Iraq: Setting Things Right

IRAQ: Setting Things Right.

Perspectives from an Iraqi youth visiting the U.S., a journalist investigating war-profiteering, and the head of a Washington DC-based NGO
dedicated to improving the lives of all Iraqis

Will Iraq's new "national unity" government make a difference? How is the nature of the conflict in Iraq changing? How has war profiteering affected the effort to rebuild Iraq? How can communities in the U.S. make a difference for Iraqis on-the-ground?

SANDRA SCHWARTZ, American Friends Service Committee 's (AFSC) Peace Education Coordinator, will moderate a panel discussion with:

AHMED ALI, an Iraqi visiting the U.S. on a scholarship. Ahmed has lived through three major wars, UN sanctions and Saddam Hussein's regime. The son of Sunni and Shiite parents, he has lived in 15 of Iraq's 18 provinces. Since 1998, he has lived in the predominantly Kurdish city of Arbil. Ahmed recently graduated from Grinnell with a degree in Political Science. He is fluent in Arabic, Kurdish, Farsi and English. Ahmed plans to return to his homeland this September.

PRATAP CHATTERJEE, an investigative journalist and director of CorpWatch http://www.corpwatch.org
who has just returned from his third trip to Iraq.
He is the author of Iraq Inc: A Profitable ccupation and a forthcoming report "Baghdad Bonanza" documenting waste, fraud and abuse by U.S.
contractors in Iraq.

ERIK GUSTAFSON, a veteran of the 1991 Gulf War and the founding director of The Education for Peace in Iraq Center (EPIC)
http://www.epic-usa.org. Since his 1997 return to Iraq, he has dedicated his life to improving human rights and humanitarian conditions in Iraq.

No charge at the door but a hat will be passed to raise funds for the Education for Peace in Iraq Center. Light food will be served.


For more information go to
http://www.epic-usa.org/Default.aspx?tabid=2199
or call Jeff 415-385-5956