THERE are few more dramatic periods in human history than the toppling of a brutal tyranny and dictatorship.

When the fighting ends, and the world and media spotlight dims, a less-noticed period unfolds. In the case of Iraq, it is the job of getting a punch-drunk and war-weary country back on its feet.

That is the reality in the Office of Reconstruction and Humanitarian Assistance — the most complex and challenging job I have faced in more than 30 years of military service. This is not just a country damaged by conflict but by 30 years of systematic intimidation and repression. It is not just Iraq’s infrastructure that is damaged; it is the minds of a whole people.

Until you have been in Iraq, some of the comic-book style Saddam-bashing can have the uneasy feel of sloganeering. But once you arrive, even the most hardened cynic will feel the sense of fear and powerlessness of this country. It is etched in Iraqi faces. The megalomania of its ruling clique is ingrained into each ornate room of Saddam Hussein’s many palaces, which overshadow the slums and poverty that dominate the country.

Despite that, there is no shortage of critics of what we are trying to achieve, indeed of our being here in the first place. Criticism comes from two key directions. There are those who accuse us of being occupiers pushing some clandestine self-serving agenda. Others say that we are failing to get the job done and are not delivering a peace worthy of the war.

If we at the Office of Reconstruction and Humanitarian Assistance are occupiers, it is the most perverse and bizarre occupation I have experienced. It is an occupation where generals and ambassadors live on army rations, have no running water, rely on outdoor toilets and cram into shared and often dirt-ridden rooms in sweltering heat.

But to a man and woman we choose to be here because we believe in what we are doing. There are more than 900 staff — Iraqis, Americans, British, Australians, Mozambicans, soldiers, civilians, reservists, some coming out of retirement and other volunteers — and the team is getting bigger and more diverse every day.

As you drive through the dirt and rundown towns from the borders through to cities such as Baghdad and Basra, children line the roads. Many wave, some smile, others stare in wide-eyed confusion. More than 60 per cent of the population of Iraq is under 25 and more than 40 per cent under 14. All they have known is a brutal dictatorship, and with it fear and poverty.

Now there is some chance that such a terrible existence will give way to something better. We have an opportunity to fill the void, and to establish a framework that will enable the Iraqi people to build a new life, democratic and free. That is exactly what we are working flat out to achieve; seven days a week and 16, even 20, hours a day.

Nobody is underestimating the huge challenge or the scale of the task. The Iraqi people are working with us to achieve shared goals. Indeed, much that has been achieved is in spite of, rather than because of, us. In our many meetings, we have been hugely impressed with their desire and determination.

It is a fact of life in the modern media age that it is the setbacks that will be noticed. In war steady pro-gress rarely hits the headlines, and the same applies during peace. While many of the reports and commentaries focus on isolated incidents and difficulties, the unseen reality is that we are slowly but surely getting Baghdad and Iraq back on its feet.

The first concern of the Iraqi people remains security. We have made progress, but we need to accelerate this. That is why in Baghdad, the Land Component Commander has pledged 4,000 more troops in the coming weeks, to mount high-profile foot and vehicle patrols. To support him we have arranged for the Iraqi police to come back to work. This is a force with the corrupt crust of Saddam henchmen stripped away and a new set of protocols and rules in place to try to prevent the service being tainted as it was in the past.

Those organisations such as the Intelligence Services, Special Guard Directorate and Criminal Investigations Division won’t be back. Will we remove every bad apple? Probably not. But in a country like Iraq you don’t make decisions with perfect outcomes. Our decisions carry risk, but with great rewards as well.

In addition, normality must return within civil society. We are starting to get Iraqi civil servants back to work by introducing payment incentives and by re-establishing salaries. Schools start to reopen this weekend and rubbish clearance has begun. We are making real strides in increasing essential utilities and services such as power and electricity.

In the south, all five power stations are working, for the first time since 1990. And the transport network, water supplies and sanitation are also improving; this week saw a train run from Umm Qasr to Baghdad — a key strategic goal achieved.

Another key role for the office is facilitating the setting-up of an interim Iraqi authority as a prelude to democratic elections. This process is moving fast. The meeting in Baghdad last week was much more vocal, better-attended and more representative than the initial one in al-Nasiriyah. For the first time in 30 years many had walked into a room and said whatever they wanted.

Our problems are those of success. We are running well ahead of our best hopes, and we won’t be deflected. We know that what we are doing is right, and we are working with joint belief alongside the vast majority of decent, hard-working Iraqi people.

We will not stay a day longer than is needed, nor leave a day before we have delivered on our key responsibilities.

I have been involved in this campaign, one way or another, for seven months. There will be difficult days ahead, but when I return to my family — whom I miss and pray for every day — I am confident that I will do so in the knowledge that Iraq is on the road to democracy and freedom.

Major-General Tim Cross is Deputy Commander of the Office of Reconstruction and Humanitarian Assistance in Iraq

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