Terry Waite talks about hostages
Find a Conversation
| Thu, 09-30-2004 - 3:36am |
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/6132661/site/newsweek/
Former Beirut captive Terry Waite discusses the hostages in Iraq and the best way to negotiate with their captors
Darren Staples / Reuters
Former hostage Terry Waite speaks to reporters on Sept. 25 after visiting the mother of British hostage Kenneth Bigley, who is being held in Iraq
WEB EXCLUSIVE
By Eric Pape
Newsweek
Updated: 1:44 p.m. ET Sept. 29, 2004Sept. 29 - In the unfortunate history of long-term hostages, Terry Waite's story is unique. He is the British hostage negotiator who was taken captive during talks aimed at freeing other Westerners in Beirut in 1987. Islamic terrorists concluded that Waite was a CIA spy. He was tortured and held in dark cellars or outhouses, often blindfolded and in chains, mostly in solitary confinement. They spared Waite's life only after he endured extensive torture—including whipping the soles of his feet, which marks his every step even today. Nearly five years on—that's 1,760 grueling days—Waite was released after convincing his captors that he wasn’t a spy.
advertisement
Last Saturday, Waite met privately with the family of English hostage Kenneth Bigley to discuss his plight, and he criticized Prime Minister Tony Blair for not negotiating to free Bigley.
Now a humanitarian activist, inspirational speaker, author and vigorous opponent of the war in Iraq, Waite spoke with NEWSWEEK’s Eric Pape by phone from the United Kingdom about the latest wave of high-profile abductions in which lives hang precariously in the balance.
NEWSWEEK: Why are so many hostages being taken in Iraq?
Terry Waite: When you remove a dictator by military action in a situation like Iraq—a dictator who has held disparate groups and a country together by force—you can't be surprised when those groups fight each other and create chaos, or when you create a vacuum that allows extremists in. The resulting resentment against the West also brings in more fanatics. So the hostage-taking isn't surprising.
Why do people take hostages amid strife?
Hostage-taking is a symptom. In fact, the “international war on terror†is largely a war on symptoms. You don't treat symptoms; you need to go to the root of the problem. Why are the “black widows†in southern Russia and other young women in Palestine willing to strap explosives on themselves and die for a cause? They have no hope, so they resort to desperate measures. You must deal with their lack of hope. We don't need more politicians, we need statesmen who understand the full complexity of the issues, and deal with their roots.
Is hostage-taking in Iraq evolving?
It has moved from the realm of political motivations into the hands of criminal gangs. They seize hostages and sell them off. It has happened before, in Beirut and Colombia. In Iraq, the avowed aim is to force the U.S. and its allies out, and they are increasingly determined to do that. The hostage strategy, from their point of view, must seem to be paying off. Foreigners are increasingly unwilling to work there. And if the infrastructure isn't being built, that is a real problem.
What about hostage negotiating? Has that changed?
Years ago when I was negotiating in Iran, Libya and Beirut, I followed a simple strategy: seek a face-to-face meeting with the hostage takers, build a relationship of trust and, after having gotten to their demands, try to see if there is a way to allow people to walk away with dignity. That presupposes that there is an opportunity to build trust and that there is a political solution. It broke down for me in Beirut. Today, politicians refuse to enter into meaningful dialogue with more responsible people. There were people in Chechnya who were willing to talk to the Russians, even if that is a century-old problem. But (the Russians and other governments) have a heavy emphasis on crushing with military might. This opens the door to absolute extremists, fanatics and psychopaths, and it is virtually impossible to negotiate with such people.
So how can the equation be changed?
The "black widows" have lost their husbands in the war. Their husbands' families have taken their children. Some of these women have been wounded, others raped by Russian soldiers. Amid such intense deterioration, you must calm things down, return them to the political sphere. As it is now, the fanatics have a field day.
When you were being held, what were your captors like?
Some were humane and understanding, others were psychopathic and couldn't give a damn, but they were bound together quite tightly, for reasons of security, as part of a terrorist group.
You have suggested that the U.S. detentions at Guantanamo Bay in Cuba constitute hostage-taking.
Definitely. Senior American officials initially said these men were the worst of the worst. That is absolute nonsense. After spending two or more years in terrible conditions, some have been freed and returned home. I have spoken with the father of Mr. Begg, the Englishman still in Guantanamo. He says, “I believe my son is innocent, but let the charges be heard, let him have due process and if he is guilty, punish him.†But give him rights. When you try to deal with terrorism by using terrorist methods, the terrorists have won. They have taken things from the U.S. and the West that America fought hard for: freedom and justice before the law. I think America will one day look back on Guantanamo as a major blot on its past.
Are the French hostages in Iraq in a different situation than other Westerners given their government's antiwar stance?
The French have made as much progress with its relations in the Arab world as anyone. France learned a great deal during their war in Algeria many years ago. They recognized that military might alone does not allow you to deal effectively with terrorism. It is a measure of the mess in Iraq that French journalists have been taken hostage, and it is a measure of the success of French efforts that they are still alive. Of all of the Western hostages, I'd say they have the best chance of surviving. Having said that, it is still very dangerous.
What advice would you give those being held hostage in Iraq today?
Always keep hope alive. Once you lose hope, you've had it.
