Humaila Akrawy: An Iraqi Woman Speaks Out

What would you do if you were a 22 year old Kurdish Muslim woman in March of 2003, when an army drawn from several countries invaded your homeland?

If you were Humaila Akrawy you would remember your brother, killed under Saddam -- and remember how they sent back just one leg and part of an arm to demonstrate his death and their power to your family. You would look at your father, who no longer has full use of his hands after being tortured by Saddam.

And then, despite the disapproval of many but with the blessing and support of your family, on 23 March you would volunteer to become a translator for the 101st Airborne Division of the U.S. Army.

But what would you do when Ba'athists and jihadists ambushed your car, injuring your brother and trying to kill you, and when they later killed your 24 year old sister thinking she was you -- pumping 60 AK47 bullets into her body? Or when you received a letter saying, "We know we missed killing you, but we will be back" and then your home was blown up, injuring another brother and killing the Iraqi policeman guarding it?

If you were the remarkable Ms. Akrawy you would help your remaining family members move to a safe area in the far north of the country and then return to your job. And this time, instead of insisting on a lower profile role, you would eagerly agree to become the translator for Lieutenant General Petraeus himself, the commander of the 101st - despite all the media exposure that entailed - and you would proudly do that job in the face of continued death threats against you.

I had the humbling experience of meeting this courageous, intelligent and outspoken 23 year old woman today. Here are some of my notes, capturing her own words as much as I was able, and posted here with her enthusiastic permission.

Humalia Akrawy Speaks Out

Ms. Akrawy is a slender, attractive young woman dressed in Western clothes, passionate as she begins by thanking the United States for having the "leadership, dedication and commitment" both to free her people from Saddam's regime and also to support Iraq as it moves towards being a stable and free country.

She stresses multiple times how much she and most Iraqis admire the United States and the Coalition partners for having the commitment to see things through to success. And she proudly states that Iraqis see strong, committed leadership in the provisional government as well, which gives them hope for their future.

She is, she stresses, an Iraqi first and a Kurd second - and glad of it. Under Saddam that was not possible, but it is possible now and she sees the Kurds embracing the vision of a single Iraq with strong borders and a unified national identity.

She described her family's sufferings under Saddam and the guilt she felt when her sister was killed in an attack intended for her. It was her father who told her that if she was willing, she should go back to her job and show the terrorists (possibly Ansar al-Islam) that they had not and could not win through such violence. So with his support she did just that.

Under Saddam, she said, there were very few women in leadership or public roles. The only way to be one was to become a Ba'athist and associate with evil men -- and pay a very bad price as these were men used to taking whatever they wanted from you. Now, in part due to her own high-profile role and to the encouragement of the Coalition, Iraqi women make up 25% of the government, own companies doing reconstruction work and are active in all aspects of life in Iraq. (Later, in answer to a question, Ms. Alkrawy said that while there was initial resistance to women in these roles among some, that resistance is fading as Iraqi men see the work of women as contributing towards a prosperous and free country.)

She proudly noted the present of Iraqi women in the Army, the National Guard and the police forces now -- other women willing to risk their lives to help defend their country.

She spoke of seeing many Iraqis break into tears when they heard President Bush speak of democracy and freedom as a "gift from the Creator" meant for all people - a message that resonated deeply with many of her countrymen. She is very optimistic that Iraq can and will become a major force for change in the Middle East. The current mission is to defeat the insurgency, secure the borders and hold elections.

It is, she acknowledges, a difficult mission. But, she says, "Democracy is not cheap! Your own revolution did not happen overnight. We Iraqis think that the current deaths are nothing, a small price to pay for being free of Saddam and having our own country again."

She went on to say that Saddam needed killing, that he was a terrorist and a sponsor of terror, and that he is by no means the only one who needs confronting and stopping. She is very clear that Islamacist terror is a threat to all democracies and to all the people in the Middle East.

To those who say there was no link between Saddam and Islamacist terror she says this: "When 9/11 happened, Saddam ordered a 3 day celebration with feasts and parades. Some people did not want to celebrate those attacks. He had those who did not participate brutally executed in public."

Specifically, she stated firmly that Syria and Iran are major players in the insurgency -- and that Iraqis are very angry about this. Syria in particular is funding many attacks within Iraq. The attack that killed her sister was carried out by an Iraqi who was paid $30 per day by Syrians. I cannot put into words how I felt as I watched her anger when she said, "To them, my sister's life and my life were worth nothing, just $30. These people must be stopped. We are so grateful to you and your troops for supporting us and helping us to end these attacks."

She stated again, with firm conviction, that she is certain Iraq will succeed -- so long as the United States stays with the Iraqi people and is willing to help. She stresses the deep gratitude, respect and admiration the US and the Coalition are earning among Iraqis as a result of all of our support and -- she particularly stressed -- our willingness to stay until the job is done. She noted, not only troop presence and casualties, but also construction work including clean water, power in areas that had little electricity under Saddam, schools and work with Iraqi farmers and in setting up town councils.

In answer to one question, Ms. Akrawy said that the potential division in Iraq is not so much Sunni vs. Shia, but Kurd vs. Arab, a division exacerbated deliberately by Saddam. However, she stressed that she and most Iraqis want a single unified country with borders under their own control (i.e. they do not want Syrians, Iranians or Saudis crossing the borders and causing problems for them).

Her estimates: 95% of Iraqis are happy with the removal of Saddam and with the changes that are begining to happen in Iraq. 3-4% are afraid of the changes because they just want peace and quiet. 1%, mostly ex-Ba'athists, opposed , with perhaps 9000-13,000 or so Iraqis actively involved in the insurgency.

Syrians and Iranians make up most of the foreign fighters. Iraqis can identify them by accents, among other things. Syria and Iran clearly do not want Iraq to be a success because "they know they will be next - not necessarily with an invasion but certainly their people will demand democracy if Iraqis demonstrate it is possible." She noted the recent Syrian Kurdish uprisings and said that Kurds there are waiting for things to get a bit better in Iraq, but haven't given up their desire and demand for change in Syria.

Asked how most Iraqis get their news, she said that under Saddam there were 4 or 5 newspapers, all published by the regime. Now there are 150. She said many Iraqis turn to a paper published by the Coalition troops called New Hope. It is a daily that is distributed free of charge and it gives details of all the things happening in the country, including in reconstruction. It is respected because it reports opposing points of view, including criticism of Iraqi government policies.

She also spoke with great respect of Prime Minister Allawi (a Sunni Arab) and says it's quite possible he will be freely chosen in the elections by a majority of Iraqis to continue leading the government.

Ms. Akrawy ended by saying once again, how grateful she and her fellow Iraqis are for the courage and determination of the Coalition led by the United States in overthrowing Saddam and sticking with the Iraqis as they construct a new and brighter future for themselves.

She is an amazing young woman. If this is the sort of young adult Iraq has to offer the world, they will do well indeed, provided we help them secure their country and continue to fight against those who would impose Islamacist terror and ways of life on Iraq and others around the world.

She is speaking in a number of small cities and schools on a tour arranged by the Foundation for Defense of Democracies. I'm very glad she's here during the violence we can expect in the runup to US and Iraqi national elections.

UPDATE: I've corrected Ms. Akrawy's first name here.