Asia Times: Malaysia knocking on Iraq's door


	June 21, 2001	atimes.com

Southeast Asia

Malaysia knocking on Iraq's door
By Anil Netto

PENANG, Malaysia, - With its June "peace and friendship flight" to Iraq, Malaysia has once again shown that it will go against Western opinion to make its foreign-policy point.

To stress the message that international economic sanctions imposed on Iraq a decade ago are crippling its people, the government of Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad last week sent a 280-member delegation on a humanitarian mission to take thousands of dollars' worth of medical supplies to Baghdad, the Iraqi capital.

The group, which left on June 13 and returned four days later, was led by Malaysian Foreign Minister Syed Hamid Albar, who called on Iraqi President Saddam Hussein.

Syed Hamid said a follow-up mission would comprise investors, economic planners and officials of government agencies to help in the rebuilding of Iraq. "We have always taken the view that sanctions should not be continued as it has caused a lot of sufferings, injustice and the future generation in Iraq is affected," he said.

In Malaysia, the mercy mission is seen as a key political statement. "Malaysia may be a small country, but we have shown the world that in affairs of state, we are not afraid to speak out or act independently when we perceive that a wrong is being perpetuated," said an editorial in the pro-establishment New Straits Times on Tuesday.

"Although largely symbolic, the mission is a reaffirmation of Malaysia's rejection of the sanctions against Iraq which are cruel and no longer justified," it added.

Opposition to continued economic sanctions against Iraq, imposed after the Gulf War that Baghdad sparked in 1990 by invading neighboring Kuwait, is something critics share.

Chandra Muzaffar of the International Movement for a Just World has pointed to the resignations of at least three senior UN administrators in protest over Iraq's humanitarian crisis, and in opposition to the US-led UN. sanctions: Denis Halliday, Hans von Sponek and Jutta Burghardt.

"We are destroying an entire society. It is as simple and as terrifying as that," Chandra has quoted Halliday as saying.

Other critics cite data compiled by UN agencies showing that 1.5 million Iraqi people have died in the past decade because of the lack of nutrition and medicine. Of these, over 500,000 were children who died mainly due to malnutrition, diarrhea and pneumonia.

But last week's humanitarian mission from Malaysia was not without its hitches. The flight was forced to take a detour on the way to Iraq after a couple of countries along the route, which had earlier given the green light for the flight, refused to allow it to pass over their territory.

Malaysia had earlier notified the UN Security Council of the mission to Iraq. "But as we were in the air and were approaching certain countries, there was some refusal for us to pass through their airspace," recounted Syed Hamid, who declined to name the countries.

After some negotiations, the plane was allowed to fly directly to Baghdad over another country, he added. The plane, which was carrying a mix of government officials, private sector representatives, activists, medical personnel and journalists - arrived back in Malaysia early on June 17 using a different route.

Malaysia's latest mission - Mahathir's wife Siti Hasmah also went to Iraq in March - comes at a time of growing international concern over the human cost of sanctions against Iraq.

Indeed, more than a decade after the sanctions were imposed, Britain, with US backing, has put forward a draft UN Security Council resolution containing the so-called "smart sanctions" proposal. This would lift the ban on civilian trade with Iraq while tightening a ban on weapons and controls on smuggling outside a UN oil-for-food program in operation since 1996.

Syed Hamid said his team's trip to Iraq was never planned to coincide with the smart sanctions debate at the UN Security Council, which is due for voting in early July. But he said Saddam Hussein felt "the smart sanctions are not smart after all because it will never be accepted". He added: "They consider the sanctions unjustified and say the proposed smart sanctions are going to worsen their position."

At the same time, however, the Malaysian mission to Iraq may be perceived as a way for Kuala Lumpur to make amends - both to Iraq and to Malaysians who were disturbed by the Gulf War - for its support for UN Security Council Resolution 678. That resolution authorized member states to use all necessary means to secure an Iraqi withdrawal from Kuwait in 1990, which led to the Gulf War.

In Baghdad, the Malaysian delegation visited patients at the under-equipped Saddam Central Hospital and toured the Amiriya Shelter, where 408 of 422 people taking shelter were reportedly killed by US missiles in February 1991. Among the fatalities were a hundred children, Iraqi officials said.

Iraq's ambassador to Malaysia Adnan Malik al-Ghazali said last week the Iraqi health system could not meet medical needs because of the sanctions, and that several sick Iraqi children would be brought to Malaysia soon for treatment. Malaysia's private sector donated 1.2 million ringgit (US$315,000) for the June humanitarian mission to Iraq.

There are also more links coming up, including in trade, which appears to have figured prominently in last week's Malaysia-Iraq talks. Iraq wants to buy palm oil directly from Malaysia instead of through third countries as at present.

"Iraq wants to process vegetable ghee and needs to modernize its refineries. We will follow up on this," Syed Hamid said. Iraq has also offered joint-venture oil and gas production deals with Malaysia's national oil corporation, Petronas. The Malaysian carmaker Proton, for its part, has offered to export 5,000 cars to replace taxis in Baghdad.

Iraq is also seeking Kuala Lumpur's cooperation to admit Iraqi students for information technology training. An Iraq-Malaysia joint commission is expected to meet in Kuala Lumpur in August to discuss efforts to strengthen bilateral ties.

(Inter Press Service)

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