June 24, 2005

One-Year Since Sovereignty

By Congressman Joe Pitts

At this time last year, many argued that giving the Iraqis sovereignty was tantamount to disaster.  In newspapers, pundits posited that the turnover was reckless and ill-advised.  What a difference a year makes.

On June 28, 2004, after receiving the transfer documents two days early, Iraqi President Ghazi al-Yawar eloquently stated, "It is a day that all Iraqis have been looking forward to.  This is the day that we take our country back into the international community.  We want a free and democratic Iraq , and we want a country that is a source of peace and stability for the whole world."

Seven months later, over eight million Iraqis openly defied the terrorists and voted in the first free and transparent election in decades. Iraqi citizens courageously inked their fingers on ballots while the terrorists threatened that they would “make the streets run with blood.”

The vote not only defied the terrorists, it defied the naysayers who thought it couldn’t happen.  Iraqis were willing to face death in order to choose their own leaders.

Today, it is easy to argue the election was a watershed moment for Iraq and the region.  Iraqi citizens now had a real stake in the governance and daily operations of their country.  Instead of being jailed for raising their voice, their voice was heard and counted.  Even those who boycotted the election have been invited into the process of drafting Iraq ’s permanent constitution.

In the last year, progress in Iraq can be measured in other ways as well. For example: over 168,000 Iraqi Security Forces have been trained and equipped and are actively engaged in providing security throughout their country.

More than 100 battalions of the Iraqi army have been fielded, along with 80,000 members of the border police, Ministry of Interior forces, and Facilities Protection Forces.  And they are doing a terrific job.

U.S. Army Lt. Gen. John Vines, commander of Multinational Corps Iraq, commented this week on progress in Iraq and specifically discussed the role of Iraqi forces in fighting the terrorists.  He said, “They’re well-led, they’ve proven that they are patriotic, they’re willing to fight, and they do extraordinarily well.”

He went to say that his concern “quite frankly, is not about their ability to conduct the operations. It’s about continuing to develop national capacity, so those forces can be fed, so those forces can be sustained with equipment and spare parts and replacement personnel and the like.”

That is where our work rebuilding the economy and infrastructure is so important.  Crucial infrastructure throughout Iraq is being modernized and built. Some have recently asserted that the insurgency started when critical services – water, electricity, sewer – were not provided after the initial launch of the war.

According to recent comments by Brigadier General Dempsey, commander of the 1^st Armor Division in Iraq , the Iraqi infrastructure was devastated by the 30 years of Saddam’s tyranny: “At no time in the recent past did Baghdad have enough electricity to go 24 hours. When we got there most of the sewage ran into the Tigris through the storm drains. Trash was a huge problem. Imagine a city of six million where the trash system shuts down for a month.” Coalition partners, NATO, and other members of the international community have actively cooperated and pledged assistance to help Iraq rebuild it housing, transportation, and utility sectors.

The progress that Iraq has made in the last year has had a ripple effect throughout the region as well. Emboldened by the image of Iraqi citizens voting in their landmark election, citizens in Lebanon , in Saudi Arabia , and in Egypt have become vocal in their support of self-rule and fair elections. 

As the President articulated in his inaugural address, “There is only one force of history that can break the reign of hatred and resentment, and expose the pretensions of tyrants, and reward the hopes of the decent and tolerant, and that is the force of human freedom.”

Despite unwarranted pessimism and criticism of our work in Iraq , America should not and will not abandon the Iraqi people as they continue to take important steps to shape their country's future.

While lauding handover of sovereignty and what it means for the future of Iraq , one would be terribly remiss to not mention the exceptional performance of our troops.  Their mission has been tough and dangerous, but they can take great pride in knowing that they have been largely responsible for the end of a brutal regime and what is emerging as the first democracy in the Arab world. 

We should never forget the sacrifices both they and their families have made to bring freedom to Iraq and keep us safe.

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