beast: 1) any large four footed animal. 2) a person who is brutal, gross, vile,disgusting, stupid. (Webster's New World Dictionary,ed.1959).
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Baghdad Zoo
beast: 1) any large four footed animal. 2) a person who is brutal, gross, vile,disgusting, stupid. (Webster's New World Dictionary,ed.1959).
Humans,
Throughout five years of war in Iraq there have been many extraordinary moments of sacrifice, numerous episodes of heroism. As always in wars, in occupations, the majority of heroic acts are done by ordinary people, unheralded for their bravery, left out of official accounts, absent from the vainglorious celebrations of leaders and their cohorts, themselves often exaggerated, undeserving of honors and rewards bestowed upon them. Here's an account of people who merit our appreciation. This is a modern tale of beasts, man and animal.
Lawrence Anthony never planned to involve himself in the Iraq war. For all practical purposes he was not supposed to be there. By design of geography and occupation Mr. Anthony had absolutely no reason whatsoever to be an actor in the unfolding tragedy played out several thousand miles from his home.
Setting the stage
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In 2002, along with billions around the world, Anthony listened and read about frenzied preparations for war with Iraq orchestrated by American government and military leaders, notably its war hungry president, George W. Bush. As political spin would have it, the campaign was a contest between two potentates: Saddam Hussein, a regional tyrant, and the commander and chief of the world's unrivaled super power, G. Bush.
Bush came to office with an imperial agenda befitting an empire addicted to global oil, drunk on unquenchable consumption, breath reeking of mineral gluttony. The Ideological symmetry to impose internally saw this president proffer a domestic agenda rooted in authoritarian management designed to erode democratic ideals and institutions at home. Added intrigue was woven into the campaign as G.W. Bush is the son of former president G.H.Bush,who in 1991 launched war against the same Saddam Hussein who invaded neighboring Kuwait without H.'s permission in a bid to capture the oil rich resources of that kingdom.While quick with military success many pundits faulted H. for not toppling Saddam in the reconquest of Kuwait. W. and his brigands were dedicated to fulfill this measure well in advance of taking office in 2000. The Al Qaida attacks on 9/11 provided the Bush company a green light to leave the parking lot at the Pentagon.
The blitzkrieg launched in April,2003, pitting two dictators in conflict, could be summed up as a millennium opener draw card: Big Dic v. Little Dic. The Americans weighed in Cheney's for extra measure. In Saddam's corner, family members who outdid Caligula. Violated by these irrepressible phallus's - everybody gets screwed.
The gallant impostor
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Lawrence Anthony was content as director of the Tula Tula game reserve in South Africa when the invasion of Iraq began. While he didn't know a lot about Iraq and wasn't privy to Bush's agenda he did recall a few facts that unnerved him. He knew "every time there's a war the animals must die." He knew that wars in Kuwait and Afghanistan " had meant death to countless animals in those countries."
Anthony grew up in rural Zambia and Malawi witnessing "needless slaughter of animals in these countries". Cruel memories of youth affected him profoundly, causing him to quit his initial career as a real estate developer and switch to wild life conservation. He also knew that the Baghdad Zoo was the biggest in the middle east. Experience convinced him there would be no provisions in either war camp to protect the lives of caged animals at the zoo. Anthony became alarmed.
A few days after American forces entered Baghdad Bush boldly declared "Mission Accomplished", assuring his countrymen and allies that Iraq was liberated, on the road to democracy, safe for American forces, Iraqis in celebration, jubilantly greeting U.S. military personnel, joyous and thankful.The American media, pretending to be critical journalists, dispatched photo-ops and simply read handed down press statements, reporting the claims as fact.
In contrast to official presentations, Baghdad, as well as most of Iraq was in a state of anarchy and chaos. Rioting, and looting was wide spread in the capital. Kidnaps,personal vendettas, sectarian battles, clan and tribal killings began the moment Iraqi forces capitulated. Thousands of Iraqi non combatants suffered indiscriminate deaths at the hands of reckless American forces. Destruction of homes, schools, hospitals; the corpses of men, women and children collecting, they turned guns and explosives on the G.I.'s with bitter hatred for heinous behavior that betrayed Bush company rhetoric. Uninvited by Iraqi disputants, Al Qaida insurgents easily entered the country through its unmanned borders adding to the carnage their own style of mass murder, waged against Iraqis,U.S.and allied forces, journalists, even humanitarian aid workers and United Nations staff. As the nation's electricity plants, water treatment stations, hospitals,schools, and national zoo lay in waste, credit the Bush team which quickly secured the country's oil fields, leading many observers to discern the real objective of the campaign.
The Plot
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A man of surplus income, estimating the costs of self financing the rescue mission, Alexander started the ball rolling, with a sizable sum of American dollars and a quantity of veterinary medicines. Anticipating a lack of sympathy and cooperation from American military brass he entered the fray as an impostor. He secured a visa to Kuwait claiming to be on business. He then spoke with the Kuwaiti minister of agriculture convincing him to authorize Anthony as a representative of the ministry assigned to official business in Iraq. Next he phoned a U.S. commander in Kuwait, claiming he was officially assigned to rescue the Baghdad zoo.It worked. A few days later Alexander landed in Kuwait City, surveying the miserable conditions of the kingdom's zoo, noting the decimation of regional wildlife and domestic stocks from the first Gulf war.
Enlisting the services of two Kuwaiti guide-translators, he rented a car to motor north to Baghdad.The route meant clearing numerous security check points, continuing his fraudulent story.Told to follow military convoys passing mined highways and combat zones along the way, Anthony and his guides snaked along narrow, long winding secondary roads to arrive in the capitol which he expected to be safe and orderly as American news reports assured.
The trio entered a city under siege from without and within.To their astonishment and fright, they too got caught up in pitched street battles, often stopped at check points manned by trigger happy gunman of various identified and unidentified military and vigilante groups. Their city map useless, they drove in circles hurriedly improvised, finally arriving at the zoo. Enduring 48 hours in the climate of bloodshed, the guide-translators quit the mission, rushing back to Kuwait.With no knowledge of Arabic, the self styled Noah found himself alone to carry out an unauthorized mission in the heart of a city raging in battle.
The zoo sat in center city, in formerly inviting Aznar park. A once peaceful haven was now transformed into a munitions dump. There were several unexploded ordinances lying around, fatal if touched. Anthony watched as looters stripped the zoo of pipes, wiring, glass, anything that could be sold. Worse yet, hungry, desperate, people slaughtered animals for food. From a population of 700 only 35 animals were left alive when Anthony arrived.
Frequently confronted with combatants of both sides of the conflict, Anthony defended himself from harm by waving his phony authorization documents before dumbfounded G.I.s, looters and frenzied assailants.
The animal survivors were the dangerous species; lions, tigers and bears, sickly, suffering baldy from hunger and thirst. Anthony administered medicines and whatever water he could caul from the surrounding neighborhood. A few days later, during a lull in the violence the zoo veterinarian arrived, brought to tears by the scene. The veterinarian, recruited the return of a few zoo keepers, Anthony now paying their wages. A company of U.S. soldiers periodically patrolled the zoo, scattering the looters.
Faced with starving animals, Anthony and his Iraqi colleagues took action. They bought donkeys and slaughtered the beasts as food for the zoo creatures. The rescue operation drew attention from local residents and from soldiers - Iraqi and American. In an unprecedented turn of events mortal foes by night joined together by day. With shovels,rakes and brooms, members of the elite Republican Guard worked hand in hand with American soldiers, clearing away debris, removing munitions and unexploded aerial bombs and artillery shells.
In a bold plan risking their safety and possible jail time Anthony's crew took a cue from looters. They raided hotels and palaces for food to feed their animals and to feed themselves.While doing so they came upon 2 palaces evacuated by Saddam's son Udai. There they discovered abandoned animals, caged; dead monkeys and near dead lions,cheetahs and ostriches. With no sedatives to employ they captured the cats and birds with military issue nets and ropes.
In one of the most humorous and bizarre moments in war annals, a resourceful G.I. tied ostriches to each side of an armored carrier, seating one of the birds in the driver's seat, the bird's head peering from the top of the vehicle for all to see. Advancing through Baghdad, ostriches running along side, one bird appearing to be driving, thousands of pedestrians couldn't believe their eyes. Check point guards were totally unprepared for a vehicle check of an ostrich staring down at them. A few of the nervous guards fearing it a clever stunt of Al Qaida, surrounded the vehicle with arms drawn. Comic relief in an horrific atmosphere, the spectacle attracted new volunteers in the save the zoo effort.
It took 3 months of these tragic-comic tactics to finally restore the zoo back to function.Of the 35 surviving animals originally treated, all have survived. The rescue of animals caged elsewhere, like in Udai's 2 palaces,raised the number to 80 creatures. Anthony persuaded the army corps of engineers to build animal habitats, staff and visitor facilities, including a pool for the bears. By this time thousands of residents were visiting the zoo to relax, to find refuge from the ongoing violence and domestic chaos created by the fighting. Baghdad dwellers could not but envy, be outraged, by the adequate rebuilding of a zoo in contrast to the failures to do as much for human victims of the war.
Anthony has gone on record saying: "Both people and animals have inherent rights in time of war. At the beginning of the occupation I asked myself, are we going to let the American and British armies continue to kill animals? I know the record of human rights isn't good and animal rights are unheard of. I'd prefer wildlife to be placed on game preserves. Zoos are prisons but the alternative here was death. And now the zoo provides comfort to parents and joy to the children."
Currently Anthony is engaged, taking his animal rights campaign to the United Nations. He wants animals, domestic, agricultural and savage to be guaranteed protections along side those of humans. If he's successful we might one day rally under a banner: Save the Whales and the Palestinians!
Moe Seager writes poetry, prose, plays and journalism. He performs jazz-poetry in Paris and the U.S. with the Blue Note Metaphor ensemble. He's published short stories and 3 books of poetry; the latest, One World, Cairo press,2003, translated into Arabic by Sammy Haddad. Seager's been a frequent contributor for Z magazine. He published poetry sponsored by the French Ministry of Culture, Hidden River, 1989. He's received a Golden Quill award in journalism, 1989. He writes an e-journal, Paris Calling. Seager lives in Paris, France.
Last update : 25-09-2007 20:22
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