About SISK

The Swedish Iraqi Solidarity Committee (Svenskirakiska solidaritetskommittén, SISK) is a Swedish non-profit organisation founded in the year 2000 under the name Swedish Iraqi Committee against Economic Sanctions (SIES). The aim of the committee was to raise awareness of and create public opinion about the economic sanctions against Iraq, which had been in force since 1993. Our standpoint was that the sanctions mainly hit the Iraqi civilians; 1.5 million people died because of the sanctions and the country's economy, infrastructure, and social fabric were demolished. At the same time, the sanctions left dictator Saddam Hussein intact and even strengthened. Several conferences were organised by SIES to throw light on these issues, and regular manifestations were staged.

SIES also worked to raise awareness about weapons containing the radioactive and poisonous heavy metal "depleted uranium" (DU), which was used in the 1991 Gulf War on Iraq as well as in the intermittent bombings during the late 1990s. The poisoning of Iraq was causing a steep rise in the incidences of cancer and birth defects. SIES was trying to get the Swedish government to speak out against the use of these weapons and against the sanctions. Unfortunately, the Swedish government did not listen but remained silent.

In 2003, when the sanctions were lifted because of the US invasion of Iraq, SIES changed its name to the Swedish Iraqi Solidarity Committee (SISK). During the 2003 US invasion, SISK was part of the "The Network against War," a Swedish umbrella organisation uniting peace-organisations. SISK participated in demonstrations and in the distribution of leaflets, and contributed to the translation of information material about the war and the occupation.
 
SISK undertakes to:

1. Support peace, democracy, and human rights in Iraq
2. Contribute to the reconstruction of Iraqi civil society through practical and economic support to Iraqi grassroots development projects outside the official sphere
3. Help educate the public with factual information about the situation in Iraq, and especially about DU-weapons

The first and the second aims are pursued by supporting the Iraqi Women's League (IWL) and their children's libraries in Baghdad. The third aim is carried out in cooperation with the Action Group against Radioactive Warfare (ARK), an organisation initiated by SISK members who are also active in the organisation.