Angelina Jolie writes about Iraqi refugees

I was surprised to see Angelina Jolie, UNHCR goodwill ambassador, invading the front page of the WaPo online today:

The request is familiar to American ears: "Bring them home."

But in Iraq, where I've just met with American and Iraqi leaders, the phrase carries a different meaning. It does not refer to the departure of U.S. troops, but to the return of the millions of innocent Iraqis who have been driven out of their homes and, in many cases, out of the country.

We still don't know exactly how many Iraqis have fled their homes, where they've all gone, or how they're managing to survive. Here is what we do know: More than 2 million people are refugees inside their own country -- without homes, jobs and, to a terrible degree, without medicine, food or clean water. Ethnic cleansing and other acts of unspeakable violence have driven them into a vast and very dangerous no-man's land. Many of the survivors huddle in mosques, in abandoned buildings with no electricity, in tents or in one-room huts made of straw and mud. Fifty-eight percent of these internally displaced people are younger than 12 years old.

An additional 2.5 million Iraqis have sought refuge outside Iraq, mainly in Syria and Jordan. But those host countries have reached their limits. Overwhelmed by the refugees they already have, these countries have essentially closed their borders until the international community provides support.

This issue of Iraqi refugees, located both within Iraq and in other countries, is receiving almost no coverage in the United States.  

How could you live if you were forced to leave your home, maybe with a few bags, maybe with nothing, move to a strange country already overloaded with refugees, without money, resources, without a connection or a job...and no end in sight? It is horrific to contemplate.  Forget about school for your children.  Forget about soccer.  About little league, piano lessons.  No access to health care.  No access to probably even the basics - toiletries, clean diapers, bottles, formula, deodorant, toothpaste, soap.  Losing track of all of your friends and other family members.  Forget about all the keepsakes and possessions in your family history - you leave all that behind to be stolen or destroyed.  Forget about any assets, a home, a car, you owned. Probably you had to leave your pets behind as well.  How could you live? Even if not physically scarred, how damaged and deprived would your children be?  What kind of a parent would you be, enduring the fear and stress of this dangerous, uncertain and grossly unfair and wrong situation?

I'm glad to see this issue on the front page of the Washington Post - even though only in editorial form.  Perhaps the WaPo will decide that they should actually now do some reporting on the issue.

I also wonder why the entire Bush Administration has been AWOL on this issue.  Well, I don't wonder.  I know why they have been AWOL.  Some combination of "don't give a damn" and "never take responsibility for our actions."  

For as much as the Republicans like to trash Hollywood, it takes a Hollywood actress to face this difficult situation when they can't or won't.

At least, apparently, Gen. David Petraeus was forced by Jolie to indirectly deal with the issue:

One thing is certain: It will be quite a while before Iraq is ready to absorb more than 4 million refugees and displaced people. But it is not too early to start working on solutions. And last week, there were signs of progress.

In Baghdad, I spoke with Army Gen. David Petraeus about UNHCR's need for security information and protection for its staff as they re-enter Iraq, and I am pleased that he has offered that support. General Petraeus also told me he would support new efforts to address the humanitarian crisis "to the maximum extent possible" -- which leaves me hopeful that more progress can be made.

To my knowledge, George Bush has never spoken of the refugee crisis.

Dick Cheney has never spoken of the refugee crisis.

Laura Bush was in Portland, Oregon today talking about keeping your children safe from on-line predators.  

Laura Bush has never spoken of the refugee crisis.

Condi Rice has never spoken of the refugee crisis.

Mitch McConnell has never spoken of the refugee crisis.

John Boehner has never spoken of the refugee crisis.

John McCain has never spoken of the refugee crisis.

It is unconscionable, what they have caused.

I can only hope that someday they will be made to appreciate the full magnitude of the consequences of their illegal, immoral war.

My visit left me even more deeply convinced that we not only have a moral obligation to help displaced Iraqi families, but also a serious, long-term, national security interest in ending this crisis.

Today's humanitarian crisis in Iraq -- and the potential consequences for our national security -- are great. Can the United States afford to gamble that 4 million or more poor and displaced people, in the heart of Middle East, won't explode in violent desperation, sending the whole region into further disorder?

Barack Obama - I hope you make a note of this in your first debate with McCain, when he tries to paint Democrats as weak on national security.