Saddam's security apparatus and a state visit

While the deposed Iraqi President Saddam Hussain is awaiting trial in a jail in the country which he ruled ruthlessly for 24 long years, one may naturally wonder how he could last so long as head of state without what is claimed to be popular support. Elections were, no doubt, held during his time. There was always one presidential candidate, who won securing 99 percent of the votes cast. He killed thousands of Kurds and Shias and made the country a police state. This was the secret of his success and survival till his fall two years ago. The Americans, supported by the British, came in and saved the people, mostly Shias and Kurds, from the rule of the tyrannical dictator, in a bid to transplant democracy into a widely divided country.

But on the second anniversary of the commencement of the US invasion of Iraq, the people took to the streets in large numbers to protest against the presence of foreign troops and US occupation of their land. They compared Saddam's atrocities and repression with the death, devastation, and colossal human indignity perpetrated by the US troops during the past two years. The demonstrations were staged mostly by the Shiites, who represented the vast majority of the population,ÊÊheightening their aspiration to eventually rule the country, in partnership with the Sunnis and the Kurds or not, following the recently held country-wide election.

In my long diplomatic career, I had the opportunity of arranging a number of state visits of heads of state and governments of my country as head of mission. Though they were all successful, rewarding, and enjoyable, the visit to Iraq in the year 1984, when the then president of Bangladesh, Hussain Muhammad Ershad, paid a state visit to Iraq, was an extraordinary one for various reasons.

Bangladesh and Iraq developed cordial and beneficial relations from the day the latter recognized Bangladesh as a sovereign nation in August 1972. Iraq was the first country in the Arab world to do so. Soon thereafter, Iraq received a delegation to negotiate for supply of crude oil to a desperately oil-hungry Bangladesh. I was a party and witness to the desperation of that delegation. Besides, a large number of Bangladeshi expatriates and construction firms were working as development partners of Iraq. Pilgrimage of Bangladeshis to Iraq adds to the dimension of our interest to promote bilateral relations.

Iraq was perhaps one of the few countries in the Arab world where Bangladeshis are not called as "miskins" -- the Arabic word for poor. On the contrary, many of them, specially engineers, doctors, and other professional and skilled personnel, endeared themselves to the Iraqis with their wisdom, skill, and manners. That is why President Saddam Hussain finally complied with my request to send the Bangladeshi expatriates back home last (of foreign personnel). The compelling need for conserving foreign exchange during the war with Iran was cited as the primary reason for sending expatriates back to their respective countries.

Anyway, the most important aspect of the state visit of the Bangladesh president which made it almost unique was the nature and extent of the security measures undertaken during the visit. Saddam Hussain's ascendancy to power may have been the normal step by step affair, but his retention of power was a different question. For this, Saddam introduced a severe, omnipresent, and all-pervasive security network throughout the country. The only other country, which may come close to Iraq in this matter was North Korea, about which I already had some personal experience as ambassador concurrently accredited from Beijing. What contributed largely to Saddam's success in this sphere was his unparalleled cruelty and total lack of trust in people, even though they were his near and dear ones.

His father-in-law General Khairullah, the Defense Minister, and son-in-law Husain Kemal, looking after Iraq's chemical and nuclear programs, and many other relatives had to pay with their lives due to Saddam's suspicion and alleged breach of trust. When I rejoined our Embassy in Iraq in 1982, I heard a widely spread rumour about the Health Minister, who once whispered in the ears of one of his colleagues suggesting that the "Jaish" or leader could step down from office, as per condition of Ayatollah Khomeini to end the war with Iraq. After the war ended, the Jaish would be brought back to office, he added. These words did not take time to reach the ears of the Jaish, and since then the Health Minister was nowhere to be found. After 24 days, Saddam appeared on the TV and declared that the Health Minister, under whose authority a drug had been imported resulting in the death of a few patients, had no right to live. In other words, he was liquidated. There are similar other stories.

Let us now come back to our state visit. On the stipulated day, we all from the embassy went to Baghdad International Airport. On reaching there, I did not see any red carpet, children with bouquets, and contingent of troops for presenting guard of honour. I was surprised, shocked, and dismayed at this gross and unpardonable faux pas, since I had earlier discussed in detail all these requirements with the chief of protocol. He had assured me all these would be duly complied with. I found the chief of protocol at a distance, veering towards me. I was sad, though determined to give him a piece of mind. Before I opened my mouth, he told me that the venue for reception to the president of Bangladesh had been changed to a small military airfield away from the capital. In a low voice, he added it was done due to security precautions (for Saddam). Saddam was never to be found at the exact time and in the exact place of his scheduled visit.

My friend and colleague, Foreign Secretary Faruq Ahmed Choudhury, who was in the Presidential entourage, later told me of the feelings on board the plane on landing at the Baghdad International Airport. The president was baffled and deeply annoyed not to see through the aircraft window any welcoming party, musical band, or the host president on the tarmac. Faruq thought there could have been some administrative mistake on his part about the date of the visit. If that became the case, the Foreign Office and foreign secretary were to blame, and the outcome would be an unpalatable uncertainty. On the other hand, if the Bangladesh ambassador had made any gross mistake, that would surely herald the end of his diplomatic career. He felt pity for me.

However, the Biman Bangladesh plane carrying the president duly landed at the Baghdad International Airport. The Iraqi chief of protocol and I went up inside the aircraft and, as expected, found a stern look in the face of the president. After the situation was fully explained, the presidential face relapsed into its normal composure. The entire party disembarked and boarded four military helicopters. Within a short time we were at the small airfield. President Saddam Hussain, some of his ministers and senior officials came forward to welcome the president of Bangladesh on the red carpet. Bouquets of flowers were offered, national anthems played, guard of honour presented, and all other paraphernalia of a state visit observed. Ershad became happy. Saddam was delighted to welcome the head of a Muslim state in the midst of his war against a fellow Muslim country, Iran. He even drove the limousine himself, making the visiting president sit beside him, on his way to the presidential palace. There was an element of security consideration there, too. The security measures taken for Saddam were so rigid that none would know about his whereabouts until the very last moment.

Another incident of similar nature took place in the same visit. The Bangladeshi president, his wife, and son, along with the president's personal staff, were lodged in a separate palace within the compound of the grand presidential palace of Baghdad. The Foreign Minister and the rest of the presidential entourage had their accommodation in the Al-Rashid Hotel, specially built for the aborted non-aligned summit in 1982. On the day of arrival a welcoming banquet was hosted by the Iraqi president at the grand palace. The Bangladesh foreign minister and his party duly set out in a motorcade from the hotel towards the venue of the banquet. On the way, coming close to the palace, the motorcade was stopped by the elite Presidential Revolutionary Guard. They claimed they had instructions not to allow anyone to approach the presidential palace.

It was clear that a communication gap between the Guard and protocol had taken place, giving rise to the misunderstanding. The protocol officers accompanying the motorcade approached the guards and insisted on allowing the visiting foreign minister and members of the Bangladesh delegation to attend the presidential banquet. But to no avail. The elite Presidential Guards would not budge from their stand. Then I went to the guard commander, and after introducing myself and showing my identity card, pleaded with him to allow passage of the motorcade. The commander was courteous, but politely and firmly declined my request. Faruq was enjoying the scene of interlocution with great interest, again feeling pity for me, thinking this time I had no escape. Finally, I insisted on speaking with their superior at the presidential palace and explained to him the situation as well as I could in my imperfect Arabic. The chief asked me to wait and after about ten agonizing never-ending minutes finally gave the clearance. We all heaved a sigh of relief. I stopped sweating and received another lease of diplomatic life.

M.M.Rezaul Karim, a former Ambassador, is a member of BNP's Advisory Council.