Most of you know that Wes is in Karbala which was the subject of a 60 Minutes piece Sunday night.  It seems that the Coalition Forces jailed one of the newly elected City Council members at the possible suggestion of the Police Chief who had close ties with Saddam’s regime.  In typical 60 Minutes style they surprised the U.S. General in charge of the prison where this person has been held for over a month with no due process or ability to visit with his family.  In any case, Wes hadn’t heard about it, but I thought you would be interested in his reply and the photos he attached of his recent visit to Ezekial’s tomb.

Steve

-----Original Message-----
From: Wes Hare [mailto:whare01@lgp-iraq.org]
Sent: Tuesday, December 09, 2003 6:26 AM
To: Bryant, Steve
Subject: RE: Latest News

Steve,

I hadn’t heard a thing about the case described by 60 Minutes so I will be talking with a Polish friend who has responsibility for working with the Justice Department.  I am sure there are violations of due process taking place all over Iraq at the moment.  There is no real history of respecting individual rights here and the Coalition is more concerned with security than anything else.  I try to stay focused on what I can do because the whole situation is overwhelming.  I was able to get a $5,000 grant to buy fertilizer for local farmers and I used some training dollars to gravel a muddy access road to the village I wrote about in the last column.  We continue to do training sessions on local democracy with mixed results.  A group of doctors I spoke with two days ago were very skeptical and somewhat hostile.  Most of the people I talk with though are very supportive of our presence and the effort to hold elections.  I think everyone wants them to happen more quickly though.  The work is sometimes frustrating, but rarely dull.  Thanks for staying in touch. I will try to produce another column in the next few days.  I had a great trip to the tomb of the prophet Ezekial and I’ll attach some pictures.

Regards,

Wes

The cone over the tomb                        Standing by the crypt                A crumbling minaret near the tomb

Wes Hare

RTI Local Governance Specialist

Karbala, Iraq

whare01@lgp-iraq.org

-----Original Message-----
From: Bryant, Steve [mailto:SBRYANT@ci.albany.or.us]
Sent: Tuesday, December 09, 2003 1:33 AM
To: whare01@lgp-iraq.org
Subject: Latest News

Hi Wes,

60 Minutes had a piece on last night about a newly elected Karbala City Council member who was jailed by the Allied Forces and who hasn’t been able to talk with counsel or his family for over a month.  It sounded like the Police Chief may have been involved.  It sounded troubling and I, of course, thought of you and our usual problems with Council members and Police Chiefs.  I guess some things are universal!  Thanks for your latest column.  Everyone enjoys reading them.  Keep us posted.

Steve