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JAMES E. MILLER
530 NW 13th St., Corvallis, OR 97330
541-757-9797
Mr. David A. Steele
United States Insitute of Peace 1200 17th St., NW
Washington, DC 20036
Ph. 202.457.1700
Fx: 202.429.6063
info@usip.org
Re: How to Win the Peace in Iraq
Dear Mr. Steele:
Shortly after U.S. forces captured Baghdad, I wrote a four page outline of how the U.S. could win the peace in Iraq and emailed it to the Defense Intelligence Agency. No response. This article expands on that outline.
Here is how the coalition forces could win the peace in Iraq (and Afghanistan) with the help of the global community. The trick is to leverage the forces of the terrorists to aid the successful implement of the Safe Cities program. This model is hundreds of years old, so it is not novel, is in the public domain and no doubt has been studied by all of the members of Congress, the Administration, journalists and think tanks. However, despite such knowledge, the idea did not click in; it got no traction.
1. OVERVIEW OF THE PROJECT
Create an every-growing number of secure villages and small cities. Make sure everyone in the community is on board by extensive bridging and bonding efforts between the village, its elders and the Facilitation Team.
Then present the contract for consideration and if approved by the elders, it is then put to a vote to the village members, down to the youngest child who can read well enough to read the contract. This is the buy-in phase.
The contract provides for the labor to be drawn mostly from the village and funding from the national and global sources. The single most important requirement is that the initial town select one or more sister town which, later on, will be sponsored by the initial town. This is basically a cloning operation. When the agreement is ratified, then the planning and construction begins in earnest. The town is rebuilt: hospitals, schools, water and sewer, electric and gas energy, roads and bridges, markets, industrial and commercial parks, and security for the town.
After this stage is completed, the initial town begins its outreach. It works with its sister town to replicate this program. It draws friends, relatives from the other parts of Iraq, especially the larger cities. As the town expands, it enlarges its security fences and wall.
2. SELECTION PROCESS
The selection of the town involves these criteria:
2.1. Willingness of the elders and residents to sign and abide by the contract.
2.2. A critical mass of people and resources which, together with the new resources, will create a self-sufficient, sustainable community.
2.3. Demonstrated willingness to aid and support the outreach effort to enable other towns and villages to use the initial town as a model and to provide political and economic support to the next town to be rebuilt.
2.4. Leaders and sub-leaders who are comfortable working with individuals and groups which may have different views of politics and religion, and are otherwise civil folks.
2.5. Access to some or all of the natural resources necessary for a self-sufficient, sustainable community, especially good soil and water, transportation, and a defensible location or one which could be made into a defensible location.
2.6. Folks who are ready, willing and able to supply most of the labor. This labor would be paid weekly from multi-national funds. The rate of pay should be twice what the normal local rate of pay would typically be or what might be called a fair wage. The mindset of the laboring population should be that they are working for both the wage and the security and prosperity of their town.
3. LOCATION
Early success of the first few communities is critical to the continuation of the program and the increasing funding of the larger effort. The first few locations should be in northern Iraq in the areas well controlled by the Kurds. The second and subsequent choices should be in the progressive less secure location, leaving Baghdad to near the Location near gas and oil reserves should be preferred.
4. SECURITY
When the terrorists understand what is happening, they will try to infiltrate and attack from the outside. At the outset, the town should be made secure by construction of a high, concrete wall around the town. The agricultural areas would be outside this wall, but inside two chain link fences, 10 feet high, with razor wire on top, set about 20 feet apart. Between the two fences, sensors would be planted. All areas would have video cameras on 7/24, backed by a quick reaction (SWAT) teams. Members of the community would be screened. All guns and similar weapons would be purchased from them and used for the town's security forces when feasible.
The town's security forces would be trained, equipped and held to high standards of conduct. They would be paid well and provided with free life insurance, scaled to provide for the immediate family members for whom each individual law enforcement person is responsible.
Entry into and departures from the town would be tightly controlled through ports which are equipped with the best equipment and the most competent personnel. See-through radar would sweep all vehicles and persons. Trained dogs would sniff for drugs and other contraband. These ports could be in series on the outskirts of the chain link fence. As a driver drove from the first to subsequent check points, the scrutiny would increase. The first port could be remotely monitored with various sniffers and viewers which could be deployed without personnel in the immediate vicinity.
As the town grew, it might be possible to relocate some or all of the concrete wall to the next location, a kind of a panelized tongue and grove approach but on a large scale.
Security for the farming areas would be the outer double chain link fence, the sensors, videos and response team. Still this may not be enough. It would probably be important to make sure the land a mile or so beyond the chain link fence was also secure. This could be done by planting sensors, drones and hidden, wireless video/audio bugs. Our military forces should be in the general area and ready to respond when needed.
5. INVESTMENT
The global community needs to look upon this project as an investment, not an expense. In time, these communities will be networked together, even if the populations are of different ethnic and religious backgrounds. Oil, gas and other natural resources will flow and add to the world's economy and will assure the local communities of continued economic support. The contract should provide for additional funding based on demonstrated need. Some of the funding could be in the form of a loan, some of which should be canceled if the town meets reasonable goals in a reasonable time. This creates a cohesive force among the residents.
6. GOVERNANCE
Governance should/could proceed along the lines of a Limited partnership, with each person of voting age, having a vote for the governing council. This council would appoint and remove officials, one of which would be the ombudsman. Conflict resolution should be by a non-sectarian, independent judiciary who are professionally trained. The governance documents should clearly set forth the civil, political and criminal rights of the population.
7. SPREAD THE WORD
Here's another potential solution to winning the Peace in Iraq, indeed in most of the world. Simply give every K-12 student, a $100 laptop which is enabled with wireless and gets a feed from a satellite. The school or community center will need a server, a down/up link and some tech support.
The point is that with kids able to surf the Web, the truth will set them free (and their parents). Please take a look at: http://www.laptop.org/
8. MICRO LOAN PROGRAM
Start a micro-loan program similar to NIVA and invite everyone in the world to help an individual or family start a business or expand an existing business in a Safe City. NIVA has micro loan programs in 13 countries and has lent over $400,000. Please see: http://www.niva.org/
9. CODE OF HONOR
Every resident of voting age should sign a Code of Honor, to be worded with the approval of the Council of Partners. Basic human rights need to be respected. This code of honor is not a loyalty oath, but a code of conduct.
10. OUTREACH
As these town grow and prosper, they will attract the best and brightest citizens of Iraq, thus causing the older and larger cities to depopulate. As the terrorists continue their terror, the good folks of these cities will be increasingly motivated to more to a Safe City. In a sense, the worse the terrorists activities elsewhere, the greater the flow of folks from those areas to the safe cities. Thus, the terrorists are contributing to the success of the safe cities program.
11. WHAT'S IN IT FOR THE REST OF THE WORLD?
The savings of money and the lives and bodies of our military and civil forces supporting the current war and rebuilding is obvious. As this program covers the vast majority of Iraq citizens, they will turn-in, capture or kill terrorists, since they are operating from a safe haven which the terrorists cannot reach for retribution. Further, and most importantly, because the residents have rebuilt the town with their own labor; they have an investment to protect. Pride is a powerful force in a small or medium community.
In time, large cities will be treated with much the same program, but on a neighborhood basis, with multiple “Safe Cities”, similar to the Green Zone. Also, in time the terrorists will either be co-opted or simply go elsewhere. As the numbers decrease and the enraged good citizens increase, the terrorists will be ID'ed caught or killed by Iraq forces. This form of small town democracy is like the old New England Town Hall approach, but with some governance structure which is legally and financially responsible.
Respectfully submitted
JamesJames E. Miller. J.D.
P.S. I have read the Special Report - Reconciliation Strategies in Iraq at: http://www.usip.org/pubs/specialreports/sr213.pdf
