Posted on 01/27/2005 9:10:07 AM PST by Pikamax
Colgate professor in Iraq to research resistance groups
Wednesday, January 12, 2005
Like many colleagues at Colgate, Victoria Fontan is spending her time between semesters hard at work. For the visiting assistant professor of peace studies, that means trekking halfway around the world and potentially putting herself in harm’s way.
Fontan set out for Iraq at the end of December to study and to interview members of the country’s insurgent organizations. On the way to Baghdad, she conducted research in Beirut and Jordan before negotiating to be “embedded” in one of Iraq’s resistance groups.
Fontan’s academic focus is on political violence in post-conflict situations, and she has conducted field research on the Lebanese Hezbollah, the Basque nationalist group ETA (Euskadi Ta Askatasuna), and various warring factions in post-Saddam Hussein Iraq.
During the past 15 months, she has taken several trips to Baghdad and is preparing a book on the polarization between the occupying forces and the people of Iraq. She also is gathering information for her Introduction to Peace Studies course.
In a series of e-mails from Iraq, Fontan talked about what she has seen and heard the past several days.
Part of her research includes an examination of news stories and whether they play a role in escalating the conflict, and who is choosing the information that is processed. She interviewed several Iraqis working for major news outlets such as NBC, Time magazine, and The Washington Post.
She also interviewed a young married woman, Heba, who has been assisting a freelancer for The Nation magazine.
Fontan soon learned that women face major hurdles in today’s Iraq.
Any Iraqis working with foreign journalists or other foreigners are often targeted by members of the insurgency. And while there are not many women working because jobs are so scarce, they face additional reprisals for just being in the workplace, particularly married women.
A generator on the roof of a dormitory at Salahaddin University in Erbil, Kurdistan, was destroyed by U.S. missiles. (Photo by Victoria Fontan) Heba said her mother threatened to call her uncles to “come and straighten her out” if she did not quit her job. In the eyes of her family, staying out all day was not acceptable for a married woman.
Heba, who has two young children, was afraid of what might happen to her. The threat from her family was seen as very real. Fontan said she didn’t expect Heba to continue working with the freelance journalist.
Fontan also spoke with Hannah Allam, Baghdad bureau chief for Knight Ridder Newspapers. Last March, the family of a woman who was working for Allam was murdered by insurgents.
Only the woman’s 3-year-old son survived, and they now live with Allam’s family in the United States.
Fontan also has witnessed episodes of violence, even in places she didn’t expect to find it.
Last week, she was in Erbil, the regional capital of Kurdistan, an area of Iraq that has been supportive of the United States.
On Jan. 4, U.S. Apache helicopters flew from Baghdad to Erbil after receiving a tip that members of a terrorist group were hiding in a house next to the Salahaddin University dormitory.
After two hours of searching the area by helicopter, U.S. forces launched two rockets that struck the dormitory. Nine students were injured and the dorm was damaged.
Fontan said local government officials resented that U.S. troops did not consult with their security forces before the strike. It was feared that future incidents could spur resistance to the U.S. efforts in Kurdistan, ruining relations in an area where recent polls show more than 95 percent of the population welcome the U.S. presence in Iraq.
Fontan arrived in Iraq on Jan. 3 and is heading home Jan. 13.
This useful idiot may be coming home in 2 pieces.
It would be a damn shame if she were part of a group of terrorists wandering the streets when an F-16 overhead delivered 2 500 lb. guided bombs right on top of them all. END SARCASM!!
These peacenik idiots think the chant "I'm on your side" immunizes them from harm. We'll be seeing her in an AQ video production that will all be blamed on Bush.
No, they will blame Bush.
This lady has rocks in her head.
Peace prof, ay? I wonder if her school has a war prof? Nah. No way.
My college allows Peace Corps recruiters on campus. I wonder if they allow recruiters from the armed services? Nah. No way. That would make sense.
This lady has rocks in her head.
Peace prof, ay? I wonder if her school has a war prof? Nah. No way.
My college allows Peace Corps recruiters on campus. I wonder if they allow recruiters from the armed services? Nah. No way. That would make sense.
"Peace Studies"
Hmmmmm? Why would you go to a WAR ZONE WITH THE ENEMY to study "peace". Sure .. I get that! LOL!
How different are these various terrorist organizations, really?
Fontan set out for Germany at the end of December to study and to interview members of the country’s SS organizations.
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