill of these men in the porch and outdoor furniture they had built for
one of the administrative buildings - much of it constructed with scraps
from wooden crates and boxes. It was quality work, well-built and
pleasing to the eye, and a testimony to what these people can achieve.
Moreover, such work brings payment; the detainees, just like inmates in
US prisons, receive a small salary for any work they do.


Even though we have exceeded our obligations by providing these
enrichment opportunities, we offer still more. The detainees are
encouraged to keep in touch with their families. When possible, the
families can visit periodically. For those occasions there is special
emphasis on engaging the children while they wait for the meeting time.
The camp has a playground and entertainment area for the children, and
Soldiers routinely come to play with them and hand out toys. When it is
not possible for the families to visit, the detainees can make phone
calls or even video teleconferences if the facilities are available.

All of that is good news as far as conditions in the facility, but of
course we have no desire to keep these people in detention indefinitely.
That is why there is a systematic process to review each person's case
periodically to see if the conditions exist to release them. Upon
release, the detainees receive the personal effects they brought with
them, a new set of clothes (their choice of Western clothing or
traditional Middle Eastern attire), a small sum of money, and transport
to their place of residence. Thousands have been released over the past
year, and more will be released in the coming months. Since October
2007, a little over 100 of the thousands who have left our custody have
been returned to detention. That amounts to an amazingly low recidivism
rate of less than 1%, which is much better even than in many US prisons.

Of course, there are some who choose not to be reconciled. Our tour
included the portion of the facility housing the hard-core jihadists.
Those men, several hundred of them, are the true combatants of Al Qaida
in Iraq and other insurgent factions. For the most part they keep to
themselves, take no part in the literacy, religious, or civics classes,
and even wash their own clothes rather than use the laundry services
provided for all detainees. Nevertheless, even though they choose not
to be reconciled, these men receive the same dignified and respectful
treatment as every other detainee.

All of this is the good news story that Americans and the world should
hear. We have come a long, long way since the shame of Abu Ghraib. I
was part of one of the teams that looked into the events at that
facility in 2004, and I have had a hand in implementing some of the
improvements and controls over our detainee operations. As so often
happens, much good did come out of that tragedy. Americans can be proud
of what our Soldiers have accomplished to return to the high standards
we have always valued. The work they are doing now will bring
multiplied benefits to the people of Iraq and the United States for
generations to come.

LTC Al McCarn
Deputy CJ2X, MNF-I
Camp Slayer, Iraq

[JReed]

Outstanding.