Maysan is one of the 18 provinces of Iraq, in the eastern part of the country. Maysan shares a border with Iran. The people who live in Maysan are called "Marsh Arabs". Marsh Arabs have lived in Maysan for over 5,000 years. Some Marsh Arabs are descendants of Sumerians and Babylonians, known as Ma'dan. Other Marsh Arabs are Shi'a. Marsh Arabs live in the Mesopotamian marshlands of Iraq (between the Tigris and Euphrates Rivers). At one time, there were an estimated 500,000 (roughly the population of New Orleans before Hurricane Katrina) Marsh Arabs living in Maysan. Marsh Arabs have a unique culture that is adapted to the wetlands--their society and economy is based on fishing, use of the reed plant, farming marsh plants and herding water buffalo. Many homes and buildings in Maysan are also made of reeds. Boats are an essential mode of travel in the Maysan. Due to the ravages of Saddam's genocide against the Marsh Arabs, there are only an estimated 20,000 living in Maysan. As refugees return to Mayson, the younger generations face a unique challenge; having lived in refugee camps or foreign countries for so long, the youth have to relearn how to live in Maysan, and adjust their identity to living in their homeland again.
During the Iran-Iraq War (1980-1988), the Maysan was a major battleground. Militia groups based in Iran, travelled on well-concealed routes through Maysan to conduct resistance attacks against Saddam. Army deserters also sought shelter in Maysan, and joined resistance groups. At one time, Saddam deployed 20,000 troops to Saddam. Despite the bloodshed and the terror, the Marsh Arabs continued to fight for their freedom.
The UN declared a cease fire for the Persian Gulf War on March 1, 1991. The UN did not want to remove Saddam from power because it was believed that resolutions would work to instill order, and provide a model for other Middle East nations to resolve disputes through diplomacy. Initially, the Gulf War was a multi-lateral effort, 30 nations joined with US forces to remove Saddam from Kuwait, and prevent his advance into Saudi Arabia. The elder President HW Bush lost support to remove Saddam from power, and so chose not to forcefully compel Saddam to step down. President HW Bush did, however, encourage the people of Iraq to revolt.
After the UN declared a ceasefire, a revolt against Saddam was led by the Kurds and Shi'a Arabs in Northern and Southern Iraq. The streets became battlegrounds for demonstrations, attacks on government buildings and battles against Saddam's soldiers. By April 1991 Saddam had brutally subdued the revolt with methods such as helicopters shooting at civilians (many who were escaping and unarmed), cannon attacks on churches and schools, mass executions and bombing cities block by block. Karbala suffered the worst damage in Saddam's attacks. Holy Shi'a shrines were used as torture chambes where innocent citizens--many women, children and even the elderly--were tortured, raped, and executed. Saddam's armies looted the Shi'a cities, material objects held more value than a human life. Many of those who survived Saddam's campaign of murder fled to refugee camps in Iran, Turkey and Saudi Arabia. US, British and French troops established a safe zone in Northern Iraq--Kurdish territory to offer haven to refugees. A "no fly zone" also covered Kurdish territory. Others who failed to escape Iraq continued to be persecuted and killed--on up to the liberation of Iraq in March 2003. An estimated 50,000 Shi'a were killed by Saddam during the 1991 Uprising--that number is expected to be double or tripled as mass graves are still being found in Iraq.
Saddam feared the strength of Shi'a Arab rebels who were training in Iran, and determined to throw Saddam from power. Saddam wanted to send a message to prevent future rebellions so he brutally subdued the Marsh Arabs with bombings and chemical attacks in marshland villages. Saddam's helicopters would dump gasoline on villagers escaping the carnage then set them on fire. Fiercely independant, the Marsh Arabs continued to rebel Saddam Hussein, and as a result were targets for a campaign of genocide. Saddam implemented a deliberate strategy known as a "Plan for the Marshes" (see http://www.irag.org.uk/odocs.php?id=9&word=van%20der%20stoel#) to murder and remove all Marsh Arabs who live in Maysan. Following the 1991 Gulf War, Saddam gave his approval to poison "enemies", burn down homes and villages, and torture and murder of innocent people. Lagoons and other sources of water remaining in Maysan were dangerous because of water mines or poisons placed in them. There have been reports that Saddam's army used babies as "shields" to place in front or on their tanks to deter "enemy" fire (Saddam also used innocent people to place in front of tanks as "shields" during the initial stages of the 1991 Uprising). Saddam also ordered the marshes of the Maysan to be drained. The marshes were trained by re-directing the flow of the Tigris and Euphrates Rivers--effectively turning the Maysan into a dry desert (the rivers were re-directed to flow into the Gulf). Dams and levees were also built to keep water from flowing into Maysan. Maysan includes the largest wetland in the Middle East--which had been 95% drained by 2003. As a result, the Marsh Arabs had no means of food, shelter or work. Nor were they safe to live under persecution. The United Nations declared the draining of Maysan to be one of the world's worst environmental disasters. Marsh Arabs began to flee Maysan--seeking shelter in refugee camps Iran or living as displaced people within Iraq.
After the liberation of Iraq in March 2003, and the subsequent overthrow of Saddam Hussein, Marsh Arabs are returning to Maysan. Iraqi engineers and relief organizations are working hard to restore the marshlands. It is important for the US government, and all foreign governments working within the Coalition to recognize the importance of the Maysan marshlands--and the independance of Marsh Arabs. The restoration of the marshes needs to continue, and Marsh Arabs need to be included in the rebuilding of the Maysan.
Those who are charged with rebuilding Iraq and with redressing the violations of human rights within that beleaguered nation need to recognize that re-flooding the marshes is a fundamental imperative. Remnants of the Marsh culture should not be abandoned as a lost people, nor should their homeland be left as desiccated wastes for oil, agribusiness, and other business interests to develop at will. The international community ought to ensure that the Shi'a Marsh Inhabitants have what they need to restore and reinhabit their homeland and to again shape the region in a sustainable manner. Not to do so prolongs the human and environmental injustice begun by Saddam Hussein's regime. (Twilight People: Iraq's Marsh Inhabitants, 2004. Kazmi and Leiderman. http://www.irag.org.uk/odocs.php?id=9&word=van%20der%20stoel#)
US and Coalition troops are working hard to stabilize and bring peace to the Mayson. Several charity and relief organizations from around the world are also conducting humanitarian projects in the Maysan. Saddam is currently being tried for war crimes and charges of genocide including atrocities against the Kurds and against Marsh Arabs.
Information on Marsh Arabs:
Crimes Committed by the Iraqi Regime: the Uprising of March 1991
Indict - Crimes
http://www.indict.org.uk/crimedetails.php?crime=March1991
Marsh Arabs Cling to Memories of a Culture Nearly Crushed by Husseinhttp://www.iraqfoundation.org/news/2003/dapril/28_marshes.html
International Medical Corps Marsh Arabs--a healthy future in an ancient culture http://www.imcworldwide.org/loc_iraq2_AmarahHealth.shtml
"Marsh Arabs: A Unique Way of Life" by Aisha el-Awady.
IslamOnline - Art & Entertainment Section http://www.islamonline.net/English/ArtCulture/2004/09/article01.shtml
Tor Eigeland - Writer and Photographer -Iraq - Marsh Arabs - Photo Galleryhttp://www.toreigeland.com/iraq_marsh-arabs/iraq_marsharabs.htm
Relief International is working in Maysan to assist the Marsh Arabs (or Shias) in rebuilding their devastated homeland. Welcome to Relief Internationalhttp://www.ri.org/countries.php?cid=8
Shia News Europe Saddam's massacre of Shias at Kerbala
http://www.shianews.com/hi/europe/news_id/0000435.php
. "The Killing of Iraq's Ancient Marsh Culture" -- an article about Saddam's campaign of genocide against Marsh Arabs.
http://www.genocidewatch.org/IraqmarsharabsJanuary26.htm
A passionate article about the history and culture of Marsh Arabs--and the importance of international support to fight for their survival. Twilight People: Iraq's Marsh Inhabitants http://www.irag.org.uk/odocs.php?id=9&word=van%20der%20stoel#
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