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CNN Sunday Morning

Iraqi Government Workers Meet With Garner

Aired April 27, 2003 - 10:11   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.


KELLI ARENA, CNN ANCHOR: As the search goes on for former members of Iraq's regime, ex-government workers are meeting with the man appointed by the U.S. to head reconstruction effort. For that part of the story, CNN's Rym Brahimi in Baghdad.
RYM BRAHIMI, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hello, Kelli. Well, indeed, a meeting took place today with the Office of Reconstruction officials and some technocrats or some civil servants from the municipality of Baghdad, including the former deputy mayor of the city of Baghdad. Now that is aimed, say the officials, at trying to restore public services for Iraqis, water, electricity, all these things that have been lacking and of course, security. Jay Garner, the interim administrator of Iraq, the former U.S. retired general, had this message for the Iraqi people in a TV address.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

LT. GEN. JAY GARNER (RET.), U.S. CIVIL ADMINISTRATION FOR IRAQ: Hello, I'm Jay Garner. I'm here to help you rebuild your country and to turn your government into one which serves you. Across Iraq, my staff is already hard at work. Most of you now have the electricity back on and many have clean water again in their homes. The hospitals are starting to get supplies and the services that they need to operate. Over the next few days and the next few weeks you will all see these services restored.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BRAHIMI: And one of the main services lacking and the one that's really affecting the lives of Iraqis the most is the lack of security. Now, of course, that's a problem in many ways. There's the ordnance -- the unexploded ordnance lying around. We saw yesterday what damage it did when someone apparently lit a depot of ordnance, unexploded ordnance, and that set a couple of missiles on fire, and that created a lot of civilian deaths. But also, there are a lot of weapons flying around in the country, a lot of weapons on sale in marketplaces in certain areas of Baghdad. And that's going to be, of course, a problem because people don't feel safe. They feel don't feel safe from looters. But they also don't feel safe from various groups and militias.

People don't feel they can send their children outside and they're having a very, very hard time dealing with this situation and of course, they see the U.S. as really, the people who have to step in. Otherwise, they say, there's no need for the U.S. to have done this, to have gotten them rid of Saddam Hussein if the situation they're going to find instead is one of chaos.

So a great deal of concern here around security. We understand that reconstruction officials have been appealing to former policemen, to traffic policemen, to just come over and restore that service, as well. Some of them have responded to that call. And again, we'll see what Jay Garner is able to muster in terms of political gatherings when he meets with political groups tomorrow. He says he wants to start setting up ministries as soon as next week -- Kelli.

ARENA: Rym, besides basic security, which is obvious, and infrastructure, services to the people, what other challenges lie ahead for this U.S. led interim administration that you're seeing from your perch?

BRAHIMI: Well, what we're told when we talk to people in the street is basically, the main challenge will be being able to restore some form of trust. People are very suspicious here, Kelli, as you can imagine. A lot of people here say, well, the United States has delivered on the first part of its promise, which was to deliver us or to free us maybe from President Saddam Hussein, but they haven't delivered on the part that said that we would have better lives. And that's what they're waiting for. And better lives for them means better services. It means water. It means electricity and again, especially security.

Right now, it's a very, very difficult situation and it's really quite tense. People don't really know which political grouping work. People don't know if some political groupings are going to use militias and they don't know, again, if it's safe to even go out in the street to run an errand these days. So a lot of concern around that key issue -- Kelli.

ARENA: All right. Rym, thanks very much. Get in from out of that storm. It looks pretty bad there.

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 27, 2003 - 10:11   ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
KELLI ARENA, CNN ANCHOR: As the search goes on for former members of Iraq's regime, ex-government workers are meeting with the man appointed by the U.S. to head reconstruction effort. For that part of the story, CNN's Rym Brahimi in Baghdad.
RYM BRAHIMI, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hello, Kelli. Well, indeed, a meeting took place today with the Office of Reconstruction officials and some technocrats or some civil servants from the municipality of Baghdad, including the former deputy mayor of the city of Baghdad. Now that is aimed, say the officials, at trying to restore public services for Iraqis, water, electricity, all these things that have been lacking and of course, security. Jay Garner, the interim administrator of Iraq, the former U.S. retired general, had this message for the Iraqi people in a TV address.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

LT. GEN. JAY GARNER (RET.), U.S. CIVIL ADMINISTRATION FOR IRAQ: Hello, I'm Jay Garner. I'm here to help you rebuild your country and to turn your government into one which serves you. Across Iraq, my staff is already hard at work. Most of you now have the electricity back on and many have clean water again in their homes. The hospitals are starting to get supplies and the services that they need to operate. Over the next few days and the next few weeks you will all see these services restored.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BRAHIMI: And one of the main services lacking and the one that's really affecting the lives of Iraqis the most is the lack of security. Now, of course, that's a problem in many ways. There's the ordnance -- the unexploded ordnance lying around. We saw yesterday what damage it did when someone apparently lit a depot of ordnance, unexploded ordnance, and that set a couple of missiles on fire, and that created a lot of civilian deaths. But also, there are a lot of weapons flying around in the country, a lot of weapons on sale in marketplaces in certain areas of Baghdad. And that's going to be, of course, a problem because people don't feel safe. They feel don't feel safe from looters. But they also don't feel safe from various groups and militias.

People don't feel they can send their children outside and they're having a very, very hard time dealing with this situation and of course, they see the U.S. as really, the people who have to step in. Otherwise, they say, there's no need for the U.S. to have done this, to have gotten them rid of Saddam Hussein if the situation they're going to find instead is one of chaos.

So a great deal of concern here around security. We understand that reconstruction officials have been appealing to former policemen, to traffic policemen, to just come over and restore that service, as well. Some of them have responded to that call. And again, we'll see what Jay Garner is able to muster in terms of political gatherings when he meets with political groups tomorrow. He says he wants to start setting up ministries as soon as next week -- Kelli.

ARENA: Rym, besides basic security, which is obvious, and infrastructure, services to the people, what other challenges lie ahead for this U.S. led interim administration that you're seeing from your perch?

BRAHIMI: Well, what we're told when we talk to people in the street is basically, the main challenge will be being able to restore some form of trust. People are very suspicious here, Kelli, as you can imagine. A lot of people here say, well, the United States has delivered on the first part of its promise, which was to deliver us or to free us maybe from President Saddam Hussein, but they haven't delivered on the part that said that we would have better lives. And that's what they're waiting for. And better lives for them means better services. It means water. It means electricity and again, especially security.

Right now, it's a very, very difficult situation and it's really quite tense. People don't really know which political grouping work. People don't know if some political groupings are going to use militias and they don't know, again, if it's safe to even go out in the street to run an errand these days. So a lot of concern around that key issue -- Kelli.

ARENA: All right. Rym, thanks very much. Get in from out of that storm. It looks pretty bad there.

TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com