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<p class=MsoNormal><font size=2 face=Arial><span style='font-size:10.0pt;
font-family:Arial'><o:p> </o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><span class=SpellE><font size=2 face=Verdana><span
style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:Verdana'>BMJ</span></font></span><span
class=GramE><font size=2 face=Verdana><span style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:
Verdana'> 2005</span></font></span><font size=2 face=Verdana><span
style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:Verdana'>;331:252 (30 July), <span
class=SpellE>doi:10.1136/bmj.331.7511.252</span>-b </span></font><o:p></o:p></p>
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size=3 face="Times New Roman"><span style='font-size:12.0pt'><o:p> </o:p></span></font></p>
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<h3><b><font size=4 color="#63ceff" face=Verdana><span style='font-size:13.5pt;
font-family:Verdana;color:#63CEFF'>News</span></font><o:p></o:p></b></h3>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=4 face=Verdana><span style='font-size:13.5pt;
font-family:Verdana'>The People's Health Movement Assembly, </span></font><st1:place><st1:City><span
class=SpellE><font size=4 face=Verdana><span style='font-size:13.5pt;
font-family:Verdana'>Cuenca</span></font></span></st1:City><font size=4
face=Verdana><span style='font-size:13.5pt;font-family:Verdana'>, </span></font><st1:country-region><font
size=4 face=Verdana><span style='font-size:13.5pt;font-family:Verdana'>Ecuador</span></font></st1:country-region></st1:place><font
size=4 face=Verdana><span style='font-size:13.5pt;font-family:Verdana'> 18-23
July</span></font> <o:p></o:p></p>
<h2><st1:country-region><st1:place><b><font size=5 face="Times New Roman"><span
style='font-size:18.0pt'>Iraq</span></font></b></st1:place></st1:country-region>
doctor tells of health crimes <o:p></o:p></h2>
<p class=MsoNormal><strong><b><font size=3 face="Times New Roman"><span
style='font-size:12.0pt'></nobr>Ronald <span class=SpellE>Labonte</span></span></font></b></strong></nobr>
<o:p></o:p></p>
<p><st1:City><st1:place><span class=SpellE><i><font size=2
face="Times New Roman"><span style='font-size:10.0pt;font-style:italic'>Cuenca</span></font></i></span></st1:place></st1:City><font
size=2><span style='font-size:10.0pt'> </span></font><o:p></o:p></p>
<p><font size=3 face="Times New Roman"><span style='font-size:12.0pt'>Delegates
to the People's Health Movement assembly in </span></font><st1:City><st1:place><span
class=SpellE>Cuenca</span></st1:place></st1:City><sup> </sup>(18-23 July)
also heard of alleged crimes against health in<sup> </sup><st1:country-region><st1:place>Iraq</st1:place></st1:country-region>.<sup>
</sup><o:p></o:p></p>
<p><font size=3 face="Times New Roman"><span style='font-size:12.0pt'>Iraqi
physician Dr <span class=SpellE>Salam</span> <span class=SpellE>Ismael</span>
claimed in a passionate testimony<sup> </sup>that "Crimes against health
have been committed for two years<sup> </sup>in my country, and no one knows
about them." Speaking on behalf<sup> </sup>of the <span class=SpellE>organisation</span>
Doctors for </span></font><st1:country-region><st1:place>Iraq</st1:place></st1:country-region>,
he described a number<sup> </sup>of alleged violations to human rights since
occupation.<sup> </sup><o:p></o:p></p>
<p><font size=3 face="Times New Roman"><span style='font-size:12.0pt'>The <span
class=SpellE>organisation</span> of 250 doctors was founded in 2003 to do
research,<sup> </sup>give humanitarian relief, and promote the right to health.
It<sup> </sup>has catalogued a number of human rights violations, including<sup>
</sup>bombing hospitals, military raids on hospitals, killing patients<sup> </sup>who
may be insurgents in their hospital beds and blocking ambulance<sup> </sup>transport
of wounded combatants during the siege of <span class=SpellE>Falluja</span>.<sup>
</sup><o:p></o:p></span></font></p>
<p><font size=3 face="Times New Roman"><span style='font-size:12.0pt'>Dr <span
class=SpellE>Ismael</span> said there were times when physicians were harassed<sup>
</sup>or arrested, sometimes in the middle of performing operations,<sup> </sup>because,
Dr <span class=SpellE>Ismael</span> explained, "<span class=GramE>they</span>
are told they are treating<sup> </sup>insurgents. We tell them that under the
Geneva Convention we<sup> </sup>treat all hurt or wounded people, including US
soldiers and<sup> </sup>Iraqi security forces, but it makes little
difference."<sup> </sup><o:p></o:p></span></font></p>
<p><font size=3 face="Times New Roman"><span style='font-size:12.0pt'>These
alleged violations of health rights are occurring against<sup> </sup>the
backdrop of an occupation that has dramatically worsened<sup> </sup>health
conditions for most Iraqi citizens.<a
href="http://bmj.bmjjournals.com/cgi/content/full/331/7511/252-b#FIG1#FIG1"></a><sup>
</sup><o:p></o:p></span></font></p>
<p><a name=FIG1><!-- null --></a><font size=3 face="Times New Roman"><span
style='font-size:12.0pt'><o:p> </o:p></span></font></p>
<table class=MsoNormalTable border=0 cellspacing=0 cellpadding=0 align=left
width="1%" bgcolor=white style='width:1.0%;mso-cellspacing:0in;background:
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column;mso-height-rule:exactly'><font size=3 face="Times New Roman"><span
style='font-size:12.0pt'><o:p> </o:p></span></font></p>
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<p><font size=3 face="Times New Roman"><span style='font-size:12.0pt'>According
to Dr Judith Cook of the </span></font><st1:country-region><st1:place>UK</st1:place></st1:country-region>
based <span class=SpellE>organisation</span> <span class=SpellE>Medact</span>,<sup>
</sup>"Sixty three per cent of households lack proper sanitation,<sup> </sup>46%
lack access to drinking water, food availability is still<sup> </sup>sparse
with many reliant upon a system of food basket distribution,<sup> </sup>and,
despite a large increase in per capita health funding in<sup> </sup>2004, <span
class=GramE>the</span> public system remains severely <span class=SpellE>underfunded</span>."<sup>
</sup><o:p></o:p></p>
<p><font size=3 face="Times New Roman"><span style='font-size:12.0pt'>The
downwards spiral of </span></font><st1:country-region><st1:place>Iraq</st1:place></st1:country-region>'s
public health system began with<sup> </sup>the 1991 Gulf war, the conference
heard. "Sanctions helped to<sup> </sup>destroy one of the <st1:place>Middle
East</st1:place>'s best health systems and resulted<sup> </sup>in over a
million deaths," Dr <span class=SpellE>Ismael</span> said. "Sanctions
also led<sup> </sup>to a breakdown in health system <span class=SpellE>organisation</span>,
creating an environment<sup> </sup>in which corruption began to thrive. This
has become worse since<sup> </sup>occupation."<sup> </sup><o:p></o:p></p>
<p><font size=3 face="Times New Roman"><span style='font-size:12.0pt'>"There
is one hospital that has no drugs," Dr <span class=SpellE>Ismael</span>
recounted.<sup> </sup>"One employee was fired because he was corrupt. He
was reinstated<sup> </sup>in the administration department after the
occupation. Instead<sup> </sup>of using the limited budget to buy drugs, he
spent 5m Iraqi<sup> </sup><span class=SpellE>dinar</span> [£2000; $3600; <img
border=0 width=11 height=12 id="_x0000_i1049"
src="cid:image001.gif@01C59692.C5CC0140" alt="{euro}">2900] on new uniforms
because he<sup> </sup>could get a kickback from the uniforms. This cancer of
corruption<sup> </sup>is destroying my nation."<sup> </sup><o:p></o:p></span></font></p>
<p><font size=3 face="Times New Roman"><span style='font-size:12.0pt'>Doctors
reportedly carry guns to prevent looting of the minimal<sup> </sup>supplies of
drugs and other resources from hospitals. The main<sup> </sup>hospital in </span></font><st1:City><st1:place>Baghdad</st1:place></st1:City>
is able to get only 15% of the water it<sup> </sup>needs for its patients.<sup>
</sup><o:p></o:p></p>
<div class=MsoNormal><font size=3 face="Times New Roman"><span
style='font-size:12.0pt'>
<hr size=1 width="30%" noshade color="#aca899" align=left>
</span></font></div>
<p class=MsoNormal><a name=""><!-- null --><font size=3 face="Times New Roman"><span
style='font-size:12.0pt'><img border=0 width=50 height=37 id="_x0000_i1051"
src="cid:image002.gif@01C59692.C5CC0140" alt="{webplus.f1}">Longer versions of<sup>
</sup>these articles are on </span></font></a><span class=SpellE><span
style='mso-bookmark:""'>bmj.com</span></span><span style='mso-bookmark:""'><sup>
</sup><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<span style='mso-bookmark:""'></span>
<p><font size=3 face="Times New Roman"><span style='font-size:12.0pt'><!-- null -->See
<a href="http://www.doctorsforiraq.org"><span class=SpellE>www.doctorsforiraq.org</span></a>.<sup>
</sup><o:p></o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=3 face="Times New Roman"><span style='font-size:
12.0pt'><o:p> </o:p></span></font></p>
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