Most of us are too young to remember what happened in Iraq and what atrocities happened during the age of conflict in the region. Many of us for sure may not have even heard of Amna Suraka and what it was. It is however, one of the finer museums in Iraq today.
The place used to be a prison, and its name in Kurdish means red security, or red security house. During the reign of Saddam Hussein, thousands of Kurdish people were imprisoned and tortured here, with crimes ranging from political insubordination to just plain being Kurdish.
The museum is located in the former security complex in the city of Sulaymaniyeh, and has retained its former red color complete with bullet holes received during the war of liberation and uprising in 1991. The courtyard in the Red Security building is replete with machineries and equipment of death. It is full of tanks, mortars, artillery pieces of assorted shapes and sizes. This is a grim reminder of what Iraq was before.
The first area that will greet one when entering the building will be the Hall of Mirrors. This hall contains 182,000 shards of glass comprising one enormous sort of installation art. Each shard represents one life taken from the Kurds under the rule of Saddam. On the ceiling of the same room are twinkling lights numbering 4,500, each light representing one village destroyed during the Anfal campaign.
The room next to the Hall of Mirrors is a room that shows a replica of a typical Kurdish village and is passed when one enters the main building. Here in the main building visitors will feel a bit uneasy as this is where the torture chambers and prison cells are contained. One part in the area is recreated with gruesome statues and sculptures of Kurdish prisoners. Probably the most heart wrenching is a lifelike diorama of two children being tortured to extract information from them.
Going down further to the basement, one will be immersed in a photo gallery depicting the chemical attack on Halabja. The way it is presented here is somewhat akin to what one would see in the Holocaust museum in Tel Aviv. It will definitely make one more humanistic and sympathetic to the Kurdish plight.
Thus on the trip that involve Kurdistan, whether one is just backpacking through or riding through, it would be recommended to visit this place. Not only will it be educational, but a somewhat humanizing experience as well.
The place used to be a prison, and its name in Kurdish means red security, or red security house. During the reign of Saddam Hussein, thousands of Kurdish people were imprisoned and tortured here, with crimes ranging from political insubordination to just plain being Kurdish.
The museum is located in the former security complex in the city of Sulaymaniyeh, and has retained its former red color complete with bullet holes received during the war of liberation and uprising in 1991. The courtyard in the Red Security building is replete with machineries and equipment of death. It is full of tanks, mortars, artillery pieces of assorted shapes and sizes. This is a grim reminder of what Iraq was before.
The first area that will greet one when entering the building will be the Hall of Mirrors. This hall contains 182,000 shards of glass comprising one enormous sort of installation art. Each shard represents one life taken from the Kurds under the rule of Saddam. On the ceiling of the same room are twinkling lights numbering 4,500, each light representing one village destroyed during the Anfal campaign.
The room next to the Hall of Mirrors is a room that shows a replica of a typical Kurdish village and is passed when one enters the main building. Here in the main building visitors will feel a bit uneasy as this is where the torture chambers and prison cells are contained. One part in the area is recreated with gruesome statues and sculptures of Kurdish prisoners. Probably the most heart wrenching is a lifelike diorama of two children being tortured to extract information from them.
Going down further to the basement, one will be immersed in a photo gallery depicting the chemical attack on Halabja. The way it is presented here is somewhat akin to what one would see in the Holocaust museum in Tel Aviv. It will definitely make one more humanistic and sympathetic to the Kurdish plight.
Thus on the trip that involve Kurdistan, whether one is just backpacking through or riding through, it would be recommended to visit this place. Not only will it be educational, but a somewhat humanizing experience as well.
About the Author:
Read my intriguing story about the experience at Amna Suraka Iraq where I faced many challenges along the way. I have written about my backpacking Iraq to Saddam Hussein's house of horrors. Check out my blog today by visiting the site.
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