THE UMBRELLA SYNDROME

It is an established scientific fact that all human beings are created equal. It is also a fact of life that certain races possess physical characteristics that are unique to their nature. These characteristics do not necessarily mean that those who possess them are either superior or inferior to the rest of the human beings. The variety of color of skin or eyes is a good example to illustrate the difference in physical features.

There is another area where certain aberrations seem to concentrate themselves within a certain breed of people. Sickle-cell anemia seems to be restricted to the blacks and Tay-Sachs disease to the Jews. The scientific world has researched and written extensively on these topics. I am sure there are other characteristics that are unique to certain races, but no need to exhaust the readers’ patience in a detailed mundane list of these deficiencies.

Sadly not much research has been done to study an aberration that appears exclusively among Assyrians. We certainly can see why this negligence by the scientific world. Since present day Assyrians do not possess a country of their own which has natural resources like oil, gold or a strategic position., there is not much interest in them. After all, if the rest
of the world has managed to ignore our existence for almost 2,000 years, why bother for the remaining 100 years when we will be officially listed as an extinct species.

Having determined that no research has been done on this unique Assyrian aberration, I ventured to study it to the best of my limited resources. Admittedly, I do not qualify as a scientist or have access to some elaborate laboratory where research and experimentation can take place in a scientific manner. Albeit that I consider myself fairly qualified to look at this aberration in a qualitative approach. As a geologist I have a good knowledge of evolution and study of fossils; as an engineer, I have the expertise to design and build things; and as a manager, I know how to plan and execute projects.

From the unique symptoms that characterize this particular Assyrian aberration, I have identified it as the “Umbrella Syndrome”. This aberration is not physical in nature.. I mean you cannot find it in the body or blood of the Assyrians. Actually it is a behavioral abnormality and of recent evolution. It manifests itself more clearly among those individuals who aspire to the national leadership. The aspiration by itself is an abnormal inclination as we have had no legitimate national leadership for almost 2500 years.

At any rate we will assume that there is a legitimate need for this aspiration in the souls or psyche of these people. Psychiatrists state that a sudden or traumatic experience does impact individuals and change their behavior. On that basis and the fact that this syndrome is of recent development, I have concluded that the trauma of the First World War is the culprit in our situation. Having lost almost half of our population and being terrorized and eventually driven out of our own country is certainly adequate to qualify our experience during the First World War as traumatic.

Those who are afflicted with this syndrome seem to be driven to making umbrellas, not the kind that protect people from rain or heat. These are very unique umbrellas; they exist only in the cerebral segments of their makers. These invisible umbrellas are designed to protect the Assyrians in accordance with their makers’ specifications.

The first documented case of this syndrome is that of Rev. Joel Warda, an Assyrian Presbyterian minister and a patriot and writer of renown fame. He constructed the first regional umbrella using the then existing organizations representing various villages of Urmia as the ribs of his umbrella. Lacking other reliable materials of construction, he used himself as the central shaft to hold these ribs together and his genius as the fabric to gather under it the scattered Assyrian settlers in the United States. With the passing of time and the shifting political winds, the various ribs bent and eventually broke piercing the fabric and leaving the whole umbrella in tatters.

In the early 1930’s when Assyrians experienced another trauma (Simel Massacre), a new group of umbrella makers got together and built a national umbrella to shelter the traumatized Assyrians. They had high hopes. After all, they had managed to find stronger ribs made from superior substance. Unquestionably, the ribs were more in numbers and somewhat stronger than their predecessors, but the handle, central shaft holding these ribs together, and the fabric proved to be much weaker than that of Rev Warda’s. While the umbrella still exists in the minds of many, it is totally perforated and wobbles back and forth giving protection to no one except to those who take turn in grabbing the handle and pretending that they have finally steadied the trembling umbrella.

With the passing of time a new generation of umbrella makers appeared on the scene. These people appeared to be more ambitious and determined to finally build the one universal umbrella that would shelter the Assyrians for good. They were ambitious, positive and projected a magnanimous outlook. They offered shelter not only to those without umbrellas, but also to the existing national umbrella. The name “universal” implied clearly how encompassing was the stretch of the new umbrella. All Assyrians were invited to come and seek shelter under this unique umbrella.

Alas, the universal umbrella proved to be much weaker than its predecessors. It had absolutely no structural integrity. It soon was shredded to pieces, leaving each rib with a piece of fabric attached to it. Now in place of one universal umbrella, we have a multitude of ribs each claiming the title to the vital components of the umbrella, the central shaft and the handle. Some of the original makers of the universal umbrella are now seeking shelter in anonymity and isolation.

With the collapse of this huge umbrella, the field was wide open to all types of umbrella makers, big and small. Now Assyrians are cursed with this behavioral abnormality, the umbrella syndrome. We have so many umbrellas, that we are totally confused as to the ranking of these umbrellas and the areas they encompass. Rumors have it that symptoms of this aberration have been detected among Assyrians in Western Europe, Russia and even as far away as Australia.

We have researched the scientific literature extensively and have not found a single medication in either tablet or liquid form to cure this syndrome. However, in the annals of behavioral sciences there are suggested cures. Though not guaranteed, but are highly recommended on the basis that these cures have worked for other syndromes. We strongly recommend this suggested cure. It may work and prove that the aspiration to national leadership is not necessarily an aberration.

The suggested cure may be summarized as follows: Gather all umbrella makers together, collectively evaluate each component of construction and select those ribs that still possess structural integrity and are not contaminated with foreign substances, cut and patch together remnants of the fabric, melt down the various shafts and handles and cast a new strong central shaft and a well formed handle that can be easily held and passed on to others. The suggested cure has a serious warning: Proceed with caution or you may be shafted.

Youel A Baaba
California

A CALL FOR A NEW AUA SECRETARY GENERAL

Undoubtedly the Assyrian Universal Alliance (AUA) is an important international organization and its creation in April 10, 1968 was a very significant moment in the contemporary Assyrian national and political history. AUA’s establishment was based on facts, which spurred the founders to deal with unprecedented challenges that confronted the Assyrians in early1960s, in particular in the Middle Eastern countries and specifically in Iraq. It was here that the Kurdish rebellion began in the heart of Assyria, and the eruption of armed conflict between Kurds and the Iraqi government led to a great exodus of the Assyrians away from their historic land.

Thinking rationally, the founders of the AUA recognized that no single Assyrian organization could represent the entire Assyrian nation and confront the new challenges especially in a time when our people were facing more persecution in the homeland and continued to be scattered throughout the world. The only answer available to them was that of creating an international federal alliance, in effect an umbrella for all Assyrian political and national organizations which was seen as the reasonable approach to the development of one voice for one nation.

However, we should keep in mind that the ideal principles and their implementation in reality are not the same. Principles without mechanism of implementation are no more than absolute thoughts and remain imperceptible in practical life. In politics, principles without praxis are utopist. Principles form strategy, which is generally distinguished by steadiness and affirmation, and is related to identity or destiny of a certain group of people. Tactic guides praxis, which is flexible, changeable and deals with current situations and day-to-day issues. Without tactic, strategy cannot be implemented.

Unfortunately, the history of the last three decades proved that AUA was, and still is, unable to implement its principles representing our people as a single Assyrian voice, in particular with regard to the concept of the “national umbrella”. No doubt, there were many effective factors and harsh circumstances, which resulted in such a failure. They were beyond the AUA capabilities and out of the control of the Assyrians in general. In a personal contact with a founder and ex-Secretary General of AUA, he likened AUA’s failure to a student who has been in to examination before preparing his lessons. He said “We gathered in Pau - France in 1968 with an extraordinary enthusiasm and full of nationalistic thoughts of uniting our nation but we were unequipped with instruments of implementation and unprepared to answer the question of how we can practically implement our principles in political arena”. In other word, AUA established an ideal and perfect strategy for our nation but its was unaware of the significance of tactic to fulfill this strategy or was, and still, incapable of adopting an appropriate and practical policy for a certain situation. This dilemma is obvious on many aspects of AUA’s futile performance; the most significant of which is that of its current Secretary General, the subject of the last issue of Zinda Magazine, which needs to be dealt in details.

Before that, I would like to discuss the following actuality about our nation, which is closely related to the main subject: Strategically and in principle, there is no any doubt that we are Assyrians and we are so wherever we go and live around the world. On the other hand, practically we are not one society or a single community, as long as we are living in our homeland and Diaspora which both of them compromised of many different states. Therefore, we are exposed and subject to different political, legal and cultural atmospheres within each country that we reside. Our adopted countries identify our citizenship, our rights and obligations. In view of that, we are Iraqi Assyrians, Turkish Assyrians, Iranian Assyrians, Russian Assyrians, American Assyrians, Swedish Assyrians, Australian Assyrians and so on. In case of taking into account the extreme differences between the states in the Diaspora and those of the Middle East we will soon discover that the mentality of the Assyrian communities are clearly affected and shaped accordingly.

Such mentality is capable to migrate with the Assyrian immigrants to the West and will control and guide, positively or negatively, their behavior and form a panoramic focus for all aspects of their lives in the Diaspora. Sometimes such behavior is embodies through settling down in a region or a city or establishing a club or organization and even a political party. In short, there are several Assyrian societies in a certain country in the Diaspora. For instance, in the United States where the largest community of Assyrians in the Diaspora reside, they are legally framed by a single citizenship and equal rights and commitments, but have societies based on different cultural mentalities, memories, emotions and even life styles. These variations originate from the difference brought from their prospective homeland.

These are Assyrian by ethnicity, American by citizenship and Iraqis, Iranians, Syrians or Turkish by origin. They have a common ethnicity and citizenship, but are different by country of origin. We can assimilate Assyrian societies as the case of many brothers and cousins with different forenames, but with one surname and same father or grandfather, each has his own family and properties. This is very normal with human being and as well as with the Assyrian nation in the present time.

Our idealism in nationalism is unfortunately misleading us towards ignoring the fact of regionalism and consequently we are missing the possibility of using it as a tactic in our national and political performance. The dissimilarity or diversity of Assyrians with regard to the country of origin, whether we agree with or not, presently is a fact of our historic homeland (Assyria) and the core subject of our national claim. It is still the crucial factor of bracing the Assyrian identity in the Diaspora. It is a living and the only existing channel of communication with the national roots and the main feeder of our national identity.

The fathers of the AUA were well aware of this fact that Assyrians as a nation are divided by tribal and denominational considerations. This status led them to adopt the famous four unionist slogans and concluded in the constitution. However, I doubt that they were aware of the effectiveness of regionalism, which is dividing Assyrians by political borders of the Middle Eastern countries and those of the Diaspora. The absolute idealism of the AUA in nationalism resulted in failure of achieving any of its unionist objectives. The current situation is confirming that such accomplishment is far from reach even during the near future. Ignoring regionalism or regional politics has resulted in the failure of adopting an appropriate tactical policy to implement a strategy towards Assyrians of a certain country and eventually all Assyrians.

From day one, the instability of Iraq and the extreme suffering of Iraqi Assyrians were the main topic on AUA’s agenda. Many policies, stances and actions have been taken in order to tackle this problem but without success. Reading the history of the AUA will show that the major reason for such failure was the destitution in Iraqi affairs; political system, dominating powers, ruling classes, their attitudes, Iraqi mentality with regard to politics and dealing with question of religious and national minorities.

Moreover, none of the AUA founders or key members and the Secretaries General, in the past or present, have enough experience with Iraqi government or lived with Assyrian sufferance in Iraq. As such that some members of the AUA’s delegation to Iraq in the early 1970s were easily trapped in swamp of corruptions, bribes and deceptions, set up by the Iraqi fascist regime and eventually damaged AUA’s reputation and aroused many questions among Assyrians on this organization’s credibility. It is needless to mention in detail the naivety of the AUA executive committee when invited Iraqi Assyrians, who were all of them Ba’ath party members or agents for Iraqi regime, to participate in AUA conference in Sydney in 1978, and the dramatic plot of poisoning the other Assyrian delegates.

Today, the issue of Iraq and shaping its political future is boiling. The destiny of Iraqi Assyrians is concerning all Assyrians around the world, specifically their political parties, and the AUA stands at the front. AUA’s vigor with regard to this issue is obvious in the shuttle movements of the present Secretary General Senator John Nimrod between State Department of the USA and the Iraqi opposition groups, struggling to be the single voice for Iraqi Assyrians and representing them at the Iraqi, regional and international levels. Everyone is aware of the complexity of the current situation, the harshest circumstances and serious physical, political and national threats facing Assyrians in Iraq. Yet, as is usually the case in Assyrian politics, AUA has not learned from past experiences. The Secretary
General as a non-Iraqi Assyrian has none or little knowledge and experience with this fateful issue. Moreover, he never had been to Iraq or even to Garbia (North Iraq), where there is a marginal freedom of movement, which allows our people to practice politics.

Then how we can expect that the Iraqi opposition groups will deal positively and seriously with the Secretary General who claims that he or his organization are representative of the Iraqi Assyrians? How will the State Department, other governmental offices and non- governmental & international organizations listen to him or rely on someone who is actually not a part of the question? For that reason all his efforts for the Assyrian case in Iraq will be rendered futile, and the Assyrian representation with the Iraqi opposition groups and the State Department will remain uncertain. This would seem as if Assyrian are aliens from another planet, not the indigenous people of Iraq, or at the best they are anonymous and referred to as “others”.

AUA is wedging herself among other Assyrian political groups in order to gain a role on the Iraqi political theater or to find a link with the Iraqi Assyrians question. This action has diverted AUA from its main principle of being a national umbrella for all Assyrian organizations. AUA is not a political faction similar to the other typical Assyrian political groups, competing with some and gathering with others under an umbrella of the “Assyrian National Coalition”. Ironically, it seems that the AUA’s umbrella has been blown away by the current windstorm and compelled to shelter under another one.

However, these critiques should never reduce our basic and firm faith in the importance of the AUA and her crucial role for the Assyrians. With regard to the current Secretary General, I highly respect Senator John Nimrod and truly, I admire his manners and attitudes, in particular his wide spirit in accepting criticism and trying to understand the differences with others. Personally, I had perceived his great and endless love for his nation, his tireless efforts to serve Assyrians regardless of his health and age. Therefore, I can decorate him with honorable medal by saying that he is the eldest Assyrian nationalists involved in such wide rang of national politics, and as such he deserves respect of all Assyrians round the world.

Nevertheless, it is regrettable to say that he is not the right Secretary General for AUA to deal with the current issue on hand. Therefore, the urgency of the current situation demands a new tactical policy to be adopted through the election of a new Secretary General.

Without introductions and equivocation I straightforwardly recommend Dr. Emanuel Kamber for the post of Secretary General. Someone could allege and accuse me by favoritism because he is a friend of mine. It is true that I know him for a long time; otherwise, I would not recommend him. I know him not as a normal friend or relative or sharing the same kinship or tribe or denomination but as a true and energetic nationalist. He has been a comrade for our national struggle during the hardest times and most despotic circumstances in Iraq. These were the times when involvement in politics was a serious threat to life and not easy and comfortable as it is in the free and democratic West. Allow me to elaborate:

1- Dr. Kamber is an Iraqi Assyrian by birth, originated from the northern part of Iraq, the heart of Assyria. His roots, memories, friends and family still exist there, which objectively makes his concerns for the Iraqi Assyrians and nationalist claims more credible. He is also an Iraqi Assyrian by experience, which actually and practically extend beyond university graduation to a period of teaching in university. Such attributes are extremely in demand for the current issue.

2- He is very well experienced in the Iraqi politics. In addition to his perfect capability in speaking and writing Arabic language, he is highly conscious of Iraqi mentality, political issues, attitudes of the regime & ruling Ba’ath party, opposition groups and all other aspects of social life in Iraq.

3- He has been involved in the Assyrian nationalism despite of the dictatorial environment in Iraq. As a university student, he was one of the most activist among Assyrian students, organized, and participated nearly in all activities; he confronted many outrages and annoyances by the Ba’ath party’s apparatus in university. In the Assyrian Cultural Club, the pivotal center of the Assyrian intellectuals in Baghdad of the 1970s, he was one of the earliest and very active members on many levels; including the social and cultural committees, library being in-charge and the management of the Assyrian Intellectual magazine (Mordinna Atoraya). He was active as an executive member of the Club until the day of his departure from Iraq. Personally, I had witnessed his love and sacrifices for his nation in Iraq. Together we have been “honored with abuses and insults from the security police of the Iraqi dictatorial regime” because we rejected to comply with the Ba’ath fascist policies. These included placing pictures of the dictatorial ruler & Ba’ath’s slogans in the Club and allowing the songs of praise for the dictator instead of the Assyrians anthem “Roosh Jwankka”.

4- In the Diaspora, Dr. Kamber’s nationalistic activities begun in the United Kingdom in the early 1980’s with the Assyrian Club in London, where with its Chairman Mr. Emanuel Kelatia they successfully cleared the Club from the Iraqi embassy influences and put it on the right nationalistic track. As a result, there were remarkable changes and progress including re-publishing of “The Assyrian”- a quarterly magazine in Assyrian, English and Arabic languages, in which Dr. Emanuel wrote many article on Assyrian history and nationalism

5- While in London, although he had faced difficulties and harsh circumstances during his studies and providing living for his family, he was able to dedicate his time for the nationalistic tasks on hand, in particular when he joined the AUA and became one of its most active members in Europe. In the USA, he continued his activities on a larger scale until he became an executive member of the AUA and the Secretary for USA & Canada.

6- Dr. Kamber has an extensive relationship & contact with the Iraqi opposition groups in Europe and USA and he has participated in most of their gatherings and conferences. He, and Mr. Bahram Zaia, the ex-AUA key member in London were the first to initiate such a communication and made others to be aware of the AUA and the Assyrian political activities. With or without AUA or other Assyrian political groups, he is still active on the Iraqi affairs and human & minority rights issues.

7- He has played a key role in establishing the Assyrian National Coalition, which at early stage was comprised of the Political Arm of the AUA, Assyrian Democratic Movement (ADM), Assyrian Democratic Organization (ADO) and Bet Nahrain Democratic Party (BNDP) – Iraq. Although he had formally quit from the AUA’s Executive Committee he stayed very close to the current Secretary General, worked together, and retained his faithfulness to the AUA principles and objectives. As uncommitted to any particular Assyrian organization, he continued his nationalistic activities on several levels and participated with Assyrian political parties and other non-Assyrian organizations in many meeting concerning Iraqi Assyrians.

8- He has a unique, agreeable and respectable relationship with nearly all Assyrian political parties, in particular the major ones; BNDP, ADM, ADO and AUA. On few occasions, I had personally witnessed the crucial role he had played in bringing their differences closer and in reaching the conclusions, which eventually reflected in nominating him as an Assyrian representative. Consequently, he was recently elected for the supreme council of the Iraqi opposition groups. Moreover, he is one of a very few Assyrian politicians,
to my knowledge the only one, who has a good working contact and friendly relationship with the two rivals Assyrian blocs, namely the Assyrian National Coalition and the Assyrian National Congress.

9- On the cultural level, he is very active and has participated in many cultural and national events, seminars, interviews and has delivered lectures on several occasions in the United States and Europe. Professionally, he is a Professor of Atomic Physics at a very reputable university in Michigan and has an excellent and respectable name among all Assyrians in America and around the world, particularly among the intellectuals and academics.

10- Dr. Kamber is an American citizen, lives and works there. This quality presently is very important for any Secretary General of the AUA, based on the following facts: First, the Assyrian community in the USA is the largest in the Diaspora; economically & educationally is well established and enjoys high standards of democracy and human & minority protection and support. Second, USA is the only super power concerned with and involved in the Iraqi issue and it is the key actor in shaping its future. This will provide Secretary General with a wide range of freedom for movement, activating and lobbying in order to promote the Assyrian case. Third: The main AUA organizational units, headquarter and most of her executive committee members are in the United States. This is very important for the Secretary General in order to easily contact them and conduct meetings. When the ex-Secretary General of the AUA and even of BNDP were European citizens living in Europe, they were unable to properly and practically perform their tasks because of the main structural body of their organizations and the majority, or all, executive members were in the USA and the executive leader was far away on the other side of the Atlantic. This could happen with any Assyrian or non-Assyrian organization when the head is separated from the body.

Assyrians during the last century lost many golden opportunities to determine their national destiny. We turned away our eyes from the sins, committed by our leaders and we started accusing Great Britain and condemning her of the betrayal of the Assyrian case. It is time to learn from the past, to recognize that politics is a struggle for national interests. Human rights or minority protection principles are actually meaningless and nonsensical for a certain state if they are in clash with a people’s national interests. Today, USA is the only Great Power and her national interests have already expanded into all corners of the globe including Iraq and the Garbia. The keys of our national destiny may be in her hands. Now it seems there is another golden opportunity approaching Assyrians. To make use of it, it is very important to be aware that we should not expect any real support from USA or any state unless our case is at the crossroad of her policies and it is not in clash with her national interests. Therefore, in this time of globalization we need a strong and well-structured national organization with international bases as is the Assyrian Universal Alliance. This global organization must also be headed by an individual characterized by the triple combination of Assyrian/American/Iraqi identity as is Dr. Emanuel Kamber.

Aprim Shapera
London

THE PROPOSED KURDISH CONSTITUTION
Some Personal Remarks

The proposed modifications to the constitution of the Federal Republic of Iraq and the regional northern Iraq by the Kurdish groups needs to be carefully studied and analyzed. Moreover, an alternate solutions to anything that is in conflict with Assyrians’ national aspirations must be presented and disputed. The Kurdish Proposal comes short in many aspects; a few points brought up by the Kurds are touched upon below. There are more issues that need to be addressed later:

I. The Proposed Kurdish Modifications to the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Iraq.

A. In the Introduction, the Proposal states that Iraq consists of mainly Arabs and Kurds and "other" minorities!
It should be stressed that the word mainly be removed and the sentence to read as “Iraq comprises many ethnic and religious groups including, Arabs, Kurds, Assyrians, Turkomen, Yezidis, Mandaeans, Armenians, and others.”

B. In the section titled the Principles of the Federal System of Iraq, Article 1 states that Iraq is to be divided in two regions; the Arab region and the region of Kurdistan. The historical region of north Iraq was always Assyria and to refer to northern Iraq, as Kurdistan is a historical fallacy, since Kurdistan is the region in the Zagros Mountains in northwestern Iran. We are not suggesting an infringement on the Kurdish rights in north of Iraq, but this should not be at the expense of the Assyrians -- the indigenous people of the region. Therefore, the region should simply be called the Northern Region and accordingly change all related sections in the proposal where the term Kurdistan is used. The Federal Republic of Iraq should be divided into three regions: Southern, Central and Northern Iraq, and hence change wherever applicable the two regions into three regions.

C. In the section titled The General Principles of the Federal System of Iraq, Article 2, the proposal mentions that the Iraqi people comprise two main ethnic groups, Arabs and Kurds. And that the New Iraqi Constitution must affirm the ethnic rights of the Kurdish nation and its practices in the region of Kurdistan on the basis of Federalism, and also affirm the legal rights of the minorities within the framework of the Federal Republic of Iraq. The article should state that “the Iraqi people comprise many ethnic and religious groups including, Arabs, Kurds, Assyrians, Turkomen, Yezidis, Mandaeans, Armenians, and other smaller minorities.” Additionally, the New Iraqi Constitution must affirm the ethnic rights of all the people and their practices within the framework of the Federal Republic of Iraq.

D. In the section titled The General Principles of the Federal System of Iraq, Article 7, Section 1, Sub-section A, under the Legislative Authority, the proposal suggest that this body would consist of two branches; one of which is the National Union Assembly (The National House of Representative). The representatives will be elected by the Iraqi people in the two regions and by the general, direct, secret ballet and on the basis of the percentage of the population of each of the two regions to the total population of the union and to be organized by a law. The population issue is very unfair to the Assyrians. In 1921 when the Kingdom of Iraq was established, the Assyrian Christian population and its percentage in the northern region was definitely much higher than it is today. The Assyrians have experienced great reduction of population due to various Iraqi government and Kurdish policies of persecution . As a result many Assyrians have been displaced and emigrated from that area. It was the Arab and Kurdish policies that reduced the Assyrian Christians’ numbers and hence that needs to be taken into consideration. Article 3 of the 1922 Treaty of Alliance between Iraq and Great Britain, for example, guaranteed the protection of the minorities and that all Iraqi people as being treated equally regardless of the ethnic origin, religion, or language background. The Treaty gave all religious sects the right to teach their own congregations through their own language. Article 13 obligated Iraq to prevent the spread and to fight all types of diseases. Article 13 is important since the Assyrians later were resettled in a region infested with diseases and many Assyrians died without a serious action taken by the Iraqi government to rectify the situation. This is just one example.

E. In the section titled The General Principles of the Federal System of Iraq, Article 7, Section 1, Sub-section B, under Regional Assembly, it states that this second legislative body consists of the representatives from the Arab and Kurdish regions and an equal representation from both, and it is to be regulated by law. Assyrians need to know how would they be represented here.

F. In the section titled The General Principles of the Federal System of Iraq, Article 8, it states that considerations should be paid to both regions in order that they represent all appointments within the official organizations of the Union and the offices inside and outside the country. This allocation of appointments is to be based on the percentage of any region’s population to the total population of the Federal Republic of Iraq. Special consideration should be paid to the Assyrian representation to such offices because of the reasons already explained earlier.

G. In the section titled The General Principles of the Federal System of Iraq, Article 11, Section 1 states that the local Kurdish regional legislative branch will be elected by the people of the region through direct secret ballot where the representation of the minorities from Turkomen, Chaldeans, Assyrians, and Armenians, must be considered on the basis of their percentage compared to the total population of the region. This would be regulated by the law. Two points must be emphasized that the Chaldeans are simply Catholic Assyrians; hence there is no reason for breaking the ethnic Assyrians into two titles. Secondly, what is the foundation of the law that controls the election of the legislative members? The repeated persecution of the Assyrians throughout the decades has decreased their numbers. It would be unfair to simply compare their numbers to the Kurds and elect their representative accordingly. Assyrians will have no chance.

H. In the section titled The General Principles of the Federal System of Iraq, Article 11, Section 2 touches on the local Kurdish regional executive branch. Sub-section B, states that the regional Cabinet should consist of the Prime Minister, a Deputy, and a number of ministers, and that the latter should consider the ethnic minorities as part of its body… How would the Cabinet consider the ethnic minorities composition in its structure? Who are the ethnic minorities and why not mention them by name?

Section II. The Proposed Constitution of the Iraqi Kurdistan Region

I. In the Introduction:

A. The proposal states that the Kurds are an ancient nation; a nation that lived in the land of Kurdistan for thousands of years and have acquired the rights that qualifies them to determine their own destiny just like other nations on earth.

We know that the region of north of Iraq is historically known as Assyria. The Assyrians have occupied that region for 5000 years; they are the indigenous people of the region. Kurdistan was always a region in northwestern Iran and not northern Iraq. The Turkish Ottoman Empire had been the main reason for bringing the Kurds to northern Mesopotamia in the middle of the 19th century. Later, both the Ottoman Turks and the Kurds persecuted the Assyrian Christians, massacred them, forced them into either converting to Islam or seek emigration. Hence all Assyrians must be allowed to return to their original homes, farms, and lands and appropriate retributions be paid for those who desire not to claim their original lands for whatever reason or be paid to their extended families when the prior have passed away.

B. It states that the Treaty of Serves (1920) mentioned the Kurds and their case. The Assyrians were mentioned in the Treaty of Serves too. Article 62 is clear regarding the complete guarantees for the protection of the Assyrians in north of Iraq. Articles 141, 145, 147, and 149 of the Treaty of Sevres are very clear in regards to ethnic minorities, not only of the Kurds, but also of all the other ethnic and religious minorities, including logically the Assyrians and the Yezidis.

C. It states that the ending of the British mandate over Iraq and the admittance of Iraq into the League of Nation in 1932 was pre-conditioned with the protection of the rights of the Kurds and that Iraq could not ignore or adjust such conditions. Assyrians were part of those recommendations too. The Permanent Mandate Commission had addressed the Assyrians’ homogeneous settlement in north of Iraq in many correspondences, including its report to the League Council. The Assyrian settlement issue of the 1920s must be re-opened and addressed again but fairly and appropriately this time around. The League of Nations Mandate Committee agreed on the Iraqi admission to the League with reservations dealing mainly with the rights of the minorities. The Iraqi government presented its report regarding the minorities to the League, which guaranteed the rights of all Iraqi citizens regardless to their place of birth, race, religion, language or nationality. The report guaranteed that all Iraqis were to be treated equal in the eyes of the law and that there were no restrictions applied against using any language whether in casual conversations, in commerce, religion or the press. In addition the report included that all Iraqis, regardless to their national, ethnic, religious or linguistic affiliation, were to be treated equal and were to be free to establish their own civil, religious and cultural institutions and schools. All Iraqis were to be free in using their own language and practice their own religious beliefs. And in the cities or villages where minorities make a fair population, the government was to ensure financial assistance to help building cultural, religious and other institutions. None of this happened in reality, on the contrary, policies of Arabization intensified in the last (40) years or so.

D. It asks for ending all acts of Arabization of the Kurds. Assyrians in turn ask the Arabs and the Kurds to end all kinds of Arabization and Kurdification and the return of all those who have lost their lands or were forced to leave their homes to return to their lands, farms, and homes and when not possible, an appropriate retribution be assessed. In addition every Assyrian who has emigrated from Iraq in the last 80 years should be given the right to return back to Iraq and be granted suitable means of living, including housing and working opportunities.

2 Section One, Article 4, states that the region of Kurdistan consists of Kurds and ethnic minorities (Turkomen, Assyrians, Chaldeans, Arabs) and that the constitution of Kurdistan affirms the rights of these minorities. The method of breaking the Assyrian people into Assyrians and Chaldeans is deplorable, as the two are one people, known historically as Assyrians (Suraye). Chaldean is a religious denomination of the Assyrian nation. The divide and rule policies of the Iraqi and Kurdish authorities must end immediately and the interferences in Assyrian religious affairs must stop completely. The Arabs and the Kurds must leave the Assyrians to resolve any misunderstandings within their various churches on their own.

3 Section 3, Chapter 1- The Legislative Branch, Article 26, Sub-article 2 states that considerations must be given for fair representation of the ethnic minorities in the Kurdish regional legislative branch. The term minorities should be defined clearly. Assyrians must never be referred to as minorities any longer, rather by name, i.e. Assyrians. Secondly, we need to understand clearly the ways and means by which such representation will be conducted and what FAIR means exactly.

4 Section 3, Chapter 2- The Executive Branch, Article 49 states that the representation of the ethnic minorities (Turkomen, Assyrians, Chaldeans) in the Kurdistan regional Cabinet needs to be considered. The use of “Assyrians and Chaldeans” should be stopped immediately since they are ONE nation and that the title Chaldean is a religious denomination of the Assyrian nation, therefore, the mention of the term Assyrians suffice.

5 Section 4, Management and Municipal Assembly, Article 66, Point 2 states that a fair representation of the ethnic minorities in the Municipal Assemblies should be considered. Again, the article must mention the minorities by name. Secondly, what is FAIR in the eye of the Kurdish authorities? What are the ways and means that such elections will take place?

6. Section 6, Article 74 states that any law, rule, decision, or decree will be nullified if it limits or takes away from the legal ethnic rights of the Kurdish nation and the citizens of Kurdistan region or anything that conflicts with this constitution. The citizens of the Northern Region must be defined by name, i.e. Arabs, Assyrians, Turkomen, Yezidis, and the others as applicable.

The Section on “The Formation of the UNION”

Section I

Article 4 states that the nation of Iraq consists of two main ethnic groups: Arab and Kurdish. This constitution affirms the ethnic rights of the Kurdish nation and its activities in Kurdistan region on the basis of a Federal system. It also affirms the legal ethnic rights for the minorities within the framework of the Federal Republic of Iraq.

The word minorities should be defined clearly and appropriately, ethnic or religious, and they should be mentioned as Assyrians, Turkomen, Yezidis, Mandaeans, Bahaiis, Armenians, and so forth.

Article 6 states that the Federal Republic of Iraq is to have a special flag, emblem, and national anthem, all of which must include the symbol of unity between Arabs and Kurds, and that to be regulated through a law.

This unity is not only between Arabs and Kurds. Assyrians, Turkomen and all others must be part of these symbols since they make the fabric of the Iraqi society.

Rights and Primary Duties

Section II

Article 21 gives the State and the two regions the rights for issuing all matters related to Deeds of Trust and regulate all laws that apply here.

All unresolved matters should be finally resolved and all those who no longer possess the deeds of trust to their lands or homes, whether they were lost or were taken away from them through whatever reasons, be compensated fairly or their properties be returned to them or to their surviving family relatives.

Union Authorities

Section III – Chapter I, The House of Representatives (National Assembly)

Article 29 states that the ways and means of the elections be defined including the percentage of the representation and its dates through a law.

We need to see these ways and means defined clearly.

Union Authorities

Section III – Chapter II, The Executive Authority of the Union

Article 47 states that the Cabinet consists of the Prime Minister, deputies, and a number of ministers who represent the two united regions, i.e. Arab and Kurdish regions, and according to the percentage of their populations.

The Assyrians in Iraq have suffered greatly through the continuous policies of persecution by both the Arabs and the Kurds since 1921. Many Assyrians have been forced to evacuate their lands, homes and villages, or their villages were simply destroyed. The figures today do injustice to the the Assyrian Christians; therefore, special accommodations must be applied to the Assyrians and all figures of population must be predated to include the 1921 figures when the Republic of Iraq was established. Interestingly, the British Civil Administration after the occupation of Iraq in 1918 and afterwards by Mandated Iraq showed that the population of the non-Moslems in Iraq, mainly present in north of Iraq and comprising mainly of Christians (Nestorians, Chaldeans, Jacobites, Syrians), Yezidis, and Jews, was 400,000 while the Kurds’ population was 800,000.

Regions’ Constitutional Structure

Section IV

Article 61 states that the people of any of the two regions will elect their representatives in the Regional Assembly (House of the Representatives of each region) through the direct, free, general, and secret ballot. A special law will define the ways and means, percentage of representations, and the time of such elections.

It is vital to address these matters ahead of time and such guidelines should be defined clearly taking into consideration all the points addressed earlier. The Assyrians must be allowed to elect their own representatives in accordance to their population through separate elections because of what Arabs and Kurds have inflicted upon them throughout the last 80 years. It is obvious that when certain villages were completely and purely Assyrian, today and because of such policies, have turned into Kurdish villages. This is unacceptable since the Assyrians cannot have a fair representation under such circumstances.

Article 66 states that the Cabinet consists of Prime Minister, deputies, and a number of ministers, which is administered under the region’s president.

The Article should indicate the representation of Assyrians and Turkomen in the Cabinet.

Transitional and Final Rules

Section VI

Article 79 states that all traces of Arabization and forced immigration, which took place in parts of Kurdistan, must be removed. Those Kurds who were forced to re-locate from Kirkuk, Makhmor, Sinjar, Zammar, Shaikhan, Khanaqin, Mandily and other localities be returned to their former residential areas. In addition, all the Arabs who were brought by the authorities to these areas must be returned to their 1957 former residences.

Simply said, whatever is requested by the Kurds should be applied to the Assyrians also. Tens of thousands of Assyrians have lost their original homes and their villages were destroyed. While the Kurds have faced unfair Iraqi government policies, the Assyrians have faced double tragedies, from both the Iraqi central government and the Kurds. Therefore, all displaced Assyrians must be allowed to return to their original homes and their villages be returned to them in a manner that ensures demographic homogeneity of the Assyrians. The rulings and recommendations of the Sub-Committee of the League of Nations must be respected in this regard.

Finally, the point must be stressed that none of these amendments to the Proposed Constitution are to be made as a favor to the Assyrians of Iraq, as each and every Assyrian member of the greater Iraqi society deserves the equal and just treatment under the law.

Fred Aprim
California

UNTIL WHEN? - THE ASSYRIAN ETHNICITY PERSECUTED AND MARGINALIZED IN ITS OWN HOMELAND

In general, the Iraqi people see that it's time to get rid of Saddam's regime and replace it with another, which will bring Iraq to its prosperity, and deals with all the Iraqi people no matter what their ethnicity or religious creeds may be in accordance with international protocols. As such, intensive meetings of the Iraqi opposition groups were held abroad whereby many ideas were noted on the part of some Iraqi brethren while a question lingered; "Where are the Assyrians in the political agenda of the Iraqi opposition"??

It is important here to remind again of the Assyrian ethnicity whose history stretches for thousands of years and whose descendants lived in their historical, ancestral homeland "Assyria"(today's Iraq). They suffered throughout history of calamities and massacres either because of their religious or ethnic backgrounds. Thus, some peoples got during the twentieth century more than they deserved while the Assyrians paid the highest price in comparison to their number, and didn't claim in the process other than ethnic marginalization and forced migration from their historical homeland, so because of all this a remainder of about 1 million Assyrians live in the homeland forming number wise the third ethnic group. All hopes are turning towards the Assyrians in the homeland to strengthen the Assyrian ethnic existence in Assyria despite the many difficulties surrounding them.

What matters to the Assyrians under the present circumstances is their fate after thousands of years, as a minority rejected to be recognized as an ethnicity by the surrounding currents, because those Assyrians living in Iraq, are divided in between two areas under two different regimes Arab and Kurdish. In what is called "Iraqi Kurdistan", the Assyrians found that they got rid of Baghdad’s Arabization to face the "Kurdisation" policy. Also, as the different Islamic Kurdish currents are increasingly active in what's called "Iraqi Kurdistan", and the increase of problems between the islamists and non-islamists as " political Islam" entered Assyria, in addition to the assassination of Assyrian clergy in Baghdad (1), one can't but wonder about the reasons behind all this and the disaster that may occur following the confusion which will befall Iraq in the event that the demands of any of the Iraqi people remain un addressed.

It's important to have a simple historical representation before looking into solutions, for the Assyrian Cause has a historical background which makes the Assyrians, and very frankly till today, always cautious of the other ethnicities surrounding them, especially with the continuous persecution, of the "De Facto Powers" which are dominating the homeland, of the Assyrian demands. As an example, the Iraqi regime, treated the Assyrians as second class citizens or foreigners in Iraq in addition to intimidating actions to force their migration, such as destroying their villages and Churches which go back to the first centuries A.D.. Also, the detentions and executions in all Iraqi areas and prohibiting the use of the "Assyrian" name in all domains except at universities where it's mentioned in the subject of an arabized history (for they were not able to omit the Assyrian name from history). They would also detain the families of Assyrian politicians living abroad while torturing them in Baghdad's prisons to force their return to Iraq and giving themselves up. Also the detention in 1978 of more than 500 Assyrians members of the Bible Study Committee.

The Assyrians paid a high price due to Saddam's foreign policy and his war with Iran where the numbers of Assyrian victims reached to about 60000 between those killed, detained, and missing in action. The Assyrian town of Baghdida (so called Qaraqosh) alone, gave about 6000 martyrs. Because of the regime’s internal policy the Assyrians also suffered a great deal during Saddam's war with the Kurds, especially after the Iraqi - Iranian war when Saddam decided to punish the Kurds who supported the Iranians, thus came the famous " Anfal" operation where he destroyed a large number of Assyrian villages causing more than 40000 Assyrians to flee their villages along with the Kurds to neighboring countries. Those who remained were subjected to killings and abductions where hundreds of them are still missing till today with their wives and children (lists of names are available), all that to have revenge because the Assyrians refused to register as "Arabs" or "Kurds" in the 1987 Census... (2)

With every battle the Assyrians are bewildered for they fear the Kurdish anger if they don't stand by their side for they will consider them as " Saddam's collaborators", on the other hand they fear Saddam's wrath if they side by the Kurds for he will consider them as "Kurds’ collaborators"... In addition to all this, tens of thousands were left homeless in 1991 after Saddam's strikes against the Kurds. Thus the Assyrian people always pay the price for others' wars on its own land when its fate clings to the struggles of others, while no one in the world would take notice of Assyrian victims, rather they would be either considered Arabs or Kurds, and this was confirmed during a visit of some Assyrians to meet with those who had fled to Turkey in 1991. All this as a result of Baghdad and Kurdish obscuring towards the Assyrian identity.

Following the invasion of Kuwait, the economic, defense ... and other important Iraqi elements were destroyed because of the Iraqi regime’s idiocy on one hand and the American-Israeli plan on the other which aims at striking back any forces which may threaten Israel in the Middle East. This is when taking advantage of the weak Iraqi regime, the Kurds announced what seemed to be a sort of independence in the North of Iraq with the help of the allied forces which destroyed Iraq, where this chaotic area of Kurdish rule is known as " Kurdistan Region" and is ruled by Kurds in a tribal manner.

For centuries the Kurdish tribes neighbored the Assyrians. The Kurdish historian; the prince Sharaf Khan al-Badlisi (16th century) mentioned that Kurds came to the area with the Mongol tyrant Tamerlane, and he says that the inhabitants of the area where known as "Asuri" i.e. Assyrian ... Relationships were established between the two peoples during which the Assyrians had already fulfilled the requirements of present day states (Land, authority, and population). Then it was the huge massacre in the middle of the 19th century when tens of thousands of Assyrians fell victims at the hands of the Kurdish leader Bedrkhan followed by WWI massacres which spread from Urmia in the West of Iran to Urfa (Urhai or Edessa) and Maraash in the south-east of Turkey. In these massacres two thirds of the Assyrian population perished and His Holiness Patriarch Mar Benyamin Shimmoun was assassinated in a treacherous attempt at the hands of Ismail Simko leader of the Kurdish Shikak tribes ... These events are still very painful to the Assyrians, this in turn has affected the Kurdish movement in present times as it is mentioned by Jalal Talabani the leader of the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan (3).

Kurdish population can be found today in high density in the Assyrian homeland and they very much believe in their ethnic belonging, they are a rebellious, brave people who were able to impose their existence on neighboring countries and they repeatedly forced hostile regimes to negotiate with them despite the Saad-Abad treaty which was signed between Iraq, Iran and Turkey in 1937 which stipulated the subduing of Kurdish rebellions in those countries. Kurds stood against this treaty and rebelled for decades against the three countries and that drew the attention of the West, which used them as a pressuring card on these countries whenever it was possible. In turn the three countries took advantage of the Kurdish tribes using them as a pressuring card whenever conflicts arose between the three countries, and this is obvious when the Shah of Iran supported Mustafa Barazani against Iraq but suddenly withdrew his support following the Algerian treaty in regards to Shat el-Arab (Persian Gulf) signed between Iraq and Iran in 1975, resulting in Barazani instructing his fighters to give themselves up to the Iraqi authorities because he was bewildered how to deal with the situation, this caused a turn down in his popularity, and the Algerian treaty was amongst the main reasons for the failure of the Kurdish State project.

In spite of all that the Kurds committed against the Assyrians trough history, yet some Assyrian contributed very bravely and sincerely to the 20th century’s Kurdish movement under Mustafa Barazani. One of the main reasons for some Assyrians joining foreign currents was that they saw in the Kurdish movement a way to freedom from the Baghdad regime, in the absence of Assyrian Parties during that period on the Iraqi scene and this is considered as a short sightedness on the part of Assyrian organizations abroad because the Assyrians in northern Iraq didn't find any other option to be freed of the Iraqi regime other than joining either the Kurdish movement or Iraqi Communist Party, and the two became as a refuge for Assyrian nationalists where many of them were able to hold the highest ranks within the Iraqi Communist Party, and within the Kurdish movement, which brought perdition to many of them, and in some military divisions Assyrians constituted about 15% (4). And the Assyrians remained sincere to the Kurdish movement well into the seventies of this century when the late Patriarch Mar Ishai Chamoun was invited by the Iraqi president Ahmad Hassan al-Bakir in April 1970, then the Assyrian leader Yakou Malek Ismael (one of the Assyrian National liberation symbols in the 20th century) who was invited in February 1973 and the Iraqi government proposed to both leaders forming an Assyrian force to strike the Kudish movement in exchange for acknowledging some Assyrian rights, but both leaders refused that proposal. In April 1979 the Assyrian Democratic Movement was established which changed the situation to be somewhat better as to preserving the Assyrian existence in Assyria as much as possible keeping at the same time the good relations with the Kurds to face together the common challenges in a spirit of sincerity and co-operation. However, the Kurdish treatment towards the Assyrians during the last decade wasn't as well as it was expected to be.

The area which is under Kurdish rule has several religious minorities( Christians, Yizids, and Muslims) distributed into several ethnicities (Assyrian, Kurds, Turkman) ... In this mosaic tapestry the Kurds tried to gain trust in the way they ran their region in accordance with international norms in preparation of announcing a Kurdish state whenever circumstances permitted. Thus the Assyrians and Turkmans participated in the Parliament of what's called "Kurdistan" and Assyrian establishments were allowed to build schools in an attempt to gain foreign support and nothing more. The Kurds are well aware that the Assyrian demands are well within the same geographical area which they consider as " Kurdistan", and the Kurds will never accept the founding of another national existence whether be it Assyrian or another in that area, Kurds however look at all the other different parties who live in Assyria, as "Kurdistani citizens" hoping that one day they would turn into "Kurdish citizens". This is obvious to those who are aware of the events taking place due to the following facts:

1. The political Persecution: In regards to this fact, Assyrians are but Christians living within the so-Called " Kurdistan", in addition to the Kurdish leadership frankly considering Assyrians as " Christian Kurds". Plus the deliberate attempts of the Kurdish leadership to form Assyrian Parties under religious names in order to weaken the Assyrian front by attempting to politically undermine the popular base of the “Assyrian Democratic Movement” organization, creating divisions in the Assyrian parliamentary representation in what's known as the “Kurdistan Parliament”, adding to that the increase in political assassinations of politicians and members of the Assyrian Democratic Movement such as the martyrs Francis Shabo who was a member in the Parliament of the so-called "Kurdistan" and Faris Mirza , Samir Murad and others...

2. Cultural and Ideological Persecution: The educational curriculum at the Region's universities is geared politically, to consider the North of Iraq as a Kurdish land, just like the Baghdad regime forces the Arabization of Assyrians in its universities. The Assyrian students are obliged to study a history that considers Kurdish personalities, which were responsible for massacring their ancestors rendering them homeless away from their homelands, as heroes, or they would fail exams, and many more practices that can't all be mentioned here.

3. Corporal and Psychological Persecution: Reports which show tens of crimes against innocent individuals and families as well as immoral acts whereby volumes are needed to report them. What's amazing is that no one was convicted of any of these crimes but rather they would be attributed to " un-known" perpetrators, even though many of the assailants were either Kurdish figures or party members.

4. Demographic Persecution: Forcibly occupying Assyrian villages and agricultural lands, obliging Inhabitants to leave in horror using bombs or arresting them repeatedly for no apparent reasons in order for them to flee even though a large part of land occupied by Kurds is still officially registered to Assyrian owners, who if not abroad, are living as refugees with their relatives in other villages. Also the names of tens of Assyrian villages were changed to Kurdish, misleading future generations, when as a matter of fact all of Iraq's regions carried Assyrian names before the coming of Arabs and Kurds.

5. Religious Persecution: Resorting in many instances to "Islamic Laws" in cases where the victims are Assyrians. Also, kidnapping girls of thirteen and sixteen forcing them to convert to Islam then marrying them to their kidnappers and the criminals are still free.

Thus the "De Facto Forces" proved again without any doubt, their failure dealing with minorities living under their rule, in accordance with international norms within the political, humanitarian and moral standards, especially that Amnesty International confirms every year the fore mentioned. Thus, we should wonder as to the fate of the Assyrian people under the domination of these forces, and what can be the best solution for the Iraqi people in general and the Assyrian minority in particular.

The forced migration of the Assyrian people from their ancestral homeland reflected a rise in a more advanced national awareness beginning with a recognizable media and cultural movements abroad, which are at a high point now to accompany the present era and support the one third of all Assyrians around the word, living in their ancestral homeland, to help them face the developments which will bring radical changes to Iraq where there's a mix of both domineering and deprived ethnicities.

Like other deprived peoples, the Assyrians notice today that the international political situation after September 11 may provide them with what they've been deprived of for long centuries. Therefore, Assyrian organizations mobilized in a noticeable manner which made many American officials take notice in directing the White House's attention to the Assyrian suffering under the rule of Kurdish tribes. On October 26, 1999 three American congressmen presented a petition to President Bush to take into consideration the situation of the Assyrian ethnic minority in the event of changes in Iraq. And on March 15, 2002, nineteen congressmen followed with yet another letter to President Bush in regards to this matter. On April 25th, 2002, Chairman of the International Relations Committee in the Congress Senator Henry Hyde in a letter addressed to Mr. William Burns [assistant secretary of state for near eastern affairs], explained the persecutions of the Assyrian people in Iraq, and wondered about their rights, then followed that by another letter to Secretary of State Colin Powell on August 18th, 2002 protesting the exclusion of Assyrians from the Iraqi opposition meetings...

In spite of this negligence on the part of the Iraqi opposition, and because the Iraqi people in general are suffering of economical and social problems and as the minorities are suffering of marginalization, persecution, and of harassment to their politicians, taking all this into consideration, the Assyrians still share the Iraqi opposition in their concerns and support their demands because they feel that they are a part of that human fabric which constitutes the Iraqi people - builder of the future Iraq.

The Assyrian national movement is neither an enemy of the Kurds, nor is against Arabs as the Iraqi regimes have misled the people who are hopeless. Also the Assyrian national movement isn't against the State of Iraq having its own specific convocations in its relations whether military or economical co-operation with its region (as a state), but is against the " Arabization" & " Kurdisation" of Assyrians. History has proven that it's impossible to eliminate the national feeling of the Assyrians ... The Assyrians will always call for a democratic and free Iraq where justice would be for all its ethnic and religious groups and it's the duty of the forthcoming Iraqi leadership to work on the following:

1- Recognition of the Assyrian minority as an independent, fully defined ethnicity distinctive ethnically from other groups in Iraq.
2- Elimination of the reasons which caused a continuous forced migration of Assyrians outside the historical homeland and that can be achieved by establishing the basis of democracy and equality in rights and giving lands and properties back to their rightful owners, then calling upon all Iraqis, Assyrians and others to return and help in the building of the new State of Iraq.
3- Reviewing the Iraqi educational curriculum to bring up a well educated generation, one that will be aware of the true history of his country in compliance with what scientists and historians have established and that by correcting the so-called "rewriting of history" which was done by Baghdad's regime in the late seventies through which ancient history was distorted accordingly with the Arabization policy and then changing modern history because of the regime's vindictive feelings and the sensitivity against all that is related to Assyrians without any reason.
4- Implementation of the decision dated 25/12/1972 by the Iraqi Revolutionary Council which decreed allowing to Assyrians who participated in the 1933 events [as claims the Iraqi regime] to go back to Iraq, so that those who wish to return to the homeland can do so and reclaim their Iraqi citizenship, considering that Iraq is the national homeland of the Assyrians.

This is some of what the Assyrians want in a unified Iraq, in the event that the present regime changes, it's better for a unified State of Iraq to continue on the basis of a direct central governing, but in the case that any Kurdish entity might be established whether under federalism or political and governmental decentralization in a form of a self governing rule, then with reservation regarding the obscurity which surrounds Turkey's strong opposition towards the Kurdish case, plus the obscurity in both the positions of the American administration and the Iraqi opposition in regards to the future of Iraq, then it's not logically acceptable for Assyrians to live under the mercy of any other group for they deserve to have their own particular entity equal to other ethnicities according to what follows :

1. Deriving from historical rights.
2. Deriving from what the Assyrians have suffered and still do under the rule of "De Facto Forces" and because of these forces' violation to all of the 30 articles mentioned in the International Declaration of Human Rights which is sanctioned by decision 217/A3 of the United Nations General Assembly 1948.
3. The previous declarations of International organizations such as number /69/ of 15/12/1932 by the League Of Nations which stipulates on self- governing area in the north of Iraq, for the Assyrians.
4. In reference to article /73/ of the United Nations Declaration of "Self Governing" law, and as the Assyrians are relied by the elements of nationalism, and particularly in Assyrianism {common language, history, and common traditions as well as the national feeling of belonging} ... and that in a very obvious and distinctive manner of other groups, wherever the Assyrians live.

The Assyrians have to impede any solution that doesn't equalize them along side with the rest of the groups within the Iraqi people; on the other hand every thing remains to be seen under the obscure American plan. And the Turkey's declaration on the 20th of August 2002 that Mosul and Kirkuk are historically Turkish lands arises a question mark around the future of north of Iraq.

What's odd and sad at the same time is the struggle of foreigners and their race for many years to seize the Assyrian land. For the Kurds it's Kurdish, for the Turks it's Turkish, and for the Arabs it's Arab ... While the Assyrians, the real owners of the land, exhausted of the calamities which befell them, await the mercy of the international community. The Assyrians' only ammunition today is their historical and human right, however, justice remains hanging on the Iraqi conscience in particular and the International conscience in general. And as long as there are voices rising after 2614 years of the fall of Nineveh, then there’s' no doubt that the Assyrians will continue to demand what is rightfully theirs until they completely obtain it.

Ashor Giwargis
Lebanon

[This article was first published in the published in Arabic in the "An-Nahar" newspaper - Lebanon, 1 October 2002. Translation from Arabic to English by "Mary.C"]

Notes:

1 - Father Philip Hilay was found choked to death in May 2002 and Sister Cecilia Hanna Moshe who was found stabbed several times and beheaded at the Monastery of The Sacred Heart in Baghdad on 15/08/2002, the day of St. Mary's Commemoration.
2 –Jonathan C.Randal (an American journalist),“After Such Knowledge, What Forgiveness?”, 1997, Farrar, Straus & Giroux – P:18 (The Arabic Edition, Translated by Fadi Hammoud).
3 – Dr.Kamal Ahmed Mazhar (a Kurdish historian) - “Kurdistan During WW1”
4 - Shmidt, A. " Journey Among Brave Men" . Boston, 1964, P. 71
5 - Haddad, Eva " The Assyrians, The Rod Of My Anger ". Australia, 1996. P. 1

CAR ACCIDENT INJURES 16 AT SAN DIEGO’S CHALDEAN CHURCH

Courtesy of the San Diego Union-Tribune (Sept 23); article by Irene McCormack Jackson

(ZNDA: El Cajon) At least 16 people were injured when a woman driving to church lost control of her car in the parking lot last Sunday morning and careened into a crowd of parishioners gathered for refreshments outside St. Peter Chaldean Catholic Church in El Cajon, California.

Twelve people, four of them children, were taken to hospitals in a half-dozen ambulances, suffering from serious to moderate injuries, James Marugg, a San Miguel Fire District paramedic/ firefighter, said.

"The nightmare for us was finding all of the patients in the crowd," he said. "We had patients all the way from the street to the front of the church."

Paramedics set up a triage area on the church steps to assess patients.

"We had a couple of patients who had injuries to the head," and needed to be seen by trauma doctors, he said. One child suffered a serious break in his lower left leg, which also required specialized medical treatment.

Marugg said none of the injuries appeared to be life- threatening.

The accident was a shock to the Chaldean community, which buried three members of a well-known family who died in a car crash Sept. 13, less than a mile from the church. A memorial service for the Ballo family was scheduled to be held after church services yesterday, said Manal Naoom, a church volunteer.

The accident occurred at 10:45 a.m. just 15 minutes after the 9:30 a.m. Mass ended and 15 minutes before the 11 a.m. Mass.

California Highway Patrol officer Brian Allen said it will take days to figure out what happened and who is at fault because of the number of witnesses investigators will need to interview.

Alcohol or drugs are not suspected in the case. And the driver, described only as a middle-aged woman, was not hurt.

Naoom said the woman seemed to be "out of it" and felt very badly about what happened.

Allen said the driver hit another car while entering the driveway and then hit a pedestrian. Worshipers leaving Mass were walking to their parked cars, he said.

The woman then veered her Ford Escort up the one-way drive and headed for the front of the church.

It plowed into a group of people, hitting at least a dozen and throwing them in every direction before slamming into a steel beam supporting an awning over the front doors.

Sam Marcos, who was just leaving Mass said he yelled for people to get out of the way.

"When I see the car as it was coming over there, I said, `Watch out, watch out, watch out!' " Marcos said as he watched a tow-truck driver load the battered car onto a flatbed truck.

"I see two or three people as she hit them . . . and they went up in the air," he said. "Then she hit the pole. If not this, she would have kept going."

Marcos said the car just missed him as it drove not more than a foot away from the walls of the church in a path toward the church entrance.

"I see her as she tried to turn her steering wheel. She was close to me and I jumped down the steps to get away."

When the vehicle stopped, pandemonium broke out. Relatives and friends rushed to aid the injured. Several pulled people out from under the car.

Marcos dialed 911 on his cell phone, as many others did.

Other church volunteers tried to direct traffic to keep a path open for the firetrucks and ambulances arriving at the Jamacha Way church.

The priest started Mass shortly after 11 a.m., as paramedics treated the injured outside.

CHP's Allen said the driver was cooperative but not very helpful while being interviewed.

"She said she turned the car to the right. As for a why she did or a how she did, she's just real vague on those details," he said.

CHALDEANS MOURN 3 IN FAMILY; 1,000 AT FUNERAL FOR CAR CRASH VICTIMS

Courtesy of the San Diego Union-Tribune (Sept 19)

(ZNDA: El Cajon) Three silver caskets rested side by side at a San Diego cemetery on Sept 18 as members of the Chaldean community mourned members of a well-known family killed on Friday, 13 September in a car crash.

Shamoon Ballo, 63, his wife, Samria, 56, and their 18-year-old daughter, Rita, were remembered as generous people who devoted their lives to their church and their family.

Shamoon and Samria Ballo arrived in San Diego with their three sons in January 1983. Through the years they helped more than 100 others come to the United States to escape oppressive economic and political conditions in their native Iraq.

"They helped every person possible as much as they could," said their son Tommy, 33. "Sometimes they gave more than they could afford to help other people."

Tommy Ballo and members of his family were headed to another relative's house Friday when their Honda Accord was hit by a van at Jamacha and Sundale roads.

Tommy Ballo, the driver and the only person wearing a seat belt, suffered shoulder injuries in the crash. Shamoon, Samria and Rita Ballo were killed instantly. Daughter-in-law Linda Ballo is recovering in a hospital.

The cause of the crash is still under investigation, said Lt. Tim Lepper of the California Highway Patrol.

About 1,000 people filled St. Peter Chaldean Catholic Church on Wednesday morning for a funeral service. It was conducted by Father Michael Bazzi. Family members said the service was the largest ever held in San Diego's Chaldean community.

Caroline Zaya, 18, who taught catechism classes at the church with Rita Ballo, remembered her friend as a beautiful and intelligent person.

"I keep telling myself you're in a better place," Zaya said in a poem she read at the service. "But what I wouldn't give to see your face."

Tommy Ballo said his mother viewed Rita as a gift because she prayed to have a girl after giving birth to three sons in Iraq. Like her parents, Rita was devoted to her faith, he said.

Gabe Barno, a friend of the Ballos, said he helped them come to the United States after he arrived here. The Ballos' home in Spring Valley was a frequent gathering spot for members of the Chaldean community.

"He was a peacemaker," Barno said of Shamoon Ballo. "He never held anything in his heart against anybody. Whenever he heard about fights between families, he tried to correct it."

After the funeral service, several hundred mourners drove to Holy Cross Cemetery for a graveside service.

SUCCESSFUL FUNDRAISERS IN SAN JOSE

(ZNDA: San Jose) Over the past weekend three separate fundraisers in the San Francisco Bay Area amassed a total of $53,000 (fifty three thousand U.S. dollars) for three different Assyrian humanitarian, cultural, and political organizations. On Sunday, Sept 29, through the auctioning of rare Assyrian books and art pieces, $15,000 were collected for the Nisibin Scholarship Award program of the Assyrian American Association of San Jose. During the following evening’s political rally at the Church of the East hall to benefit of the Assyrian Democratic Movement in San Jose, a total of $7,200 were donated. The main speaker of the rally was the Secretary General of the Assyrian Democratic Movement, Mr. Yonadam Kanna. Earlier that day, Mr. Yonadam Kanna confirmed the collection of nearly $30,000 through the fundraising efforts of Mr. Narsi David of the Assyrian Aid Society of America for Ms. Lena Nissan’s medical treatments. Ms. Nissan is a 16-year-old Assyrian and has been diagnosed with Myeloid Leukemia.

PROFESSOR KAMBER HELPING PLAN FOR A POST-SADDAM IRAQ

Courtesy of the Kalamazoo Gazette (1 Oct); article by Anthony Shadid

(ZNDA: Detroit) Emanuel Kamber (see the Lighthouse) is convinced a U.S. military intervention or outright war against Iraq is the action to take, and now.

Kamber, a professor of physics at Western Michigan University, says he is in a position to know: Born in Iraq, he is part of a coalition of Iraqi exiles working with the U.S. State Department to pave the way for a new government when and if Saddam Hussein is deposed.

"We would like to see a regime change," the 52-year-old Kamber said, sitting in his small office on WMU's campus.

"We want him (Saddam Hussein) to get the message that the people do not like him anymore. He needs to leave to let Iraqis live in peace with people throughout the world."

Kamber is among the scores of Iraqi exiles who are quietly planning the future of their homeland after Saddam Hussein -- planning for everything from war-crimes trials and a transitional ruling council to specific projects like rejuvenating the marshes in the south that are home to a fading, 5,000-year-old culture.

The State Department has funded the exiles' work, which began in the spring and intensified last month amid the flurry of activity signaling Washington's determination to oust Hussein.

U.S. officials acknowledge that the planning is designed in part to avoid past mistakes in places like Afghanistan and the Balkans, where U.S. military preparation outpaced civilian efforts.

Iraqi participants say they are trying to wrap up initial work by the end of October, when a broad meeting of the Iraqi opposition is planned in Europe. Kamber is not sure yet whether he will be attending that meeting.

The effort, which will eventually cost $5 million, is an attempt to address fears that a post-Hussein aftermath could be messy, and that the administration has done too little to plan for it.

Meetings already have taken place in Washington, D.C., and Surrey, England, and another gathering is set for later this week in Italy.

The State Department believes the six Iraqi working groups can lay the groundwork for everything from humanitarian and environmental issues to potentially explosive questions such as amnesty for members of the current government.

The groups also are working on the legitimacy of a transitional government and the outlines of a decentralized, federal government -- a principle the majority of the Iraqi opposition has already embraced.

More than 80 Iraqis are taking part in the planning. They include academics, physicians, former members of the Iraqi military and leaders of different opposition groups, some of whom could play leadership roles in a future Iraqi government.

Kamber said he is the only person from Kalamazoo on the committee, which includes other Iraqi-exiles, primarily from the Detroit and Chicago areas.

"A large number of Iraqis, they would like to see a democratic system in Iraq that guarantees human rights and equality of all citizens," Kamber said. "A lot of people, when they get the chance to leave Iraq, they join the opposition."

Kamber's work with the committee involves drafting a guideline for what he calls a future "Iraq Bill of Rights,'' based on the U.S. model.

The bill of rights would provide protection for people from illegal detentions and death sentences without the benefit of a fair trial, and ensure rights for all citizens, particularly those from such minority groups as the Assyrians, to which Kamber belongs.

The Assyrians, also known as Chaldeans and Syriacs, make up about 5 percent of the Iraqi population, which is about 80 percent Arab and around 15 percent Kurd.

Kamber said a large majority of American citizens of Iraqi descent -- about 300,000 people -- are of Assyrian ancestry.

Kamber says it is critical that Hussein follow human-rights guidelines as established by United Nations Resolution 668 after the Persian Gulf War.

The average Iraqi does not want Hussein in power because his regime frequently commits civil rights abuses, he said.

"I think it's very important that the American (public) should learn about this," Kamber said.

He last visited his homeland in 1980. He moved to Europe before coming to the United States in 1985, settling in Kalamazoo four years later.

He lives here with his wife and two children.

Kamber said the group of Iraqi exiles, who have been known to each other for a while, has been working for years to have Hussein removed.

SAM ANDREWS, THE CONTRAVERSIAL AUA LEADER, DIES AT 71

Sam Andrews, a Korean War Veteran, 71, formerly of Chicago, passed away on September 19, in Modesto, California, after a lengthy illness. He is survived by his daughter Diane (Ashur) Joseph, Andy (Stephanie) Andrews, John (Shannon) Andrews and Sargon (Wendy) Andrews; Nellie Erskine and her children Michelle, Robert and Ronald; grandchildren Jonathan, Lauren, Michael, Melanie, Seth, Megan and Katie; a sister Atour (Mary) Odishoo, Dr. Sargon (Wilma) Odishoo and the late Ninos and Joel Andrews.

Mr. Andrews was the Secretary General of the Assyrian Universal Alliance between 1979 and 1982 and the Chairman of Executive Board of the AUA from 1982 until the present. His involvement with this organization during the 1970’s was marred with accusations made against him on unofficial transactions made with the government of Iraq. Messrs. Sam Andrews and Zaia Malek Ismail, members of an AUA Mission to Iraq, were accused of receiving illegal money from the Baghdad regime on several occasions.

Mr. William Younan, Secretary General of the A.U.A. in 1975 published a letter in the March-April issue of the Assyrian Star, explaining that such accusations made by another colleague, Mr. Odishoo Gendo, were unfounded.

According to such accusations, Iraqi agents in Paris, France, on 20 February1973 met with Mr. Andrews and Mr. Ismail where they were given $4,000 in cash. Mr. Andrews explained that this money was used to cover their expenses to Baghdad.

Mr. Odishoo Gendo also accused Mr. Andrews and Mr. Ismail of receiving 10,000 Iraqi Dinars, ($30,000) in cash, on 1 April 1973, and a monthly salary from the Iraqi regime in Baghdad. He explained that the two AUA officers were expected to promote pro-Iraqi propaganda in the United States through the Assyrian media.

The accused explained that they received only 6,000 Iraqi Dinars ($18,000). Ten thousand went to Mr. Ismail, and 7,500 to Mr. Andrews, and they denied receiving any monthly salary.

Mr. Odishoo Gendo also presented a letter written by Zaia Ismail dated 2 November 1973 in which Mr. Ismail requested that the Iraqi government to transfer his monthly salary of $3,000 to the Iraqi embassy in Ottawa, Canada, and further stated that Sam Andrews be offered the same courtesy. Mr. Ismail admitted to receiving three-month salary forwarded to the Iraqi embassy in Ottawa around 27 November 1973.

When Malik Chikko, chairman of the High Committee of Christian Affairs of Kurdistan, Northern Iraq, visited the United States, Mr. Andrews and Mr. Ismail collected information on him and handed it to the Iraqi United Nations representative in New York, according to similar accusations. The accused admitted collecting data and delivering it to the Iraqi agents in the United Nations.

Mr. Sam Andrews and Mr. Zaia Ismail had also proposed the creation of an Assyrian Military Unit in Iraq, consisting of the Assyrian refugees who had escaped the Kurdo-Iraqi battles in the North. The Assyrian unit was expected to be used in protecting the Assyrian autonomous state in the North.

A Service was held for Mr. Andrews on Thursday, 26 September at 5:00 p.m. at Allen Mortuary in Turlock, California. A memorial service was also held at the Assyrian American Civic Club of Turlock where Mr.Andrews had served as a financial officer and director of the bingo games for the past few years.

NEW CHRISTIAN SATELLITE TV SERVICE TO IRAN

Courtesy of BBC Monitoring (25 September)

(ZNDA: London) For the first time, Iranians can now watch Christian TV in their own country and in their own language. The new service, aimed at Farsi-speaking Christians, is being broadcast by SAT-7. It will also give other viewers in Iran their first opportunity to see and hear what Christians really believe.

Iranian church leaders say almost half the country's practicing Christians have emigrated since the 1979 Islamic revolution, and in the early 1990's many church leaders were killed because of their faith. The number of Christians remaining in the country has now fallen to around 160,000.

"Many of these, including priests and Christian ministers, are desperately in need of the encouragement and support that such a service can provide," says SAT-7's British-born CEO, Terence Ascott. 'The Christians of Iran have waited a long time for such a service to start.'

SAT-7 exists to strengthen the life and witness of Christians throughout the Middle East and North Africa. As one viewer told SAT-7: "Your broadcasts are the only means available to help us learn more about our faith."

Despite strict censorship of TV and a government ban on satellite dishes, some 20 million Iranians are believed to have access to satellite TV. The new Farsi service can also be picked up beyond Iran, where 25 million understand the language. These include potential viewers in Afghanistan, where sales of satellite dishes are growing fast.

The Farsi service will only transmit programs that are appropriate for the cultural, religious and political climate in Iran. Half the population of the country is under the age of 20, so the service will initially target viewers ages 12-22.

SAT-7 broadcasts in Farsi twice over the Iranian weekend, which is Thursday and Friday. The one hour transmissions beam out at 12.30 and again at 8pm. The service is also available to viewers in Europe at 10am and 5.30pm (CET) [0800 and 1530 gmt] on the same days. As funds become available over the next few years SAT-7 hopes to expand the Farsi service to run on a daily basis.

The Farsi language programs are being broadcast under the separate channel identity of ICB (Iranian Christian Broadcasting). They can be picked up on Eutelsat Hot Bird 3 at 13 degrees East (digital service from 12.379GHz, vertical polarity, 27500 symbol/sec, FEC 3/4).

KERALA’S HIGH COURT RESERVES ORDER IN CHURCH CASE

Courtesy of The Hindu (20 Sept)

(ZND: Kochi) A Division Bench of the Kerala High Court in India Thursday, 19 September reserved its verdict on a writ petition filed by Baselios Marthoma Mathews II, Catholicos of the East and Metropolitan, Malankara Orthodox Syrian Christian Church and other Metropolitans seeking police protection for exercising their authority and performing rituals over the disputed nine Syriac churches.

The order was reserved by the Bench comprising the Chief Justice B. N. Srikrishna and Justice C. N. Ramachandran after conclusion of the arguments. It was contended on Friday by the counsel for the Orthodox faction that the Syrian Orthodox Patriarch (referred by the Indian media as Jacobite) had accepted the validity of the revival of the Catholicate and the 1934 constitution.

Besides, the Jacobite faction had given up or abandoned any objection they had on that behalf. The power of the Patriarch to ordain a metropolitan was subject to the 1934 Constitution. The parish churches were bound by the 1934 Constitution since Parish churches were episcopal to the extent provided in the Constitution.

The Constitution governed the affairs of the parishes and also the spiritual, temporal and communal affairs of the Malankara Syrian Church community. The Supreme Court verdict holding that the 1934 constitution shall cast an obligation on the parish churches. The obligation could not be wished away. Even the status of Catholicos had been decided by the Supreme Court.

Counsel for the Jacobite faction contended that the Apex Court judgment was not binding over the parishes owing allegiance to the Jacobite faction.

The Orthodox faction could exercise the option of filing an execution petition to implement the Apex Court judgment. Besides, if the Supreme Court had not adjudicated the issue, suit could be moved before civil courts.

In fact, the petitioners were laying a claim to the property of the parish churches. Such rights could be enforced only after taking evidence before the trial courts. There was no material before the High Court to decide the issue.

The counsel contended that Article 19(1)(c) guaranteed the right to form association. Besides, those who voluntarily joined the association had equal and inherent rights to dissociate from the Association on its own.

The Malankara Association was a voluntary association of parish churches formed in 1876 at the Mulanthuruthy Synod.

GERMAN TEAM UNCOVERS 3,400-YEAR-OLD TABLETS IN SYRIA

Courtesy of Agence France-Presse (26 Sep)

(ZNDA: Berlin) A team of German archeologists working in Syria have found 63 stone tablets inscribed with important historical texts dating from 1400 BC, during the Bronze Age, Tuebingen University said last Thursday.
The tablets, inscribed in cuneiform script, were uncovered during a dig at Qatana, located around 20 kilometres (12 miles) southwest of Damascus, the statement said.

"They are the first political texts found which trace the sequence of events from that turbulent period," it said.
The research, which has been under way since 1999, was carried out by Professors Peter Pfaelzner of Germany and Michel Maqdissi of Syria.

Qatana was a major trading centre and the capital of a kingdom between around 1800 and 1400 BC.

Cuneiform was a writing system made up of wedge-shaped elements and used by the ancient Assyrians.