Gay Life After Saddam

A brand new BBC Radio 5 documentary -- Gay Life After Saddam -- makes the almost unbelievable statement that life was better for Iraqi LGBTQ folk under the dictatorship than under the current regime. For anyone not following, reports of harassment, attacks (by police, sometimes), and brutal tortures/atrocities have been reported under the new government, as far as supergluing gay men's anuses shut and then feeding them laxatives to induce diarrhea.

Yea, so not pleasant. A single statement stood out to me in the BBC coverage:

What is clear however is that gay people in Iraq have not been crushed.

And, so, there is hope.

With the international attention on the radio program, Radio 5 will be rebroadcasting the documentary (60 minutes) on July 12th, although the website seems to indicate that it is available other times. Just not right now, when I want to listen to it.

US Condemns Anti-Gay Violence in Iraq

It's a start, I suppose. It's not "we're out there stopping it from happening," but nice to know the government is aware of the problem, right?

From the Times of India:

"In general, we absolutely condemn acts of violence and human rights violations committed against individuals in Iraq because of their sexual orientation or gender identity," State Department spokesman Ian Kelly said.

"This is an issue that we've been following very closely since we have been made aware of these allegations, and we are aware of the allegations," Kelly told reporters when asked about anti-gay violence in Iraq.

"Our training for Iraqi security forces includes instruction on the proper observance of human rights," Kelly said.

"Human rights training is also a very important part of our and other international donors' civilian capacity-building efforts in Iraq," the spokesman said.

"And the US embassy in Baghdad has raised, and will continue to raise, the issue with senior officials from the government of Iraq, and has urged them to respond appropriately to all credible reports of violence against gay and lesbian Iraqis," Kelly said.

The US Government has been under pressure to address the issue of violence against LGBT individuals in Iraq, which has been gaining bloggie- and mainstream news attention for the past several months, especially after the US embassy in Baghdad announced it would be celebrating Pride month.

Again, I'll point this out ... it's the State Department. Hillary Clinton. I know, a lot of people said, when I made this connection before, that it's still Obama's administration and is done at his behest, likely -- but whose name is getting attached to all this? Is it "Obama has directed the State Department" or "White House Press Secretary today said?" No. It's "Hillary Clinton is doing" and "the State Department is saying." Granted, still "Obama administration," but she will come off with the PR win on these little gains, I believe. And Obama doesn't sully his hands with the gays.

And the Iraqi attack on homosexuals continues..

From a US Mahdi Army Officer in a statement saying that it's all vigilantes:

"Two young men were killed Thursday. They were sexual deviants. Their tribes killed them to restore their family honor."

Oh. That's reasonable. This comes after a Shiite group issued a call to kill homosexuals. See, even right wing Islamic folk use gay people as a scapegoat for their own problems.

Oops. Read "army" and thought "US army"... it's been corrected

Queer in the Middle East

It must suck to be queer in the Middle East. From an ABC News story about a young gay man living in Saudi Arabia:

I'm a Muslim. I know it's forbidden, but I can't help it... I pray to God to help me be straight, just to avoid hell. But I know that I'm gay and I'm living as one, so I can't see a clear vision for the future... You can't let a word slip that makes you seem gay-friendly or gay. Before you make a move you have to think.

All this in a country where the police have arrested men for being gay based on his choice of jeans and tight-fitting shirt... which, btw, is enough in my world to think of any man as gay, making me wonder whether or not there may be a mo on the police force there.

The picture you see above, btw, is out the same news story and is of Egyptian men who are arrested for "immoral acts."

In related news... the US isn't helping, I don't think. Despite numerous reports of brutality and violence against gay folk in Iraq, the embassy decides to create a Pink Zone... and hold its own little gay pride. I'm sure the folks living in and around the embassy are very thankful. There may be a good reason -- perhaps it allows some LGBT folks to celebrate, or perhaps it will help influence some politicians -- I have a feeling a lot of people will be walking past thinking, "And I can't even kiss him."

It's worth it to check out this map from Wikipedia, showing the relative status of LGBT rights in the world. Nine countries are listed as having the death penalty for homosexuality, six with "major penalties," and well over thirty with some sort of penalty.

Iraqi Gays

From a BBC report:

Meanwhile, threatening letters are being posted around Sadr City threatening death to homosexuals, and the International Gay and Lesbian Humans Rights Commission is reporting on a story that Iraqi gays are having their anuses glued shut, and then given drugs to cause diarrhea. No outhole + extensive diarrhea = death.

And, as of right now, nothing is being said by the US government.

Apparently, this will be our legacy in Iraq.

Thanks to Towleroad

Executions of Gay Men in Iraq

I questioned reports that gay men were to be executed this month in Iraq, but it appears that it has been confirmed. From CNN:

Six gay men were shot dead by members of their tribe in two separate incidents in the past 10 days, an official with Iraq's Interior ministry said.

In the most recent attack, two men were killed Thursday in Sadr City area of Baghdad after they were disowned by relatives, the official said.

The shootings came after a tribal meeting was held and the members decided to go after the victims.

On March 26, four additional men were fatally shot in the same city, the official said, adding that the victims had also been disowned by their relatives.

The official declined to be identified because he is not authorized to speak to the media.

Witnesses told CNN that a Sadr City cafe, which was a popular gathering spot for gays, was also set on fire.

Fuckin' sick, dude. That's all I've got to say. No word yet on an Obama response.

Iraq and Violence Against LGBT

A group of Iraqi gay men -- calling itself Iraqi LGBT, basing out of London -- has been out in the UK gay news stating that a large amount of individuals are about to be put to death under the Shi'ite government for the crime of homosexuality.

From the UK Gay News Story:

LONDON, March 30, 2009 – More than 100 prisoners in Iraq are facing execution – and many of them are believed to have been convicted of the ‘crime’ of being gay, the UK-based Iraqi-LGBT group revealed this afternoon.

According to Ali Hili of Iraqi-LGBT, the Iraqi authorities plan to start executing them in batches of 20 from this week. There is, said Mr. Hili, at least one member of Iraqi-LGBT who are among those to be put to death.

And the London-based group, which believes that a total of 128 executions are imminent, is calling on the UK Government, international human rights groups and the United Nations Human Rights Commission in Geneva to intervene “with due speed” to prevent “this tragic miscarriage of justice” from going ahead.

“We have information and reports on members of our community whom been arrested and waiting for execution for the crimes of homosexuality,” Mr Hili told UK Gay News.

The problem? The information cannot be confirmed. Even Andrew Sullivan cannot independently confirm the information, and the public face of the organization -- their website -- is poorly updated and even worse designed. They are in London, which makes me believe this isn't just another case of "does not have access to."

If it's true, it's awful, and I think it demands a full and complete intervention on the part of the nations who signed the UN Declaration on Decriminalization of Homosexuality. In fact, it's garnering enough chatter that someone with the capabilities to investigate in the country, should (like, say, the UN Human Rights Council? Or, perhaps, the US?).

If it's not true, well, they're asking for money on the front page. I'm sure some nice gentleman in London will thank you.

And even if it isn't true, it's good to remember that Iraqi law -- as with most Islamic countries -- dictates extreme punishments for homosexuality, which is a travesty in and of itself. And there is extreme violence against LGBT-identified persons in that area of the world requiring LGBT individuals to use an Underground Railroad like system to get out. At the very least, this will get some focus on the rights abuses of homosexuals in the Middle East, Northern Africa, Southern Asia (INDIA), etc.

Bush vs. the Shoe

Does it bother anyone else that the dominant rhetoric about this is not the awfulness that Bush has done that led up to this, but what happened to the journalist that did it?

POLITICS: Apparently, the Peace Activists Learned from Vietnam

No real news article to base this on...

BUT... it appears that the peace activists learned a lot from the Vietnam WAr, in respect especially to the way they treat soldiers coming home. They learned that it is inappropriate to abuse them, and understand that they are just doing their job and trying to do what's best for the country. After all, there's hardly any attacks or anti-soldier rhetoric going on. In fact, the reverse is true.

HOWEVER, it seems like the war hawks have not learned, further delving into a war for minor political aims. In fact, they've treated the vets worse than the peace activists... Walter Reid, cuts in military benefits, difficulty getting VA disability benefits, shoddy armor, lack of provisions, etc etc etc...

Funny, isn't it?

ALSO... what happens to the soldiers? It is rare that I ever hear about any soldier taking a stand on either side.

POLITICS: We just might win???

A little bit of a shocker in the morning paper... We just might finally be winning in Iraq.

Usually, I am critical of any information coming from the Editorial page of the Cincinnati Enquirer, as it tilts conservative. However, the basis of the editorial column comes from a new source... the Brookings Institute. (Link here)

Brookings has been historically critical of the war. In fact, the two authors, Kenneth Pollack and Michael O'Hanlon, have been outspoken critics of the war. They say, however, they found something completely different on their last trip:

Today, morale is high. The soldiers and marines told us they feel that they now have a superb commander in Gen. David Petraeus; they are confident in his strategy, they see real results, and they feel now they have the numbers needed to make a real difference.

They continue to describe successes in training Iraqi forces, reconstruction efforts, and removal of corruption in the army; though they are quick to point out more work needs to be done, including providing jobs, centralizing the government, and reducing civilian casualties.

So now we have an interesting dilemma for the anti-war folks, which includes me: the surge worked (depsite our concerns) and things are getting better.

I'm not going to spin it; I'm glad for the improving situation. I don't think anyone wanted to leave Iraq a mess, but, at the time, it felt almost inevitable that they only way out at this point was to let it go into civil war (leading to outsider invasions due to the power vacuum, potentially culminating in a new war on a regional scale). The sense of doom is receding. I'm glad the people of Ramadi and even some of the rural provinces can now feel safe in their neighborhoods, and I'm glad we're seeing ethnic integration. Thank jeebus... ahem, I mean, Muhammed.

Is this a success for President Shrub? In a way, yes... though I hate to admit it. When he first came to office, I often said that he had some of the best appointments ever. He surrounded himself with brilliant people (though corrupt, money hungry, and entrenched in the military-industrial complex). I think this, really, seems to be a success for General Petraeus. It seems Bush has put the proper person in place to deal with the mess that we created.

And, even if this does work out for the best, our reasons for going in and the last five years of failure, loss, and pain remain inexcusable. Your right, Saddam was a bad bad bad man... but the doctrine of prophylactic warfare should not be the corner stone of our foreign policy.

It should be, as always, a last resort.