Finding hope in the midst of chaos

"I think a lot of people, they don`t understand the immensity of what`s going on there (in Iraq). I don`t think they understand how hard people are working to make a country," said Bob Hildreth, an English-language teacher who left the security of Seoul to teach mature students at Camp Slayer located in a former Iraqi government palace near Baghdad airport.

Bob had been teaching English in Korea since 1995. He is married to a Korean woman, Catherine, who is also an English teacher and hails from Busan. About four months ago, however, Bob made the decision to go and teach English in Iraq, leaving his wife and two dogs in Seoul.

In an interview with The Korea Herald, Bob`s wife said: "I think I saw him struggling with this decision for more than two months. But I just gave him the full right to choose what he wants to do. Even though we`re married, I can`t stop my spouse doing what he wants to do or wants to be. <**1>So I said if this is what you need to do, what makes you happy, you have to pursue it."

Even with the strong support of his wife, it was still a tough choice for Bob to make. He said the first thing that attracted him to go to Iraq was the money, but what tipped the decision was the adventure.

"There was a training period based in the States. Just before we got on the plane to fly to Iraq, there was a colonel that came in. We`ve been training, we were so tired, but he said something that always stuck with me. He said, `you guys are about to be part of history in the making. That`s something that not many people ever get a chance to do in their life.` He said to enjoy that and take advantage of that," said Bob.

"On a daily basis," Bob said, "I drive pass Uday Hussein`s former palace, I was in Al Faw Palace, and was able to sit in a throne Saddam Hussein used to sit in. I was in Baghdad when Hussein was sentenced. That was a moment I`ll never forget. It was amazing to see these Iraqis just going `Yes!` They were so excited. So yes, it was an adventure."

The size of the class Bob teaches on average is about 12 students, with ages ranging from 25 to 70 years old. The life experience of Iraqi students obviously is very different from the students in developed countries such as Korea. Bob hasn`t stopped being amazed by the Iraqi students` motivation and dedication to study.

"The first day I was in class, I was calling the roll. I`m going, okay, name, name, and I get this one guy`s name and I say his name. And one of the other students says, `Oh sorry, professor, he`s been kidnapped.` I was going, `Hmmm 갤 I`ve taught all over the world and never had a student kidnapped. I wonder if that is an excuse.`

Well, about a week and a half to two weeks later, this guy comes walking in with a cast, he got a cast up here because his leg has been broken and his foot has been broken by the insurgents that kidnapped him. His ribs, he has been tied to a sealing fan, they beat his ribs and kidney so bad that they didn`t think he`s going to survive. So these are all wrapped up. He is on medication. He came in and grabbed my hand and pulled me next to him, kissed me on the cheek and said, `Sorry, professor, I`m late, let`s start.` These are the guys who we have got to make this work for," said Bob, his voice betraying his emotion.

Bob also said this particular Iraqi student would drive 170 kilometers and walk up three flights of stairs to come to class, and walk down three flights of stairs for a break, and then come back to finish class.

Bob continues: "They are risking their lives to be there. In the class, every Iraqi student I had will speak, they will talk. They don`t have a problem with saying things."

Bob had another student who one day got a phone call in the morning during the class break. Then he hung up and stayed completely focused on the class. He student was completely on track and was doing the conversation drills and everything Bob asked him to do. As the class was about to finish, this student got another call and turned around and said something in Arabic. The other students told Bob that in the morning phone call, the student had been told that his 4-year-old niece had been kidnapped on the streets of Baghdad, and in the afternoon phone call, she was found, safe, unharmed.

"It`s not about the fact that his niece is kidnapped, but the fact that this guy stays focused, this guy would not let that interfere (because) he knew he had a mission, he knew what he had to do and he was doing it. And 99.9 percent of Iraqis are that way."

Maybe it is just this kind of strong dedication makes some Iraqis lean toward extremism. Sectarian attacks continue in Baghdad despite the execution of Saddam Hussein. But Bob said he saw a turning point in the Iraqi people.

He told The Korea Herald: "I interviewed a 60-year-old Iraqi man. First question I asked him: `Are you a Sunni or a Shiite?` He said, `I`m Iraqi and I`m Muslim.` So I looked at another teacher with me, and he looked at me. `Maybe you don`t understand, I said are you a Sunni or Shiite?` He said, `I`m Muslim.` To me this is where people begin to change. I have Sunni, Shiite and Christian all in my class. They are all best friends."

Bob is doing a six-day workweek, 10 hours a day. The security where Bob is staying is very tight. He told us that on a daily basis, he needed to go through three checkpoints to get to work and three or four depending on the day to get back his accommodation. The place he is living in, what he calls a hutch, is a 10-by-10 square inside a trailer. Outside, there are 15- or 20-foot solid concrete walls. Bob said despite the tough conditions he functions very well in Iraq.

According to Bob, there have been 14,000 students in the school because of what the multinational forces are doing. There are also four orphanages that they work with. There are three different medical centers staffed only by American doctors. The Korean military has built five highways where there was only desert before. They have also created 72 deep wells, six sewage systems, two village parks, 10 clinics, 49 schools and five town halls in Iraq.

"We are not in Baghdad for weapons of mass destruction. We either got lied to or got bad intelligence or whatever. The bottom line is now we are in there. We`d better finish that job because those people are depending on it. I`m not going to be the guy, the last guy going on an airplane and saying, `My students are getting killed because we were too chicken to finish the job.` I`m not going to do that." By now, tears were welling in Bob`s eyes.

His wife has been very supportive of his work in Iraq. "Every month I sent him cookies to share with his coworkers and students and everybody. I send him e-cards every morning. I think he is doing a great job there. I`m really proud of him. I tell him every day. It`s like a big support, some one is thinking about him at home."

Bob plans to stay in Iraq for several years. He also suggested establishing an Iraqi-American Friendship Association. He said: "I want to see my students get up on their feet and be successful. I want see the violence that is happening stop. I want see something finished that I started."

(shrlyhan@yahoo.com)





Visit http://findthegood.blogspot.com/ for more information about Bob`s life and work in Iraq. - Ed.



By Shirley Han Ying