Washington: US President George W Bush, in a rare "global message", said on April 22
that Iraqis are "emerging from the shadow of tyranny".
"The overall situation in Iraq is improving daily, but coalition forces still face
resistance from remnants of Saddam's death squads and foreign fighters who came to
oppose coalition forces."
"As we work to remove remaining elements of the former regime, the Iraqi people are
emerging from the shadow of Saddam's tyranny to help coalition forces find death
squads, uncover weapons caches, capture regime leaders, recover PoWs (prisoners of
war), and restore order and basic services," he said.
This kind of co-operation is happening on a daily basis, across the county - a sign
of the growing trust between coalition forces and the majority of ordinary Iraqis,
Bush added.
"Of course, not all Iraqis support the coalition presence. In any totalitarian
system, there will be a small portion of the population that profits from the power
of the dictatorship, while some others may be ordinary citizens who are
understandably uncomfortable with the presence of any foreign forces on their
soil."
A few weeks ago, there were no protests in Iraq. Now, Iraqis are speaking out,
expressing opinions, discussing and debating the future of their country, Bush
added.
"They can do so because of the courage and determination of the coalition forces,"
he said.
PTI
