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Washington, D.C.—U.S. Representative Jan Schakowsky (D-IL), a member of the House Intelligence Committee, delivered the following statement on the House floor today marking the one year anniversary of the infamous Blackwater shooting in Baghdad’s Nisoor Square. On September 16, 2007, Blackwater contractors opened fire in Nisoor Square killing 17 Iraqi civilians. The U.S. Department of Justice has not yet completed its investigation in the incident.
"Madam Speaker, one year ago today, Blackwater contractors opened fire in Baghdad’s Nisoor Square, killing seventeen Iraqi civilians.
That wasn’t the first time private security contractors used excessive force.
It has now been 21 months since the Christmas Eve murder in the Green Zone and three and a half years since a Blackwater helicopter dropped CS gas on a traffic jam in Baghdad.
Yet, there have been no arrests, no charges, no trials and no convictions. In fact, the Blackwater contractor responsible for the Christmas Eve shooting is now employed as a prison guard in Washington State.
Instead of holding Blackwater accountable for violating the law, last April the State Department rewarded Blackwater by renewing their billion dollar contract.
Before we even consider giving Blackwater another penny of U.S. taxpayer dollars, we should hold private security contractors accountable under the law.
The longer we wait to fix this problem, the worse this situation is going to get--not only for Iraqi civilians, but also for our troops on the ground.
On the one year anniversary, I urge my colleagues to co-sponsor the Stop Outsourcing Security Act, H.R. 4102, to begin phasing out the use of private security contractors."
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