mustamato
04-10-2004, 03:03 AM
My translation of an article in Swedens largest eveningpaper.
http://www.aftonbladet.se/vss/nyheter/story/0,2789,460619,00.html
___________________________________________________
BAGDAD. A year ago the statue of Saddam Hussein was teared down in front
of the jubilant people. Today the Paradise square is sealed off by heavily armed
American soldiers. They thear down anti-American posters and are spreading
western propaganda thru rattling loudspeakers.
- I never thought I would say this, says a young women.
- ... but I miss Saddam.
http://www.aftonbladet.se/nyheter/0404/10/NYHETER-10s12-staty-5_368.jpg
http://www.aftonbladet.se/nyheter/0404/10/NYHETER-10s12-paradiset-57_368.jpg
THE CHEERING HAS SILENCED A year ago the Saddam statue was
pulled down from the Paradise square. A strong symbol of freedom that USA
liked to show on TV. Today the square is sealed off. There will not be any one
year celebration. The only movement on the square is soldiers that is climbing
on the new monument to tear down posters of the new threat to US - shiit leader
Muqtada Sadr
It has gone exactly a year since the American troops, as they put it themselves,
liberated the Iraqi people. Itīs one year ago since the Saddam Hussein-statue on
the Paradise square in central Baghdad was teared down by a Americans tank.
I saw myself how the monument fell down and how people were cheering and expressing
their joy over that the man that had terrorized and murdered his own people was
gone.
Deserted streets
Yesterday I asked Khalid, that works in one of the hotel near the Paradise square,
if he intended to celebrate that it was one year ago.
- What have we Iraqis to celebrate? It was better before. Look, he says, while
we watch over the deserted streets around the square and the hotel. The streets
are sealed off. Concertina barb wire, with razor sharp edges instead of spikes -
hinders also those that live in the area to get to their homes. A elderly man,
dressed in black pants and a white shirt tries to get to the street where he lives.
He tries to open the fence. A American soldiers stands in the middle of the empty
street, point his rifle threatening against him, and shouts "Go! Go!" One can hear
how he cocks his weapon. The old man stops and makes a dejected gesture
with his hand: "What are you supposed to do?"
No respect
Behind him stands a dirty Americans tank, that with a hissing sound turns it turret
from one side to the other, and points its gun against the crowd that gathers
on the other side of the fence.
- Look, they donīt show any respect to an old man, says an young woman.
- They are the ones ruling our country now. Now they are our masters. I never
thought I would say this, but I miss Saddam.
Loudspeaker car
While we stand there we hear loud disco music on. The loud speakers are
blaring. Khalid takes my arm.
- They have been driving around with the loudspeaker car all day, and played
somestime verses from the Quran, sometimes western dance music mixed
with propaganda.
- It is a provocation. They say "shoot us!" They want somebody to shoot against
them so that they get a excuse to kill us all.
I leave him and manage to get in to Palestine Hotel. The whole day this part of
the Abu-Nawas street has looked like a besieged fortress. Big concrete boulders
and barbed wire is surrounding the area, all the way from Palestine to Baghdad
Hotel. Armed guards, Americans soldiers and tanks is guarding those that work
and live in the area. I had to go a long way around just to get into the hotel
and look out over the square. Those that wanted to go to the Paradise square
today to celebrate was not let in. A year ago one got the impression that people
were almost dragged there to be shown up in TV.
The new threat
Today it was obvious that the Americans were afraid that all too many people
would gather. USA and their allies is aware of the fact that they are not longer
seens as liberators, but by occupants. They only ones seen at the square was
Americans soldiers that climbed up on the new stratue to tear down posters of
the Shia cleric Muqtada Sadr, the new threat against USA.
Urban Hamid
http://www.aftonbladet.se/vss/nyheter/story/0,2789,460619,00.html
___________________________________________________
BAGDAD. A year ago the statue of Saddam Hussein was teared down in front
of the jubilant people. Today the Paradise square is sealed off by heavily armed
American soldiers. They thear down anti-American posters and are spreading
western propaganda thru rattling loudspeakers.
- I never thought I would say this, says a young women.
- ... but I miss Saddam.
http://www.aftonbladet.se/nyheter/0404/10/NYHETER-10s12-staty-5_368.jpg
http://www.aftonbladet.se/nyheter/0404/10/NYHETER-10s12-paradiset-57_368.jpg
THE CHEERING HAS SILENCED A year ago the Saddam statue was
pulled down from the Paradise square. A strong symbol of freedom that USA
liked to show on TV. Today the square is sealed off. There will not be any one
year celebration. The only movement on the square is soldiers that is climbing
on the new monument to tear down posters of the new threat to US - shiit leader
Muqtada Sadr
It has gone exactly a year since the American troops, as they put it themselves,
liberated the Iraqi people. Itīs one year ago since the Saddam Hussein-statue on
the Paradise square in central Baghdad was teared down by a Americans tank.
I saw myself how the monument fell down and how people were cheering and expressing
their joy over that the man that had terrorized and murdered his own people was
gone.
Deserted streets
Yesterday I asked Khalid, that works in one of the hotel near the Paradise square,
if he intended to celebrate that it was one year ago.
- What have we Iraqis to celebrate? It was better before. Look, he says, while
we watch over the deserted streets around the square and the hotel. The streets
are sealed off. Concertina barb wire, with razor sharp edges instead of spikes -
hinders also those that live in the area to get to their homes. A elderly man,
dressed in black pants and a white shirt tries to get to the street where he lives.
He tries to open the fence. A American soldiers stands in the middle of the empty
street, point his rifle threatening against him, and shouts "Go! Go!" One can hear
how he cocks his weapon. The old man stops and makes a dejected gesture
with his hand: "What are you supposed to do?"
No respect
Behind him stands a dirty Americans tank, that with a hissing sound turns it turret
from one side to the other, and points its gun against the crowd that gathers
on the other side of the fence.
- Look, they donīt show any respect to an old man, says an young woman.
- They are the ones ruling our country now. Now they are our masters. I never
thought I would say this, but I miss Saddam.
Loudspeaker car
While we stand there we hear loud disco music on. The loud speakers are
blaring. Khalid takes my arm.
- They have been driving around with the loudspeaker car all day, and played
somestime verses from the Quran, sometimes western dance music mixed
with propaganda.
- It is a provocation. They say "shoot us!" They want somebody to shoot against
them so that they get a excuse to kill us all.
I leave him and manage to get in to Palestine Hotel. The whole day this part of
the Abu-Nawas street has looked like a besieged fortress. Big concrete boulders
and barbed wire is surrounding the area, all the way from Palestine to Baghdad
Hotel. Armed guards, Americans soldiers and tanks is guarding those that work
and live in the area. I had to go a long way around just to get into the hotel
and look out over the square. Those that wanted to go to the Paradise square
today to celebrate was not let in. A year ago one got the impression that people
were almost dragged there to be shown up in TV.
The new threat
Today it was obvious that the Americans were afraid that all too many people
would gather. USA and their allies is aware of the fact that they are not longer
seens as liberators, but by occupants. They only ones seen at the square was
Americans soldiers that climbed up on the new stratue to tear down posters of
the Shia cleric Muqtada Sadr, the new threat against USA.
Urban Hamid