Occupational Hazards

This is a fantastic book by Rory Stewart, but that doesn't make it easy to review...
I note this book is also published under the title The Prince of the Marshes: And Other Occupational Hazards of a Year in Iraq .

Stewart spent around a year in post-Saddam Iraq in 2003, where he served in the Coalition Provisional Authority as acting Governor, then Deputy Governorate Co-ordinator of Maysan (Southern Iraq, on the Iran border, part of which comprises the Marshes made famous by Wilfred Thesiger); he was then transferred to another province, Dhi Qar, to the south west of Maysan, where his title was again Deputy Governorate Co-ordinator.

What this book demonstrates very clearly is the impossible task set of the CPA. It becomes almost farcical the attempts at setting up an interim provincial council, then empower them to elect a governor and establish budgets to effectively be able to run the country after power was to be handed over.

Saddam's rule had been a hotbed of corruption. He had installed Baathist's into all key roles and oppressed violently all minorities, tribal people and well, basically, everyone. In the wake of Saddam's removal from power, Iraq society splintered into factions, all of who opposed each other. Stewart's key tasks were preparation of the province for elections (although it was deemed too early, and so an interim provisional council was to be formed to begin with); to funnel (huge amounts of) money into public works to reconstruct infrastructure (water & irrigation, electricity, civil works), schools, hospitals etc; to establish employment schemes and overarchingly, to promote peaceful and civil governance in the province. This was occurring simultaneously in each province.

In his role, Stewart took to engage with the Iraqi factions. He dealt with leaders one to one, he encouraged them to come to him with their complaints and he worked hard (often around the edges of policy and rules) to encourage their cooperation. Unfortunately for Stewart, he never gained the trust of the most powerful individual in the province - the Prince of the Marshes. In fact, more than that, this book becomes a catalogue of his ongoing battle to limit the influence of the Prince and the Princes efforts to undermine and create problems for Stewart, and perhaps the Coalition in general.

Other than the Prince and his Ma'dan (Marsh Arabs), the other factions included the Iran-backed Islamist groups (particularly the Badr organisations, the Sadrist movement (also Shi'a Muslims) and their militia's, businessmen, clerics and Sheiks. There were 54 political parties, twenty substantial tribes and a dozen leading religious figures in the province (Maysan). From these people, a provincial council of 40 needed to be established, and the Governor insisted on three women, and three religious minorities (a Christian, a Sunni and a Sabian). This was basically 4x7 setup - seven tribal sheiks, seven district mayors, seven religious readers (including the three minorities); seven political parties; and in addition other respected local figures who didn't fit any clear group.
Most opposed the majority of their fellow council members; many had threatened, or tried to kill each other. Almost all opposed the women members. Could they put aside their differences to make the council function? No is the answer, in many different ways, no.

Forgive me if I don't try and explain more. Rory Stewart does a fantastic job in telling his story, recreated from his diary. He has changed names and provided some anonymity to many people, but in his telling of his interactions he manages to separate and explain each person really well. To complicate things, many of the men contradict themselves - one day praising Rory the next accusing him of failing, or achieving nothing. The Iraqis mostly come across as wanting to further their personal power and wealth, and caring little for society as a whole. Tribal or political affiliations and family take precedence over a stable or equitable community.

While Stewart shares his frustrations and from time to time reacts to those who accuse him of favouritism, lack of fairness or suggest he has achieved nothing, what primarily comes across is that he achieved a huge amount despite the restrictions and resistance he encountered. This was a thankless and mostly hopeless task, and as we see towards the end the CPA end up walking away and their handover is almost a farce in some provinces.

Diplomacy is the name of the game, but while he gives the Italian military a well deserved serving for the way they failed to act (there is a specific time where the civilian authority are being relentlessly being attacked by the Sadrist militia with mortars and rpg's and the Italian Quick Response Team refuse to act against them. Politics takes the front seat with the Italians telling Baghdad one thing and Baghdad accusing Stewart of sensationalising the situation and making the Italians look bad), he is also critical of the slow progress the administration map out and is quick to explain when he disagrees with their decisions.

This book is well worth reading if only to see the futility of the Coalition plans in Iraq. To see why it is seemingly not possible to establish stability in war-torn places under recovery from a ruthless dictator and even now the situation in Iraq is best described as civil unrest.

There are times when Stewart's writing is very funny, other times it is poignant, mostly it demonstrates his willingness to make it work, to improve the situation for Iraqis and to provide equity, fairness and stability for them.

I know Rory Stewart moved into politics in Britain in 2009, and from a distance he seemed a successful politician. Objecting to Boris Johnson as PM he resigned. There are some minor scandals mentioned on Wikipedia, but nothing very out of the ordinary, so I would be interested in the thoughts of those of you in Britain as to whether he was as genuine as he comes across in this book.

In re-reading this review, I realise it is a bit all over the place. This is a complex book and while perfectly readable and understandable as you go through it, the Iraqi situation is really very complex, confusing and contradictory so it is hard to come away from the book with a logical overview or understanding, which is apparent from my efforts.

Those with any interest in Iraq, in politics and diplomacy, or who like a futile attempt at something should seek this book out.

4.5 stars, rounded up.