Iraq

In 1980, Iraq was plunged into a bloody eight year war with Iran. It followed this with an invasion of Kuwait in 1990, but was expelled by coalition forces in 1991. Following this, the UN Security Council (UNSC) imposed crippling sanctions on the country as a way of ensuring its compliance with UNSC resolutions insisting the dismantling of its weapons of mass destruction. Alleged non-compliance with these resolutions led to the overthrowing of the Hussein regime by a US led coalition in 2003. Since then, Iraq has failed to find stability as violent insurrection and terrorism has spread across the country.

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In Their Own Words

13 October 2006 As part of its work in Iraq, War Child has undertaken research to find out about the experiences of children in the south of the country. This has been conducted in a child-centred manner with children directly involved in leading research groups. By having children in such positions, those children being questioned were able to communicate their experiences more easily, as the barriers often present between adult researchers and children were avoided. This approach was paired with adult participation in the research as some children had limited social networks or had been ostracised. In such cases the use of community intermediaries in the research, such as mid-wives who perform illegal abortions, meant that War Child could hear from those children who would otherwise go unheard. The children gave insights into experiences in their lives which ranged greatly in scope, from abuse of many kinds to clashes with the law, living on the streets and taking up arms.

Sexual exploitation and abuse ranked highly among the children as a major problem. It is affecting both boys and girls in Southern Iraq and is far more common than people are willing to admit.

“…Because my sisters and me had a tolerable beauty we had a chance to practice Motaa (temporary marriage). My father was selling my sisters to rich and old men until I arrived at the suitable age. I was 13 when my father sold me. He sold me twice…”
Suham

Drawing his daily activities, Ghassan drew a river saying that “I’m going to it to swim directly”. When we asked him if he went to swim only he said that “I go to entertain”. When we asked him about this concept of entertainment, he added “There is a man waiting for me. We swim together and he gives me money. When this man doesn’t come, his friend bathes with me and gives me money”.
Ghassan

Many children are also subjected to physical abuse, often at the hands of their families and communities. Such practices include burning the child in the belief it moralises them; biting the child to leave a mark on their skin so they remember their punishment; and forcing girls into early marriage in order to protect the girl and her family’s honour.

In order to escape many of the horrors of their day-to-day lives children are turning to drugs. Substance abuse is a key issue these children have to face, with pharmaceutical drugs, alcohol, glue and narcotics being used.

Drawing a sheet of tablets and a small tin on his daily activity profile, Amer explained that he preferred the small tin, “It is adhesive glue mixed with thinner. It is made locally and it is cheap.”
Amer

Explaining his drawing of a river with figures beside it Asaad said, “Some time, I play beside the river at noon. All are my friends – those who smell, take drugs, sell wine and do bad things [homosexual acts]”.
Asaad

Many children have been forced to live on the streets and so have turned to working in demeaning, exploitative and illegal jobs including working as labourers, collecting rubbish, working for criminals, or selling alcohol, drugs or pornography.

Mohammad explained that he has worked in many different jobs in the past, as a car washer, banana seller, mechanic, ticket man and carriage pusher, but now he sells wine. Asked about this he explained, “The legal jobs don’t earn enough money. It’s [wine] cheap and much is ordered.”
Mohammad

Not only are children turning to criminal gangs and militias in order to make a living, this also enables them to protect themselves and express their frustrations against the American led occupation. Much of the drive towards militancy comes from a lack of direction and boundaries, wanting to achieve some form of voice or agency for themselves, and as a result of their feelings of disaffection as a result of neglect and exploitation.

“I love to connect with the Almahdi army so that people would respect me and the municipality would not destroy our room.”
Ahmed

The illegal nature of many aspects of their lives and the negative coping strategies that these children employ often lead them into conflict with the law, community and religion. This influences their relations with society, their social networks and their family and consequently affects their opportunities once released from imprisonment.

“The prison will not solve our problem since it is also a problem. We ask why don’t they arrest our families who disregard us, and our friends and relatives who involve us in troubles?”
Emad

The environment in which many of these children and their families live exacerbates their problems. Many have a lack of identity and self-worth as a result of society’s negative image towards them and their interaction with the harmful elements of society.

“God created us to live with the donkeys, we live the life of donkeys”
Ahmed

Asked to draw a picture of how he felt the community saw him, Ali drew a dog. “The community looks at me like this” he added.
Ali

“We will not marry because our history walks in front of us and we will not leave it behind.”
Mohammed

Also, for children whose families have been subject to displacement, there is further breakdown in their protection both by their families and the wider community. The shelter that many inhabit is overcrowded, dangerous and in bad condition. Displacement negatively affects livelihood opportunities so there is a higher level of insecurity and coping strategies are undermined. Such conditions push children towards inappropriate jobs and away from education. With this as their reality, children turn to drugs and criminality as negative coping strategies.

This is research with a purpose. It is only through finding out about these children’s lives that programmes can be created and tailored to their needs. This is the first step in helping design projects. The next step is to gain donors’ support. This research is an important step towards that aim.

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"Call of the Child"

Child Rights in Thi Qar province

Following the invasion of Iraq in March 2003, many refugees and displaced families have returned to their former homes. Families have struggled to reintegrate into a volatile environment and for the children of returnee families, these difficulties have been demonstrated through problems experienced when trying to register for schools and when trying to access health and welfare systems.

In 2004, War Child undertook an in-depth assessment in the south and concluded that returnee families needed support in education, welfare services, and provision of psychosocial services and help to generate sustainable livelihoods to increase their low income. A further issue of concern was the lack of any juvenile justice system, with children being kept in detention with no legal status.

To address these issues, in 2005 War Child commenced the task of creating and establishing a local NGO, called “Nida’ il-Tifil” (“Call of the Child”) which will undertake community-based analysis of the situation. Paralegal and psychosocial interventions will aim to secure the wellbeing of children and assist them in integration into the community. War Child’s "livelihoods assistance" will enhance six communities’ abilities and willingness to absorb population increase and contribute towards greater communal cohesion which will promote re-integration.

War Child is committed to providing long term support through capacity building Nida’ il-Tifil and other community -based organisations in the south.

War Child will also provide training and support to child protection focal points and this will lead to counselling, citizenship projects and social advocacy work; and develop and implementation with Nida’ il-Tifil participatory action research frameworks in six villages on which income generation/livelihoods projects will be developed.

Drop-In Centres: Safe places for street children

With families devastated by years of conflict and communities shattered, many children are required to work, beg and scavenge in order to help support their families. Few children go to school – only 20 per cent - while 80 per cent of 12 year olds work every day to support their families. With support systems almost non-existent, many children find themselves falling through the net completely and end up living on the streets.

The 'street children' of Nasiriyah and Basrah want rid of that label. The stigma associated with it, combined with the very real dangers of their existence spells an extraordinarily difficult life. To them, the street is more than a dangerous landscape. It is a state of mind.

These kids - mostly boys, but girls too - come from homes broken by the first Gulf War, or orphaned by the second, or left with nothing after 10 years of crippling sanctions. You could say they are lucky to have survived those years – over 500,000 died as a result of the sanctions alone – but these children have survived to live a brutalised existence.

A day in a life on the streets offers a vicious reality - crime, bloody violence, sexual abuse (and attendant diseases) and an ever-increasing drug culture. Currently, the southern cities are the scenes of violent turf wars over the right to different petrol sniffing zones where kids beg drivers to let them dip a rag into their tank to get high. What were you doing when you were 12?

So what can be done? War Child and its local partner, Nida' il-Tifl (Call of the Child) have established drop-in centres in both Nasiriyah and Basrah to offer children a safe haven - a way to get off the street and get the street out of their lives.

In the centres the children can play sports, exercise and develop practical vocational skills such as mechanics. They learn about the dangers around them on the streets such as landmines and unexploded munitions. Those addicted to drugs can receive counselling and help to get clean, while children deeply traumatised by their experiences will receive help from specially trained psychosocial workers.

War Child wants these Iraqi children to be able to develop hope. With an eye on present dangers and a nod to a less uncertain future, War Child is working with the children to allow them to shake off the tag of 'street children' and to become, well, children.

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Past projects

War Child has been active in Iraq for many years. Here are some highlights of previous achievements:

• TRAVELLING PUPPET SHOWS

Not only are puppets highly entertaining but they can be highly effective as an educational tool. Performances can encourage children to socialise more, teach them about appropriate behaviour, morals and values, provide health awareness, and address psychosocial and mental issues.

The Nasiyirah Theatre Group has been in existence for more than 10 years and consists of a group of professional men and women who have performed all over Iraq. It is a voluntary association and all finances to date have been donated by themselves. Given the conflict, they would like to give something positive back to the children in southern Iraq and they propose to run imaginative, educational shows for children of all ages.

A mobile puppet show theatre has been built and hand puppets have been made or purchased. A vehicle has recently been purchased allowing them to visit two schools a day and make trips to neighbouring governorates if requested. During the school holidays they will perform at various Youth Centres and have programmes in which the children can be involved.

The first puppet show has taken place in Nasiyirah. There was a large audience and for many children the first time they had watched a live performance.

During the interval the children expressed their delight of the show by delivering poems to the audience and through loud clapping.

• SAFE PLAY AREAS

Play is fundamental in children's social, psychological and educational development. To be deprived of it can lead to serious developmental problems. In Iraq, as in many conflict areas, the destruction of war, combined with the detritus left in its wake had left few, if any safe places for children to play.

As a response to this, War Child rehabilitated two playgrounds in Nasiyirah City, the physical state of both posed a threat to children’s safety.
before rebuilding the play area, War Child arranged for the removal of unexploded weapons and mines as well as any other dangerous materials from the sites. Local people were then employed to build and erect two full playgrounds, comprising of 10 swings, 15 seesaws and 10 slides at each site. The city authority agreed to provided 24 hour security and the community have taken the responsibility to maintain both areas. The playgrounds are, unsuprisingly, proving extremely popular.

• EMERGENCY FIELD BAKERY, NASIYIRAH

In January 2003, War Child carried out a regional assessment in the Middle East. With military action against Iraq becoming increasingly likely, War Child began to assess the possibility of deploying a bakery unit to feed thousands of vulnerable people in Nasiriyah in Southern Iraq. With over 60% of the country dependent on food distributions, which would inevitably be disrupted, and a high chance of people being displaced by the war, food security was of paramount concern.

• ORPHANAGES, NASIYIRAH

Prior to military action, there were three orphanages in Nasiyirah. These were so badly looted and damaged after the bombing campaign that only one was suitable for use.

This orphanage was completely empty when War Child first visited, as damage to the building was so severe that the orphanage staff had been forced to take the children into their own homes.

War Child provided immediate assistance, conducting physical repairs to the building and purchasing and installing a new generator. Food and non-food items such as clothes, pots and pans, stoves, fans and fluorescent lights were purchased. War Child provided funding to cover full administrative support (staff salaries and running costs) for two months. This encouraged employees to return to work and provided a routine for the children.

• MOTHER & CHILD HOSPITAL, NASIYIRAH

The Mother and Child Hospital had been badly looted during the conflict and very few staff were present when War Child first arrived. Those who were there had little equipment to work with. War Child agreed to pay the salaries of the 410 members of staff for two months as an interim measure while the local infrastructure recovered sufficiently.

• SCHOOLS EQUIPMENT, NASIYIRAH

The schools in Nasiriyah were due to close at the end of June for their summer break and there was concern that children would not be able to sit their examinations. The Department of Education was concerned that if pupils were unable to take their exams they would effectively miss a year’s schooling.

War Child was able to finance the exams for 20,000 children, providing stationery and equipment such as photocopiers and typewriters to enable exam papers to be produced.

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