"Detailed records of former Iraqi president Saddam Hussein's private
deliberations with his inner circle released by the Pentagon last week are
raising serious questions about the right of the United States to seize Iraqi
state documents and keep them under its control even after ending its eight
years of occupation next month. For Iraqis, the documents and transcripts which
were part of a massive state archive that American forces captured after they
invaded Iraq in 2003 are considered a treasure and part of Iraq's national
heritage which should be returned to Iraq.
A very small portion of the documents, which include notes and recorded meetings, were made available to a few American and British media outlets and researchers last week, raising eyebrows among many Iraqis about the morality, legal responsibility and academic honesty of keeping and re-examining foreign documents seized during occupation. What makes the matter worse is that Iraqis have had no access to these documents and no single Iraqi expert participated at the discussions co-sponsored by the National Defence University and the Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars in Washington, though they were supposed to provide new perspectives on Iraq under Saddam." (thanks John)
A very small portion of the documents, which include notes and recorded meetings, were made available to a few American and British media outlets and researchers last week, raising eyebrows among many Iraqis about the morality, legal responsibility and academic honesty of keeping and re-examining foreign documents seized during occupation. What makes the matter worse is that Iraqis have had no access to these documents and no single Iraqi expert participated at the discussions co-sponsored by the National Defence University and the Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars in Washington, though they were supposed to provide new perspectives on Iraq under Saddam." (thanks John)
