(Translated by NOMURA; Osami)
In this time, I have been allowed for going into the demilitarised zone which is the UN surveillance area between Iraq and Kuwait. I was a first foreign journalist in the zone.
The zone had to be a entry prohibition area, however there lived people calmly producing some crops.
Iraq was beaten at the allied force on the Gulf War in 1991, and the boundary between Iraq and Saudi-Arabia was backed 4km to the land of Iraq. The demilitarised zone was set in Iraq's land at 10km from the boundary. The United Nations decided the zone as a "radioactive zone" where was contaminated by depleted uranium in ammunitions used by forces of USA and UK on the Gulf War. In Iraq, the Ministry of Defence and the Ministry of Public Welfare jointly controlled the zone as a keep out.
We were lead by a military officer of Ministry of Defence of Iraq. In the west of Basra we saw a reach of desert, but here and there we saw green fields which are enclosed by wind-hedges made of rushes. Deserts do not yield rushes. We asked the farmers, and It was clear that they took the rushes at lowlands of the Euphrates River over 100km away from here.
Iraq had been in war for a long time. But the persons, who were living in the places, dug wells, made fields and raised crops. They were straggling sands of the desert and producing foods for people of Iraq.
Mohammed Arwan, 80 years old, was the elder of the village in which two families were composed by twelve persons. We told him name of the village, and he answered that the village had no-name. He had estates, that whole area is 2500a, in which he was growing tomatoes mainly, and also wheats, broccoli, onions, beans and etc. He raised 15 sheep and 5 ducks. He had a crimson truck made of Chevrolet and a water pump made of Yammah. Sum of them was a whole of his assets.
"On winter season, temperature is 17 to 18 degree centigrade in daytime and 3 to 4 in night, then sweet tomatoes are grown"; he said smiling over with his suntan face and stroking his proud mustache with white hair. He was consigning 1500 to 2000 boxes contained 30kg of tomatoes. These tomatoes were forwarded to the whole country of Iraq.
While in Iraq now, cancers and leukaemia were increasing rapidly on children by depleted uranium in munitions used on the Gulf War. The tomatoes might promote this evils.
Depleted uranium in the munitions penetrated underground and polluted underground water. These tomatoes surely condensed and contained the depleted uranium. However, Iraq's people could not worry about safety of foods, because of chronic food deficiency by economic sanctions.
We were lead in Mr. Mohammed's house. The house was made by dried clay. The inside was very comfortable for preventing heat by sunshine. There was no furniture in the house, and six households lived on the carpeted floor. A photograph of President Hussein was stuck on the wall.
Mr. Mohammed said; "In prewar days, the government proposed agricultural chemicals and manure, but almost all of them were done away by the economic sanctions. Therefore, We goes to Amman for supplying by ourself". His son, Mr. Wassim, muttered; "We do not get so much profit because of too cost."
We saw black smoke covered deep-blue sky over the Lumaila oil field in the distance. The oil did not export by economic sanctions, and it was being burned futility.
Suddenly, the sound of a jet aircraft screamed in blue-black sky. The aircraft was a reconnaissance plane of the U.S. Forces. Here was a flight prohibition zone which UN decided.
When we were in the farm, we forgot for a little while that here was still a battlefield. They cultivated premises without changing from ancient times, and were continuing raising yields in the demilitarised zone which was keep out. They did not change their lives. In this place, the administrating state and government changed without their circumstances, and the environment changed completely.
The tomatoes grew up on the ground and the underground water. Both were polluted by radioactive materials.
We were in full view of cruelty of the present war on them. We wished that the no-named village will come to peace in early time, and we made farewell to them.