International Zone Offers Peaceful Voting Venue

Photo By Spc. William Addison | Air Force Staff Sgt. Steven Baumann of the International Zone police, above, checks a local man's credentials while an Iraqi police officer looks on during election day in Baghdad's International Zone, Jan. 31.  

IRAQ

02.28.2009

Story by Spc. William Addison 

44th Infantry Brigade Combat Team Public Affairs

Routine badge checks on the 14th of July Bridge, one minor escort violation, and teenagers hanging out on the causeway at dusk and stopping to play with some children - no major incidences of violence, no indirect fire, not even a minor traffic accident.

For the International Zone police, it was a typical day with one exception: It was Election Day.

"It really wasn't' all that different. We saw a lot more Iraqi army and Iraqi police out on the streets, and a lot less of the public was out as well. Other than that, it really hadn't changed all that much," said Air Force Staff Sgt. Steven Baumann, IZ police officer from the U.S. Forces Police Squadron in Vogelweh, Germany.

But it could have easily gone the other way. While Iraqi citizens in Baghdad celebrated the day as a holiday, inside the IZ heightened security and restricted travel was the theme, anticipating the worst possible scenarios.

"We didn't quite know what the expectations were for today.We knew there might be a little bit of hostile activity in the area, possibly some indirect fire attacks. So we were kind of expecting that. But it's been pretty routine throughout the day, pretty uneventful," said Tech Sgt. Brandon Wolfgang, IZ police.

In fact, the only real difference was the purple index fingers of the Iraqis whom the police stopped to talk to. Dipping their finger into purple ink is the last step in the voting process and a badge of honor for the citizens who voted.

"I asked them about their finger and they looked at me with a big smile and said, 'I voted.' That's just a special thing," said Airman 1st Class Ryan Patrick Meehan. This is his first deployment to Iraq, and one he said he will remember fondly.

"It's one of the best things to know that Iraqis can vote without consequences and elect who they want in office," he said. "It's something I'm going to remember for the rest of my life and my kids are going to learn about in their history classes. I can help them on their school reports tell them what it was like over here."

Meehan said that he identifies with the people of Iraq. The 19-year-old Airman participated in his first U.S. presidential election in the last year, albeit absentee.

"Voting, to me, is one of the best things you can do as an American citizen. Vote for who you want in office and who you want to represent your country," he said.

The elections marked another success story in the overall picture of Iraqi independence since the implementation of the Security Agreement, Jan. 1, where control of securing the International Zone was transitioned to the Iraqis.

For Wolfgang, it's another sign that Iraqis are eager to take full control of their country, a scene he sees played out almost daily in his interaction with the Iraqi police.

"We're already transitioning. When they are riding with us, we let them take the lead on any incidents that involve the Iraqi people and the local nationals in the area," said Wolfgang.

While he said he can't speak for the Iraqi police in other parts of the country, he feels confident that the IZ will be in good hands under the watch of the Iraqi police.

"They take the International Zone being a safe zone very seriously," he said. "I think it shows how seriously they are taking this. They've shown a lot of force in the area and they've done a really good job of actually securing the International Zone for the elections."

"The people in Iraq have been shown that they have a voice and they can vote. I knew that it would be a special day for Iraq and their history. I expected a little more chaos for us, but it's been a pretty good day," he said.

• Date Taken: 02.28.2009
• Date Posted: 02.28.2009 05:56
• Story ID: 30555
• Location: IQ