CHOICES IN WAR: WHAT WOULD YOU SAVE FIRST?
Critical Analysis
By Lisa Greeves , English and Journalism teacher

Overview:
Looting has erupted in cities throughout Iraq as a result of the fall of Saddam Hussein's regime. Government offices, hospitals, museums and other important facilities have been pillaged and often damaged or destroyed; important facilities have been damaged. Review the situation with your students and engage them in rationalizing what institutions they would defend if given this decision in the face of post-war looting.

For a more in-depth lesson on the history of war in Iraq and its impact on historical sites, click here.

Time: This activity should take 30 minutes. Extension ideas will take longer and require research and homework.

Materials:

Correlation to National Standards

Procedure:

1. Distribute copies of today's Newshour article (Handout #1). Have students read it silently. Provide students with a copy of the Hague regulation from 1907 (Handout #2) and have them read that silently. Then provide students with a excerpted copy of the Newshour transcript "Days of Disorder" (Handout #3) that discusses the issue of responsibility for restoring Iraq. Have students read it silently for background information.
   
   Handout #2: Laws and Customs of War on Land (Hague IV); October 18, 1907

   SECTION III
   MILITARY AUTHORITY OVER THE TERRITORY OF THE HOSTILE STATE
   
   Art. 42.
   Territory is considered occupied when it is actually placed under the authority of the hostile army.
   The occupation extends only to the territory where such authority has been established and can be exercised.
   
   Art. 43.
   The authority of the legitimate power having in fact passed into the hands of the occupant, the latter shall take all the measures in his power to restore, and ensure, as far as possible, public order and safety, while respecting, unless absolutely prevented, the laws in force in the country.

   http://www.yale.edu/lawweb/avalon/lawofwar/hague04.htm

   
   
   
2. Allow students to share their reactions briefly to the article, and ensure that they understand that coalition forces are being expected to maintain and restore order to the Iraqi people based on the Hague statement. Note the language of the statement states "as far as possible." Inform students that coalition forces have been criticized by some for failing to do so, or for taking too long to do so.
   
   When asked about the role of coalition soldiers in preventing looting Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld said the following:
   
   "We didn't allow it, it happened. And that's what happens when you go from a dictatorship with repressed order, police state, to something that is going to be different.... There's a transition period, and no one is in control. Bad things do happen in life, and people do loot."
   
   
3. Review with students the following excerpts from reports and accounts on the looting, damage, and destruction in Iraq. You may want to photocopy this information and distribute it as a handout to each student (Handout #4).
   
   Medical Facilities:
   Excerpt: As of Sunday, several Baghdad hospitals were still without water or power. Looters have ransacked several medical facilities, and the hospital system is under duress despite the fact that the U.S. began airlifting medical supplies and other equipment in late last week. Online NewsHour, April 14, 2003, "COALITION TROOPS, IRAQI POLICE PATROL BAGHDAD"

   Museums:
   Excerpt: Heavy looting at the National Museum of Iraq was chief among their concerns...Looters have destroyed and stolen a 170,000-item collection of artifacts detailing more than 5,000 years of civilization and estimated to be worth billions of dollars. Online NewsHour, April 14, 2003, "COALITION TROOPS, IRAQI POLICE PATROL BAGHDAD"

   Government Offices:
   Excerpt: Television news also broadcast pictures of Iraqis hauling away computers, office furniture, tires, boxes, and even potted plants from government buildings. Online NewsHour, April 9, 2003 "COALITION SAYS IRAQI REGIME HAS LOST CONTROL OF BAGHDAD,"
   
   Homes, Embassies:
   Excerpt: It was a chaotic day in the Iraqi capital. Diehard fighters again targeted American troops. And with the local police gone, many residents did as they pleased and took what they wanted. U.S. troops manned checkpoints in and around Baghdad today. Iraqi residents were back on the streets of the capital for a second day. Some embarked on a new wave of looting taking carpets, furniture, refrigerators, they even rounded up horses from the stables of the Republican Guard, anything they could carry or cart off from abandoned government offices, and the homes of those within Saddam Hussein's inner circle. That included the villa belonging to Deputy Prime Minister Tariq Aziz, who was no where to be found.
   The German embassy was among several diplomatic buildings ransacked. Online NewsHour, April 10, 2003
   "War News Roundup,"

   Schools:
   Excerpt: Following the soldiers' capitulation, some of Mosul's more than 60,000 residents began plundering government buildings in Iraq's third-largest city. Many of Mosul's schools and government offices were either stripped of furniture and other resources or set ablaze, press reports said.
   According to the Arab TV network Al Jazeera, the library at Mosul University, home to many rare manuscripts, was also ransacked, despite pleas from mosque loudspeakers to spare public buildings. Online NewsHour, April 11, 2003 "MOSUL FALLS AMID MASS IRAQI SURRENDER,"

   Banks:
   Excerpt: Meanwhile, Abu Dhabi TV aired images of looting at a Central Bank branch in Mosul as well, with Iraqi currency littering the street and men leaving the building with stacks of money. The bank's central vaults were pried open, and fights reportedly broke out among looters trying to take stolen money from each other, The New York Times reported. Online NewsHour, April 11, 2003 "MOSUL FALLS AMID MASS IRAQI SURRENDER,"

   Water, Electricity Plants:
   Excerpt: Basra's main water treatment plant has been out of commission since power to much of the city was cut during fighting on Friday. A spokeswoman for the Swiss-based International Committee of the Red Cross said that remaining plants can only supply 30 percent of the city's water needs, and that the quality of that remaining water is poor. Online NewsHour, March 25, 2003 "BRITISH TROOPS TO FIGHT IRAQI MILITIA IN BASRA
   
   Allow groups 10 minutes to discuss their ideas. Then, when finished, allow each group to present their conclusions to the class. Encourage other students to raise questions and reactions to each others' findings.
   
   

4. After reviewing Handout #4 of damages to Iraq's infrastructure, divide students into small groups (call them "battalions" or "divisions" if you so choose) of three or four.
   
   Tell them that they are Field Generals for the coalition forces and that they must create a plan for assigning 20,000 troops to protect institutions in one city, preferably Baghdad. They must debate and choose which four institutions or facilities in Baghdad their troops will defend, the institutions they will not defend, what percentage of troops they will devote to each, and why they choose to value one institution over another.
   
   They must be able to articulate their reasons for their choices. Their plan must take into consideration the importance each institution has in present-day Iraqi life as well as in the restoration of the Iraq culture. They must consider and address museums, hospitals, government offices, homes, embassies, schools, banks, and water and electricity facilities in their defense plan and justification, but they should try to come up with two additional facilities or institutions not listed here that they would protect. They must be ready to explain why they consider these two additional facilities important enough to defend.

   Assign each group to create a visual plan or drawing to show to the class. Students might choose to illustrate their defense plan on posterboard with markers, creating diagrams or charts of the key institutions and the proportion of troops they want defend them. Encourage students to be creative in their illustrations.

   Have each group present their defense plan to the class and share their reasons for defending certain institutions. As Field Generals, they must be able to withstand criticism of their plans; encourage students to question and discuss each group's rationalizations
   

Extension Idea :

1. Assign students to write a research paper on the importance of museums in maintaining a culture. What are the missions and philosophies of museums? Assign students to explore historical ransacking of treasures from past civilizations (Greece, India, etc.).
   
   
2. Assign students to write a position paper stating their opinion on whether coalition forces should have acted earlier to prevent such extensive looting and damage to so many Iraqi institutions. Present students with this quote:
   
   "The apparent success of the U.S. military campaign was undercut by scenes of unchecked lawlessness and looting across the country, including in Baghdad. U.S. troops gingerly sought to restore order, imposing a dusk-to-dawn curfew in the capital. But reducing pockets of armed resistance and protecting their own forces remained their priorities." The Washington Post, "Rampant Looting Sweeps Iraq", April 12, 2003
   
   Based on their discussions, their readings of the Newshour article, and other perspectives that they might find during their own research, do they think the coalition forces acted in a timely manner regarding turning their attention to looters or should they have addressed this sooner? Why or why not? Students must defend their positions.

National Standards:

Standard 1: Culture
Standard 5: Individuals, Groups, and Institutions
Standard 6: Power, Authority, and Governance

www.ncss.org/standards/2.0.html

Author Lisa Greeves has taught high school English and Journalism classes for two Virginia school systems: Fairfax County Public Schools and Rockbridge County Schools. She has a bachelor's degree in English and Communication from James Madison University and a Master's Degree in English from Virginia Commonwealth University. She recently had a chapter published in the 2002 NCTE publication Applying NCTE/IRA Standards in Classroom Journalism Projects.

To find out more about opportunities to contribute to this site, contact Leah Clapman at extra@newshour.org.