The Foundation for the Defense of Democracies and the Middle East Forum at Brandeis sponsored a discussion with Ahood Al-Fadhal, Iraq's first elected female government official, last Wednesday at the Rose Art Museum. About 80 students and visitors came to hear Al-Fadhal talk about her experiences during and after Saddam Hussein's regime.

"I tell the Arabs here that we appreciate the freedom," Al-Fadhal said. "We are very thankful and grateful for [the Americans] and we also appreciate the liberation and freedom. I want to say to the mothers and fathers, who lost their sons and daughters, we are very sorry. I am here to say [to] the U.S. army [we are] very thankful [to them] for putting their life on the line for us."

This was Al-Fadhal's first visit to the United States. She returned to Basra on Friday, after a month of speaking to students, teachers, the local media, the army and parents of soldiers around the country.

Marc Narotsky '06, an organizer of the event and a member of the Foundation for the Defense of Democracies, explained the purpose of the lecture.

"It humanizes the conflict," Narotsky said. "It lets the world know that there are millions of people that are free, thanks to the liberation of Iraq."

Al-Fadhal also spoke about the improved situation for women and the biases of the media in America.

"What you read in the newspaper is not correct," Al-Fadhal said.

Students had mixed responses to her comments.

"Because of this, I am starting to understand the importance of supporting Iraq at this crucial stage in this historical matter," Jimmy Kamel '07 said. "Lack of support from the neighboring countries is detrimental to the development, especially at a point in its history as crucial as this."

Hannah Ramer '08 said she was skeptical about the validity of Al-Fadhal's talk.

"She gave a one-sided view but she was very positive [and] optimistic," Ramer said. "I was admittedly very surprised by that."

"It's really interesting to hear someone's perspective from inside the country as opposed to our media and our presidential candidates talking of it," Lindsey Saunders '07 said.

Al-Fadhal said that the American media prefers to print stories about violence.

She said when American troops came into Basra-Iraq's third largest city-everybody left their homes to celebrate in the street.

Al-Fadhal has a degree in communications from the University of Baghdad. She is a trained journalist, but said she could not work under Hussein's regime because of her status in society.

She said that she spent her days at home, worrying if there was enough money to feed her children and if they would be imprisoned.

Hussein killed Al-Fadhal's three brothers, and her family has spent time in prison because her husband's mother is Iranian.

Al-Fadhal said that Hussein was an uneducated man and that under his rule, Iraq suffered from neglect. She said there were no scholarships, the university had no new books and no connection existed with the outside world.

Under Hussein's regime, she said there were only two newspapers in Iraq- one owned by him and the other by his son.

But now, she said Iraq has over 200 publications in circulation.

Al-Fadhal is currently the editor of the Iraqi Women's Echo. She said that the newsletter reports on the struggles and problems that Iraqi women face.