The marshlands of Mesopotamia were once so bountiful they are believed by some to have been the Biblical Garden of Eden, and viewed today through the lens of ABC Middle East cameraman Louie Eroglu, its not hard to see why.Made famous by the writings of British adventurer Wilfred Thesiger, who lived with the Marsh Arabs in the 1950s, 20,000 square kilometres of wetlands between the Tigris and the Euphrates rivers in what is now Iraq, supported perhaps half a million people in a way of life unchanged for centuries. People lived in handmade reed houses, fished from dugout canoes, and milked their water buffalo.
That all changed dramatically in the 1990s, when Saddam Hussein decided to punish the Marsh Arabs as a reprisal for a Shi-ite uprising at the end of the first Gulf War. The rivers emptying into the marshes were dammed, canals constructed to restrict the flow, the reeds burned and its people attacked. Thousands were killed, and many more fled. 90% of the wetlands were turned into a dry, salt-encrusted wasteland where as few as 40,000 of the poorest people in Iraq barely managed to survive.
Now, as Jane Hutcheon reports for Foreign Correspondent, water is flowing into the marshlands again, and the people are returning. Already, small areas of the marshes are starting to look like they once did
but theres a slight hitch. Many of the Marsh Arabs are not sure they want to return to a subsistence lifestyle cut off from the modern world. Hosnia, whose family of 14 ekes out a precarious existence with government handouts, a few chickens and a cow. Her only source of income is making brushes out of palm fronds, and shes not interested in seeing the marshes return. What can the water do for us? she asks Jane. We need a fan, freezer, fridge, food and clothes. A village elder concurs. We dont have money to build houses, no electricity, no fresh water or cars. Abdul Bari wants his kids to get an education, and a job in the city.
None of this deters the remarkable Azzam Alwash, an Iraqi expat whos returned from 23 years in America determined to re-flood the marshes, come what may. Its his lifes mission. If youve ever been in the marsh, the way it used to be, youd know that it is a temple to God, a temple to nature, he says. Its the only place I feel peaceful in Iraq, and I want my children to feel that too. Azzams project, Eden Again is one of several rehabilitation schemes underway, and hes convinced he can restore the pristine environment while simultaneously improving living standards with fresh water, electricity and sewage treatment. Come back in five years, he tells Jane. I dream of having a computer in each one of these huts
itll happen.This is a stunningly beautiful story worth watching for the camerawork alone, but also a piece of television that takes you beyond the politics and the clashes on the streets of Baghdad to a place, where as Thesiger put it there are stars reflected in dark water, the croakings of frogs, canoes coming home at evening
the stillness of a world that never knew an engine.
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Hutcheon: Over the millennia, civilisations have risen and died beside the fertile marshlands of Mesopotamia. They are said to be the site of the Garden of Eden, and the birthplace of Abraham and Noah.
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Hutcheon: Those who lived here developed trade, writing and farming, and harvested the reeds for their shelter and fuel. Their hospitality was celebrated -and still is. 00:40
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Hutcheon: Rahim Menshad is a farmer. From his home on the edge of the marshlands, hes witnessed the unspeakable suffering of his neighbours, the Marsh Arabs, at the hand of Saddam Hussein.
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Rahim Menshad: They arrested people and we dont know their destiny. This is what Saddam Hussein did to ushe destroyed the countryand for 35 years we are living in fear. Weve been unable to go out this is what Saddam Hussein did to us.
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Hutcheon: These derelict houses litter the southern marshlands of Iraq, a legacy of the Saddam era. The villages were destroyed, many of them bombed, their occupants either killed or fleeing for safety. In the early 1990s researchers estimated that the marsh Arab population numbered a quarter of a million. Today, there are less than 40,000.
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Hutcheon: The marshes were unspoiled wetlands sitting on top of known oil reserves.
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But by draining most of their water and expelling the Marsh Arabs, pristine wetlands were turned to scorched earth.
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Hutcheon: The United Nations called it one of the worlds most catastrophic environmental disasters.Azzam Alwash: From the perspective of an engineering point of view, its an incredible feat. I cannot but help admire the engineering skills needed, but of course,
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in this instance, it was done for the worst crime of this century, the worst environmental crime of this century not to speak anything about the humanitarian aspects of this.
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Hutcheon: The son of an Iraqi district engineer, Dr Azzam Alwash often visited the marshes as a child thirty years ago.
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Hutcheon: He remembers a paradise, sanctuary for dozens of species of fish and migratory birds. Extraordinary beauty, where nature and humans lived in harmony.
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The Marsh Arabs, or Madan, lived in a vast world.
They built their homes on islands of compressed reeds.
And for food relied on fishing and the milk from their buffaloes.
But life changed when the marshlands became embroiled in Saddams battles with his neighbours. Coalition forces drove him back into Iraq, where the long oppressed Shiites, including the Arabs, rebelled against him and his Baathists.
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The uprising was ruthlessly crushed, the marshes drained and thousands of Marsh Arabs were killed or imprisoned.
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Sheikh Kadhum: Saddam Hussein should be punished.
He killed the animals, the resources, the life in these beautiful forests.
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Hutcheon: Kadhum Anazun is known as Sheikh of the Marshes. He heads the political wing of the Marsh Fighters Association, a militia that was armed and funded by a leading Shiite party with a mission to topple Saddam Hussein. 05:33
Now the fight is over, Sheikh Kadhums focus is the welfare of the Madan.
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Since Saddams fall, many have emerged from hiding or banishment and returned to the marshes.
Man: Food, meals, treatment, medicine will be provided
Sheikh Kadhum Thank you, thank you!
Woman: Dont mention it, dont mention it.
Reversing Saddams destruction requires international help. A task force with experts from the North America, Europe, and Australia is currently surveying the terrain.
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Hundreds of millions of dollars are pledged for rehabilitation.
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But after years of abuse, the dilemma is whether the marshes can, or ever should be, re-flooded.
Azzam Alwash left Iraq for America 23 years ago. Azzam: This whole area is now flooded.Hutcheon: His project, Eden Again, is one of several rehabilitation schemes.
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An international master plan is due by the end of the year.Azzam: Reflooding the marshes, its as easy as destroying small embankments, disabling pumps,
but we know for a fact today that there is not enough water to completely restore the marshes. Flooding the marshes and restoring them are not necessarily the same. You need to try to allow nature to reclaim the area, prevent invasive species from taking place, so its a very complex question to answer, its not simple, its not as simple as turning the tap on.
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Hutcheon: For Dr Alwash, regenerating the marshes is more than a dream. Its his lifes mission.
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Azzam: If youve ever been in the Marsh the way it was, youd know that it is a temple to God, a temple to nature. Its the only place where I feel peaceful in Iraq. You achieve harmony, what can I tell you?
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I want that feeling back, more importantly I want my children to feel that too. (laugh)
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Hutcheon: Reinventing the past isnt going to be easy. Life on the marshes isnt what it used to be.
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Hutcheon: Fresh water has to brought in on roads which become impassable after rain.
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Some of the dry beds are again filled with water, but after years of desiccation, its brackish and there are hardly any fish. In this village, theres no electricity, no shops and no schools.
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Hutcheon: Kids and animals grow up together, oblivious of the world around them.Music
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Sheikh Kadhum: Half a million people were living off the marshes and now all of them are jobless. Youve seen some areas and youve seen the mud huts, that are weak. The people have no food.
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Hutcheon: Nineteen year old Hanna Ghanem and her 12 year old brother Shamil collect reeds to feed the livestock. Though the nearest village is a few kilometres away, theyve never been to school.
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Their mother Hosnia explains how she feeds 14 mouths; bread made from government flour rations, eggs from the chickens and fresh milk from the cow.
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Hosnia: None of my children go of school. When I go to the hospital, I cant even read my ticket number.
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We are four women here, sharing one chador. Is that really a life? Is it right?
Hutcheon: Hosnia, makes brushes out of palm-fronds. Yesterday she sold twenty of them for one dollar.
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Shes heard of schemes to re-flood the marshes, but she doesnt understand how that can make a difference to her family.
Hosnia: Weve no use for that. What can the water do for us?
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We need a fan, freezer, fridge, food
clothes are very expensive
carpets are expensive. We need everything and none of them are available. We are very weak, very poor.
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Hutcheon: Sheikh Kadhum makes a fact-finding visit to the small village of Khreda in the Hammar Marsh. Its home to the Sherabne tribe.
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Sheikh Kadhum wants to raise the Madans standard of living.
Word gets around that an esteemed visitor has arrived.
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The Sheikh is anxious for the international millions to improve the lives of the Marsh Arabs. But he doesnt trust the Iraqi governments involvement.
Sheikh Kadhum: If there is any assistance from other countries, such as Australia it should come through us -- because the marsh people are tired. And well distribute it. Because if it comes through the government it will be stolen, or go to other people.
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Hutcheon: Abdul Bari is a village elder. Hes witnessed the decline of his people over the past 20 years.
Abdul Bari: We dont have money to build houses -- no electricity, no fresh water, and we dont have cars to drive. How can we have cars when the roads are not good? Nobody listens to us, neither Saddam or others.
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Hutcheon: Abdul Bari isnt concerned with scientific schemes to restore the marshlands his only thoughts are for the survival of the next generation.
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Abdul Bari: If we get a place in the city and our family and sons are comfortable with that, its useful to get them a job in the government which is neat and tidy. And our children will go to school and understand what is going on.
We missed the opportunity and we dont want our children to miss it.
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Hutcheon: Inside the tribal meeting house, conversation turns to the needs of the Marsh Arabs.
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The visiting Sheikh of the Marshes is confronted with a new problem -- armed conflict among the different Marsh tribes.
Sheikh: Do you have enough weapons to defend yourself and what kind of weapons? Machine guns
RPGs?
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Man: We have everything, we have everything.
Hutcheon: After years of neglect and abuse by governments, the villagers describe a debilitating feud with their neighbours, the Garamshe tribe.
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Over the years, there have been tit-for-tat murders. The blood feud has made the isolated Sherabne people suspicious and fearful.
Despite the presence of an esteemed visitor, the elders, including Abdul Bari, cant hide their frustration.
Abdul Bari: If you see the condition of our houses -- is this a natural situation for a human being? Is the house fit for humans?
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Sheikh Kadhum: Ive seen just one house, covered in plastic.
Man: All of them have plastic over them
Man 2: Uncle, weve been denied justice for twelve years. Why? Because we have no hospital, no school, no doctor.
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Hutcheon: By the time Sheikh Kadhum departs Khreda village, hes promised the marsh dwellers a resolution to their feud as well as funds and untold comfort.
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Hutcheon: There are no guarantees that the fish will return even if the water does, and that their hungry bellies can be filled.
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Hutcheon: Far upstream on the banks of the Tigris river, Dr Azzam Alwash outlines his vision to modernise the marshes.
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Azzam: We really need to provide them with potable water, electricity, sewage treatment .
I dream of having a computer in each one of those huts. Can you imagine the kids playing and talking to somebody in America or Australia? And itll happen.
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Hutcheon: So, theyll have the internet, electricity and roads, but theyll still be in this pristine Marshland environment?
Azzam: Thats my hope, thats my dream
Hutcheon: It sounds like a bit of a pipe dream doesnt it?
Azzam: Oh well, come back in five years. Lets see (big laugh)
Hutcheon: A familiar shape appears on the river. A lone canoe known as a mashoof, more commonly found hundreds of kilometres away in the marshes.
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Azzam: Where are you from brothers? I saw you on this boat -- are you from the Marshes, Marsh Arabs? You are?
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Hutcheon: Azzam Alwashs hunch is correct. The men are former marsh dwellers, forced to leave the marshes to earn a living.
Hutcheon: Are you amazed to see Marsh Arabs in Baghdad?
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Azzam: The minute I saw the guy poling, I told you he was from the Marshes! Its great, but its also a testament to how said the last ten years have been. I mean, people having to leave their relatives, coming out 700 kilometres away. I dont even know the distance, just trying to make their living, yeah, anyway, theres hope! Theres hope.
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Hutcheon: With outside help, the Madan may recover from their catastrophe, though today they are amongst Iraqs most impoverished.
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To Saddam Hussein, they were rebels and outcasts to be destroyed.
Now modernisation could be just a few years away, and for the second time in a generation, upheaval is coming to the marshes.
Reporter Jane HutcheonCamera Louie ErogluResearch Mahmood Albachary, Samir Al Badri, Renata GombacEditor Simon Brynjolffssen 1
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