'Losing our country' - Baghdad blogger
Salam Pax, the Baghdad blogger who's postings were read worldwide during the American invasion of Iraq has made a documentary for BBC's Newsnight programme to commemorate the third anniversary of the occupation.
He says, initially, when he saw Saddam's statue being pulled down he thought that was "unbelievable" and it produced, "strong feelings that things were going to change".
However, gradually throughout the fifteen minute film (Click on title to go to website and watch) he talks of a sense of fear and insecurity that has made many Iraqis leave the country.
He says that, in the beginning of the US occupation he had hoped for "a big bright future". He thought that there were, "hiccups, but I was convinced things would get better".
"A lot was going on and it was amazing how quickly things were changing. For the first time everyone had access to satellite dishes, almost a 150 new newspapers and magazines and about a 100 new political parties suddenly appeared out of nowhere."
"But at the same time many Iraqis were having bad experiences with the occupying forces."
But there was another, more unexpected, problem.
Mr Pax says the country has become so deeply divided that any sense of national identity has been eroded.
"I have a Sunni name from my father but my mother is a Shia and we are all Arabs.
"If I want to visit the Shia south I feel safer when using my mother's name. I am not very welcome in the Kurdish north because I'm Arab; in fact I need a permit just to go there.
"All these are labels and all I want to be is an Iraqi - but there doesn't seem to be such a thing any more."
He concludes, that he now feels "more negative about our future today than I have ever been before".
No doubt Bush would dismiss this as the press again being unfair and failing to see the progress. There are none so blind as those who will not see.
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