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CNN Live Today
Road to Recovery
Aired April 23, 2003 - 11:33 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
DARYN KAGAN, CNN ANCHOR: And with more from northern Iraq, let's bring in our Jane Arraf. She's going to bring in details on Jay Garner's visit.
JANE ARRAF, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Daryn, it was a visit full of symbolism. Now he arrived in a regular helicopter from Sulminiyah (ph), there another part of northern Iraq. But he was embraced really, truly as if he were like an old friend, which in a sense he is to Kurdish officials. He was in charge of the humanitarian operation after the 1991 Gulf War.
Now, as he went through town, there were children lining the streets, throwing rose petals at him, presenting him with flowers. He clasped their hands. And at some point, there were people chanting his name, almost as if he were a pop star.
Now a little bit later, they got down to the more serious business,and he held a press conference in which he explained his objectives. Referring to demonstrations against him and the American presence in other parts of Iraq, he said the point was now demonstrations were legal and that was a wonderful thing. The other point, he said, that most Iraqis didn't think that way.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
LT. GEN. JAY GARNER, (RET.) U.S./IRAQ RECON. ADMIN.: A month ago they wouldn't have been able to demonstrate. And demonstrations are one of the properties of freedom, so they're free to demonstrate. And we don't discourage that. The second thing I have to tell you is that I've had many, many Iraqis in Baghdad and the south tell us that they're glad we're here. I think what you see right now are some staged demonstrations. But below that, the majority of the people are glad we're here and the majority of people realize that we're only going to stay here long enough to start a Democratic government for them, and we're only going to start to get their economy going, and we're only going to stay here long enough so we can get the oil flowing back to the people and the revenues to the people. So I think what you'll see here in the future is a reversal of that.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ARRAF: Now, how long the American presence will have to stay is debatable, but just to illustrate how complicated this whole issue is, when the general referred to a free and Democratic Iraq, a lot of Kurdish officials listening to his comments took that to mean that he was not in favor of the kind of Iraq that they want, which is free and Democratic, but a federalist Iraq, where they retain power that they've gained over the last 10 years. So a tricky process all along -- Daryn.
KAGAN: Jane Arraf in northern Iraq, thank you very much.
TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com
Aired April 23, 2003 - 11:33 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
DARYN KAGAN, CNN ANCHOR: And with more from northern Iraq, let's bring in our Jane Arraf. She's going to bring in details on Jay Garner's visit.
JANE ARRAF, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Daryn, it was a visit full of symbolism. Now he arrived in a regular helicopter from Sulminiyah (ph), there another part of northern Iraq. But he was embraced really, truly as if he were like an old friend, which in a sense he is to Kurdish officials. He was in charge of the humanitarian operation after the 1991 Gulf War.
Now, as he went through town, there were children lining the streets, throwing rose petals at him, presenting him with flowers. He clasped their hands. And at some point, there were people chanting his name, almost as if he were a pop star.
Now a little bit later, they got down to the more serious business,and he held a press conference in which he explained his objectives. Referring to demonstrations against him and the American presence in other parts of Iraq, he said the point was now demonstrations were legal and that was a wonderful thing. The other point, he said, that most Iraqis didn't think that way.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
LT. GEN. JAY GARNER, (RET.) U.S./IRAQ RECON. ADMIN.: A month ago they wouldn't have been able to demonstrate. And demonstrations are one of the properties of freedom, so they're free to demonstrate. And we don't discourage that. The second thing I have to tell you is that I've had many, many Iraqis in Baghdad and the south tell us that they're glad we're here. I think what you see right now are some staged demonstrations. But below that, the majority of the people are glad we're here and the majority of people realize that we're only going to stay here long enough to start a Democratic government for them, and we're only going to start to get their economy going, and we're only going to stay here long enough so we can get the oil flowing back to the people and the revenues to the people. So I think what you'll see here in the future is a reversal of that.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ARRAF: Now, how long the American presence will have to stay is debatable, but just to illustrate how complicated this whole issue is, when the general referred to a free and Democratic Iraq, a lot of Kurdish officials listening to his comments took that to mean that he was not in favor of the kind of Iraq that they want, which is free and Democratic, but a federalist Iraq, where they retain power that they've gained over the last 10 years. So a tricky process all along -- Daryn.
KAGAN: Jane Arraf in northern Iraq, thank you very much.
TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com
