" THEY "

Regardless of who we have met with, we continue to hear stories of kidnapping, killings, random violence and chaos. The stories are recounted by all interviewed: Christians and Muslims equally impacted by this horror. The stories are harrowing: the father whose 5-year-old son was kidnapped off the streets of Baghdad and when returned five days later bore the scars of his beatings; the brother who gathered ransom for his 67-year-old sibling, found and rescued him only to have him die three months later, probably a result of his kidnapping. His widow had little to say but you could feel her heartbreak. The priest, who was kidnapped and kept blindfolded for three days. The father, the brother, and the priest all spoke of their kidnappers as "THEY." Yet the "they" is different in each instance, not one cohesive group of bad actors. The "THEY" is not clearly defined nor neatly packaged. The "they" is someone else, not spoken of but seemingly known. But what if the "THEY" were "US." If we stopped seeing each other as THEY and saw each other as a reflection of ourselves would the 5-year-old have been kidnapped?

The war in Iraq and the subsequent upheaval has created an environment where people who previously lived side by side, intermarried and lived in relative harmony, have now embraced the "THEY." When will it end and what role will the United States play in helping to mend the factionism that has occurred, in part as a result of our actions?

Side note: If your loved one is kidnapped, the ransom demand is typically between $20,000-$30,000 U.S. dollars. From the stance of the U.S refugee admissions program, if you pay the ransom you are guilty of having provided "material support" to terrorists and may be excludable to the United States. Waivers are being issued for many such cases. But it can become even more problematic. Let's say your 5-year-old son is kidnapped and the ransom demand is $20,000. You don't have that kind of money so you contact friends and family members and ask for their help in raising the ransom. What happens if you are forced to raise those funds? YOU ARE NOW INADMISSIBLE TO THE UNITED STATES REFUGEE PROGRAM. WHY? Because you were poor so you had to RAISE the money to ensure your son's safety. That seems innocent enough, but now you have SOLICITED funds and that makes you INADMISSIBLE. Why? Read the PATRIOT ACT and I am sure it will all make sense just like it did to the 5-year-old's dad when he was told he cannot go to the U.S.

Today I leave for a road trip to Petra...

Damascus: Time is Relative

We have been in Syria for several days and I think we would all agree it is very difficult to track just how many. There is a bit of a time-machine effect: a result of what often happens when traveling and also a result of trying to accomplish a month’s work in just a few days. I wonder what time is like for the refugees who have little or nothing to do but wait – wait to get water (a valued commodity) delivered, wait to hear if family members they have been separated from are safe, wait to get an appointment to tell their story to the United Nations High Commission for Refugees (UNHCR), and wait to hear if they will ever be able to restart their lives, which are decidedly in limbo. It would appear that a primary activity for many refugees is waiting and hoping against hope for something to change.

Our first day in Syria, we visited seven Iraqi refugee homes, including the home of Hussein’s family. Hussein is a refugee who has been living in Santa Clara for about five months, but his family is stranded in Syria. They live in a neighborhood on the outskirts of Damascus where many Iraqis have congregated. The household consists of Hussein’s brother’s family (Abbas, his wife and two children), Hussein’s wife and two young girls, and the brother-in-law. They were gracious to us and anxious to hear if we could help them. There is frankly little we can do. Although Hussein is now legally living in the United States and is desperate to be reunited with his wife and children, the waiting game could take years. We showed them an article in the San Jose Mercury News that had Hussein’s picture on the front page. I somehow failed to realize the understandable impact the picture would have as it has been more than a year and a half since Hussein’s wife or brother have seen him. Though I knew how difficult it must be to be separated for so long, their collective response to seeing his picture was almost more than I could bear. Just imagine what it must be like for them.

We visited six other families that day and each had a story as tragic as the next. Our last visit was to the home of a family who had lost their son. He had worked for the U.S. military. Their grief and anxiety were palpable. There was nothing we could do for them but listen.

We’ve met with a variety of non-governmental organization (NGO) representatives, some who have demonstrated greater candor than others. The situation here is challenging and all are working hard to make a difference. They showed a great deal of generosity with their time in meeting with us. We met with representatives from the World Food Program, International Organization for Migration, UNHCR, and a local economist who is conducting a study on the impact of this influx of refugees on the local economy.

Bottom line: I believe we have a responsibility to many of these people. Those who sacrificed their lives to act as interpreters for the U.S. military would be one such group. We need to do more.

Damascus, Syria

We left Amman today via taxi enroute to Damascus. At the Jordan/Syria border, it initially looked as if we would enter Syria without issue. One of our fellow travellers failed to have an entry visa to Jordan, which sounded off alarms for the Jordanian officials. But after a bit of negotiating, the passport was stamped and we were allowed to proceed. We hopped back into the taxi, applauding the fact that the near mishap had been avoided. We drove less than a half block only to be told we would now need to enter Syrian customs. The Syrian officials were not as complacent about our situation and one of our colleagues was not allowed to enter Syria and has now returned safely to Jordan. WE continued on. We are meeting with a journalist this evening who is covering the Iraqi refugee crisis. I received a phone call from her earlier today alerting me to the fact that our meeting would need to be discrete as the atmosphere here is far less open and perhaps more challenging than in Jordan. Time will tell.

Road to Damascus

Jordan has experienced a snowstorm that has shut down the capital. After a 3 a.m. arrival, the drive from the airport to the hotel, which would have typically taken 30 minutes, took 2.5 hours. We looked out the window as we passed disabled cars and young men who stood in the middle of the highway engaging in a snowball fight – even though it was 4 a.m.

We met with Monsignor Matteo de Mori at the Apostolic Nunciature in Jordan after a somewhat precarious taxi ride to the Vatican Embassy. We were greeted warmly by the first secretary, who spoke of the tragedy that is occurring in Iraq and the ultimate threat that there will be no surviving Christian presence in Iraq as a result of the war. He spoke of recent coordinated attacks in Kirkuk. Two Catholic churches were bombed in January. He said prior to the war there were more than 800,000 Christians living in Iraq and now there are but a handful. Most have left fearing for their lives

We met with two young Iraqi men whose former boss was concerned for their wellbeing. They have been living in limbo in Jordan for months. The boss, who resides in Baghdad, had asked that we meet with them as they had been instrumental in saving one of his colleagues from a sure death when a group of employees was kidnapped and they hid one employee below the floor boards.

We met with the regional coordinator for US Today – an interview and commentary I will write about on our way to Damascus. We leave tomorrow via the road. Because Amman remains paralyzed by the snowstorm and all offices are shut down, we have decided it is best to go to Syria, where we have meetings with the editor of Syria Today and a local economist who has reported on the impact of refugees on Syria.

About our group - it could not be a better mix of truthsayers and diplomats and people who care desperately about making a difference. Oddly, I have become the target of all jokes - it seems to be quite unifying so I will go with it. Today after our meeting with the regional refugee coordinator, we were in agreement that our report would be titled: "Designed to Fail - The U.S. Refugee Program."

Catholic Charities of Santa Clara County leads Delegation to the Middle East

An interfaith delegation led by Catholic Charities of Santa Clara County leaves Monday to visit Iraqi refugees in Jordan, Lebanon and Syria and meet with U.S. and other government officials. The intent of the visit is to raise awareness about this humanitarian crisis: 2.5 million Iraqi refugees have fled Iraq into neighboring Syria, Jordan and Lebanon since the beginning of the war. Catholic Charities has been contacted by numerous Bay Area residents who fear for their family members who have been forced to flee Iraq and are now living in desperate conditions. Dr. Amir is one such Bay Area resident whose family is now stranded in Syria. Refugees in Syria and Jordan cannot work and their children cannot attend school. Many who fled Iraq risked their lives by serving as translators for the U.S. military. Catholic Charities was recently contacted by a a local school principal who is in the Marine Reserves and will soon return to Iraq for his third tour of duty. He has been doing all he can to help his Iraqi interpreter, Haitham, get to safety. Haitham, his wife and two small children are standed in Iraq and fear for their lives. Haitham's father was abducted and killed because of his son's work with the U.S. military. There are countless individuals in Haitham's situation, yet the U.S. has done little or nothing to ensure their safety. Catholic Charities hopes bringing greater awareness to this crisis will inspire people to take action. Last year, the U.S. government agreed to process a mere 7,000 Iraqi refugees for admission to the United States. Only 1,608 were processed. We can do better than that. We will update this posting throughout our trip to provide more information and let you know what you can do to make a difference.