Philzone.org Discussion Board: Archive 2004: Politics Archive 2004: Letter from Iraq

A letter from Zeyed in Iraq

. . . The reason I'm writing is that you have convinced me of the importance of introducing weblogs to Iraqis. I'm sure most people here have never even heard of weblogs. I myself discovered them only a few days before the war. I mainly followed Salam, G, turningtables and Riverbend's blogs, but I have been also discovering more and more of them. And I've been pointing them out to people here, and you will be surprised of the number of bright and intelligent young people in Iraq who are willing to start their own blogs and express their ideas and opinions freely, especially that they have nothing to fear from doing so any more.

I don't expect America alone to do everything for us while we just sit and criticize. I want to be part of it, I want to participate, to contribute, to do anything for my country and the world. Some people may consider this as being a 'collaborator with infidel zionist occupying forces'. If trying to build your country and helping others do so makes you that, then I can proudly say out loud 'Yes, I am a collaborator!'.

Internet is still new to most Iraqis, very few people had it before the war, according to SCIS which was the state owned ISP the percentage of Iraqis using the Internet was 0.001 percent of the population, and they were intent on keeping it that way.

But now things are different, Internet cafes are all over Baghdad, there are nine of them in my block alone, and someone estimated them at 300 in Baghdad now, and there are more opening daily, but sadly only a few who still have the privilege of functioning telephone lines have Internet accounts at home....

. . . tens of millions of Arabs are still living under totalitarian regimes similar to Saddam's. I was dissapointed to find very few weblogs by Arab people dealing with political and social issues in the Arab and Islamic world. I have always been concerned about our voice not reaching the rest of the world. Sadly a very large majority in the west still see us as people living in tents, dressed with turbans and robes, riding camels and cursing the 'infidel' west. This is a myth, and the reason Arab people aren't building bridges with the west is because they are so hopeless about their future under their oppressing regimes and their Islamic mullahs who both wish to keep it that way, so they can go on plundering our money and laughing at our chins while warning us of the grave fate that Allah has prepared for us if we don't do it their way. I'm sick of all of that.

Despite what you see in the Arab world from people bashing the American 'occupation' of Iraq, the truth is that they all desire the same in their hearts and minds, because deep inside they all know that they have all been occupied for years by their own regimes. And they are yearning for their freedom. Most of what you see is really Arab regimes speaking, not the people. They know their time has come and that their days are numbered. THEY are the real terrorists. . . .

Our voice will be heard at last.