The Battle for Bayji
February 9, 2008
Walking the streets of Iraq is not always safe, and with the raw sewage and garbage that often litter the streets, it is not always easy either, but for our troops it is all in a day’s work. In an effort to build goodwill between the people of Bayji and the officials of the city, a foot patrol was organized. Among those on the ground were the Mayor of Bayji and other high-ranking city officials, Iraqi police and soldiers, and members of the 101st Airborne Division’s 1st Brigade’s 1st Battalion, including Lieutenant Colonel Pete Wilhelm, Sergeant Major James Bodecker, and Captain Tim Meadors.
Bayji is the home of the Bayji Oil Refinery (the BOR), the biggest oil refinery in Iraq, but this doesn’t translate to wealth for everyone, or even gas for everyone. The only thing that touches everyone in Bayji is corruption.
The Refinery is a blessing and a curse. If the clouds overhead suddenly began to rain money, most of us would scramble to collect our share. Some of us would push other people out of the way so we could take their share too. That is the effect the Refinery has had on many people in Bayji and beyond. The government should manage the flow of resources but how many government officials are going to be able to resist putting their hand in a pot so big? It would almost be bad business to turn away such easy money.
In spite of the fact that the Refinery is currently working at capacity, residents sometimes have difficulty obtaining gasoline and kerosene. Gas stations are often closed. An open gas station is easy to spot as the line of cars can extend as far as the eye can see. Black market gas is for sale on most main streets, sold in plastic jugs, often by enterprising boys—both the buyers and sellers on some level part of the corruption, the proceeds of these sales potentially fueling insurgent activities.
Each province in Iraq is allotted a specific amount of kerosene, but for some reason Bayji does not get enough to meet the demand of its residents, which increases during the winter months. Mr. A---, Chief of Operations at the BOR, has been frustrated by this inability to make kerosene available to those in need, and has requested an addition to the allotment for Bayji, the distribution of which will be handled by the Mayor, as if he doesn’t have enough to worry about.
The Mayor of Bayji has a fantastic head of hair and he carries a gun. It is strapped to his waist under his nicely tailored suit, and who can blame him. For our soldiers, part of their mission is to identify the good people and lend them our support, to identify the bad people and take away their power. The Mayor has to walk a fine line between the good and the bad. If he decided to go after the bad people, to capture those involved in any of the many rings of corruption, well, first he would have to figure out which of his police are among them, and then he would have to go into hiding or he would be killed.
For many of Bayji’s residents the desire to profit from the riches pouring out of the Refinery translates to fairly modest expectations. They are not terrorists, just people trying to get on with life. Presented with the opportunity to express their hopes for Bayji to the Mayor himself, citizens spoke out. They want the things we take for granted: a steady and dependable supply of electricity, water, and fuel. An outspoken woman employed at a girls’ school stressed the need for better security. Anyone not willing to turn a blind eye to insurgent activity is taking a risk, and often there is the sense that local police are doing nothing to help.
Everyone in Iraq has to decide whether he or she wants to be part of the problem or part of the solution. To complicate matters, there are so many problems in Iraq that it is certainly possible to be part of more than one. And there is a shortage of solutions.
By hitting the streets of Bayji, the officials of the city and the soldiers of the 101st Airborne Division hope to be part of the solution. As with so many of these goodwill missions, there is only so much the soldiers can do. The response to their presence is often mixed, but there were plenty of friendly faces in the crowd as they moved from one neighborhood to another. Maybe the citizens of Bayji are beginning to realize they must pick their battles, and it doesn’t make any sense to fight the people who are trying to help them. shelbymonroe@gmail.com
Walking the streets of Iraq is not always safe, and with the raw sewage and garbage that often litter the streets, it is not always easy either, but for our troops it is all in a day’s work. In an effort to build goodwill between the people of Bayji and the officials of the city, a foot patrol was organized. Among those on the ground were the Mayor of Bayji and other high-ranking city officials, Iraqi police and soldiers, and members of the 101st Airborne Division’s 1st Brigade’s 1st Battalion, including Lieutenant Colonel Pete Wilhelm, Sergeant Major James Bodecker, and Captain Tim Meadors.
Bayji is the home of the Bayji Oil Refinery (the BOR), the biggest oil refinery in Iraq, but this doesn’t translate to wealth for everyone, or even gas for everyone. The only thing that touches everyone in Bayji is corruption.
The Refinery is a blessing and a curse. If the clouds overhead suddenly began to rain money, most of us would scramble to collect our share. Some of us would push other people out of the way so we could take their share too. That is the effect the Refinery has had on many people in Bayji and beyond. The government should manage the flow of resources but how many government officials are going to be able to resist putting their hand in a pot so big? It would almost be bad business to turn away such easy money.
In spite of the fact that the Refinery is currently working at capacity, residents sometimes have difficulty obtaining gasoline and kerosene. Gas stations are often closed. An open gas station is easy to spot as the line of cars can extend as far as the eye can see. Black market gas is for sale on most main streets, sold in plastic jugs, often by enterprising boys—both the buyers and sellers on some level part of the corruption, the proceeds of these sales potentially fueling insurgent activities.
Each province in Iraq is allotted a specific amount of kerosene, but for some reason Bayji does not get enough to meet the demand of its residents, which increases during the winter months. Mr. A---, Chief of Operations at the BOR, has been frustrated by this inability to make kerosene available to those in need, and has requested an addition to the allotment for Bayji, the distribution of which will be handled by the Mayor, as if he doesn’t have enough to worry about.
The Mayor of Bayji has a fantastic head of hair and he carries a gun. It is strapped to his waist under his nicely tailored suit, and who can blame him. For our soldiers, part of their mission is to identify the good people and lend them our support, to identify the bad people and take away their power. The Mayor has to walk a fine line between the good and the bad. If he decided to go after the bad people, to capture those involved in any of the many rings of corruption, well, first he would have to figure out which of his police are among them, and then he would have to go into hiding or he would be killed.
For many of Bayji’s residents the desire to profit from the riches pouring out of the Refinery translates to fairly modest expectations. They are not terrorists, just people trying to get on with life. Presented with the opportunity to express their hopes for Bayji to the Mayor himself, citizens spoke out. They want the things we take for granted: a steady and dependable supply of electricity, water, and fuel. An outspoken woman employed at a girls’ school stressed the need for better security. Anyone not willing to turn a blind eye to insurgent activity is taking a risk, and often there is the sense that local police are doing nothing to help.
Everyone in Iraq has to decide whether he or she wants to be part of the problem or part of the solution. To complicate matters, there are so many problems in Iraq that it is certainly possible to be part of more than one. And there is a shortage of solutions.
By hitting the streets of Bayji, the officials of the city and the soldiers of the 101st Airborne Division hope to be part of the solution. As with so many of these goodwill missions, there is only so much the soldiers can do. The response to their presence is often mixed, but there were plenty of friendly faces in the crowd as they moved from one neighborhood to another. Maybe the citizens of Bayji are beginning to realize they must pick their battles, and it doesn’t make any sense to fight the people who are trying to help them. shelbymonroe@gmail.com
posted by Shelby Monroe at 3:51 AM
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