U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton participated in
the Business Forum Promoting Commercial Opportunities in Iraq Q&A, at the
U.S. Department of State in Washington, D.C., on June 3, 2011.
Transcript from the state.gov website:
U.S. Department of State official video, posted on youtube:
Hillary had some optimistic predictions for Iraq in June, 2011.
Here are some of her statements:
Hillary: “We are entering a new
phase in our relationship with Iraq, and we are very committed to making a
major civilian commitment to Iraq’s future. We’ll be opening, as you know, and
running consulates in Irbil and Basra, we’ll have civilian experts available to
work with not only Iraqi counterparts, but also Americans and to support
American businesses in the years to come, as we do in our diplomatic –
especially our commercial diplomatic work all over the world.”
Hillary: “And so it’s time for
the United States to start thinking of Iraq as a business opportunity. And the
sacrifice that the Iraqi people have made for your freedom is one that we
highly respect.”
Hillary: “According to the IMF, Iraq
is projected to grow faster than China in the next two years. Now, let me
repeat that, because when I read it I said, okay, are you sure because we
always think of China as being the juggernaut? But no, indeed, Iraq is projected
to grow faster than China.”
Hillary: “Now, nothing is set in stone. The decisions made by
the government, made by businesses, could undo that prediction. And so in five
years, we’d look back and say, well, why didn’t it happen? And it didn’t happen
not because of divine intervention but because we all didn’t do the right
things to make it happen. But Iraq has one of the largest customer bases in the
entire Arab world. It has one of the world’s largest supplies of oil, and it
has one of the best educated workforces in the region.”
Hillary, it didn’t happen. I am asking
why. Most Americans would ask why, especially if they knew about the
predictions and projections you made in 2011 when you were Secretary of State
and Obama was president.
Here are the statements Hillary made about
Iraqi women at that 2011 forum:
Hillary: “I also have
to say a word about hiring women. I know that a lot of the best students in
Iraqi universities happen to be women, and I hope that Iraq takes full
advantage of half the population, ready to work, ready to roll up their sleeves
to assist in the transformation of their country. And certainly my
Ambassador-at-Large for Global Women’s Issues, Melanne Verveer, is here to talk
specifically about some of the ways we are ready to support the integration of
women into the economy.”
Hillary, the women in
Iraq suffered horribly in the years since your remarks and they continue to
suffer. On April 5, 2016, Human Rights Watch (HRW) published a report on the
conditions of women in Iraq.
Here are some
excerpts:
HRW: “The extremist armed group Islamic State
should urgently release Yezidi women and girls they abducted in 2014.”
HRW: “The longer they are held by ISIS, the
more horrific life becomes for Yezidi women, bought and sold, brutally raped,
their children torn from them,” said Skye Wheeler, women’s rights emergencies
researcher at Human Rights Watch. “Meanwhile, ISIS’s restrictions on Sunni
women cut them off from normal life and services almost entirely.”
HRW: “All of the Sunni women and girls reported
severe restrictions on their clothing and freedom of movement in
ISIS-controlled areas. They said they were only allowed to leave their houses
dressed in full face veil and accompanied by a close male relative. These rules, enforced by beating or fines on male family members or both, isolated women from family, friends, and public life."
Hillary, in 2011, you said Iraq would take advantage
of half the population (the women). The people who took over large parts of Iraq
raped and controlled the women and made their lives a living hell.
Hillary, in 2011, you said that Iraq
was projected to grow faster than China.
You were wrong. Here is what happened:
January 4, 2014: ISIS took control of Fallujah.
January 14, 2014: ISIS took control of Raqqa.
June 10, 2014: ISIS took control of Mosul.
June 11, 2014: ISIS took control of Tikrit.
June 29, 2014: ISIS declared a caliphate to claim
dominion over Muslims across the globe.
Hillary, you were wrong about Iraq. The State
Department documented your predictions and projections. All of them were wrong,
very wrong.
The news media should be reporting this, but don’t
worry, Hillary. The news media won’t tell anyone.
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