Better Late Than Never

When I first heard of the Sept. 16 shooting in Iraq that Blackwater USA was involved in I thought little of it. I knew Blackwater USA was a security contractor, well more mercenary than contractor, and have been involved in a lot of fighting in Iraq.

When I read that eight civilians had been killed during Blackwater’s firefight, I wasn’t’ surprised either.

The thing that caught my eye was that the Iraqi government had banned Blackwater from operating anymore in Iraq, although it was understandable.

At the time, the details were unclear and Blackwater officials said they were attacked and returned fire. The Iraqi government said Blackwater came upon a traffic jam and opened fire.

As weeks passed the details became clear.

The shooting started when Blackwater guards were evacuating senior American officials after an explosion occurred near the place where they were meeting, a New York Times article reported.

Some officials questioned Blackwater’s decision to pull the American officials out of the secure compound.

Blackwater appeared to be responsible for the shooting that lead to 11 Iraqi civilians being killed.

I became quite angry when I learned a Blackwater employee was responsible for killing a bodyguard for one of Iraq’s vice presidents on Christmas Eve last year, according to a report in The Wall Street Journal. The Blackwater employee was drinking in the Green Zone and tired to enter an area where Iraqi officials lived, the report said.

What happened to the employee?

He was fired, but left Iraq without being prosecuted, the report said.

I couldn’t believe something like that could happen, until I read a Times article on Blackwater the next day.

In 2004 L. Paul Bremer III, who was the top official of the American occupation authority, signed an order that exempted all United States personnel from Iraqi law.
Also, these contractors do not fall under U.S. laws because they are not U.S. government employees or soldiers -- they are civilian contractors.

What justification is there behind something like that?

Correct me if I’m wrong but our brave men and women fought died for Iraq to be free, to become a democracy, yet when our soldiers are there we are impervious to Iraqi law? How is that a democracy? Maybe my teachers in school did a horrible job teaching me but I thought one of the founding principles of this great country was “justice for all,” a principle that our soldiers are dying for over in another country.

And this order that Bremer signed what does that teach our personal, “Do whatever you want. Don’t worry about the consequences.”

There are a number of American laws that could be applied to contractors overseas and in wartime. Also, the Department of Defense enacted a measure that would bring contractors under military law but has yet to put into effect the rules needed to do so.

On Oct. 4 the House passed a bill that would make all private contractors working in Iraq and other combat zones subject to prosecution by U.S. courts, the Washington Post reported.

I’m relieved that the government finally realized allowing private security firms to run around lawlessly was a bad decision. I’m just upset that it took three years to realize that it was a bad idea.