Mr. Annan , what was the point of the sanctions ?!

Seriously, what was the point of the sanctions ? 13 years of a vicious embargo imposed on a suppressed people in the name of punishing its dictator ?!

I remember in the begining of the sancitons once Saddam Hussein appeared in one of his usual tours on Iraqi TV. He was in an Iraqi village where he was eating slaughtered sheeps "Iraqi BBQ style" he said "The sanctions are not on me. Look at Saddam Hussein I am eating very good now. It is on you".

Whoever that person was who came up with the idea that punishing an entire nation would make Saddam Hussein hungry and results in Saddam Hussein dying from hunger was - mind my language - the stupidest person ever.

The sanctions resulted in making the people weaker, and Saddam Hussein stronger. When facing a tyranny, a nation must not be hungry if it needed to revolt. I think the sanctions did more benefits to Saddam Hussein than harms.

Did they really think that Saddam Hussein was going to die from hunger ?!

Then they came up with "OIL-for-Rubbish" programme. People were getting expired food (and until now) from the third world undeveloped countries. Like expired rice, flour, solid oil, yukky soaps (when you use it to wash your hand it makes your hands dirtier not cleaner), etc. Oh yeah, and don't forget Egyptian expired cheese with all kinds of bacteria growing on them.

The Oil-For-Rubbish programme totally killed agriculture and local industries. The programme was designed to benefit some certain people, including Mr. Annan, rather than benefit the sanctioned people.

In Kurdistan, there were 2 sanctions, or sometimes 3 or 4. One from the United Nations, one from Saddam Hussein, one from Turkey, etc.
We were telling the UN "Excuse me Saddam Hussein is not in Kurdistan why we are being punished for his actions ? That is an insult. He is our worst enemy why you are punishing us for something our enemy has done ?!"

I hope Koffi Annan and all the other western countries involved in the embargo then the Oil-for-Rubbish (sorry that is not food) programme would be punished. There was no point in punishing a nation fighting tyranny for its tyrant. And there is no point to continue that punishment in another form "Oil-for-Rubbish" programme.