Now that the war in Iraq is over, the country must rebuild its government. Lake Forest Park Financial Director John Hawley is heading to Iraq to help.
Hawley is going to Iraq for six months to help set up better representative government through the U.S. government’s assistance program. He was selected by the International City/County Management Association to work for the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) and Research Triangle Institute (RTI) helping Iraqi citizens strengthen local governance. The Lake Forest Park City Council has given Hawley a sabbatical for the work, and he leaves next month.
“I’ve been very interested in Iraq, and when this opportunity came up, my wife and I jumped at it,” Hawley said.
His wife, Carter Hawley, who is assistant city manager for Kenmore, was also selected for the program. The two planned to go to Iraq together but the program won’t allow children. Carter plans to stay here with their two children, ages 11 and 6, while John goes to Iraq.
“My role is to help set up transparent representative governance — something Iraq doesn’t have,” Hawley said. “for the last 20 years they’ve had dictatorial rule, so they don’t know what representative government is like — how citizens can be involved and make decisions on education, health care, better water and other issues.”
Hawley has experience in helping set up city governments. Before coming to Lake Forest Park, he was budget manager for Shoreline when that city first incorporated.
Hawley and about 100 others will provide technical assistance to strengthen local administrations, civic institutions and civil society in Iraq, improve municipal infrastructures and increase management skills of local administrators to direct services such as water, health, public sanitation and economic governance. This kind of support in post-war Iraq should foster social and political stability by helping citizens meet basic needs within their communities, the RTI web site states. USAID has initially awarded RTI $7.9 million for the project and it is expected that RTI will get up to $167 million.
“I believe that 99 percent of Iraqis want what we want — a safe environment, healthy children, good homes and food, and I am doing my part to help them establish government. I don’t want us to be an occupier power, but instead, help them establish their own government,” Hawley said.
Hawley said he knows there is danger around going to Iraq to help rebuild the country, but trusts he will be safe.
“I’m a little nervous of the unknown in a high risk situation, but I also have enough confidence that if security really deteriorates, they will pull us out of the country,” he said. “Iraq is a big country, with 40,000 troops and a 20 million population. It’s just as dangerous walking in downtown Seattle, or driving I-5. Mainstream media gives the idea that there are terrorists on every corner in Iraq, and that just isn’t so.”
Hawley got the travel bug early in life. When he was growing up, he lived for almost five years in Kabul, Afghanistan when his father was working to set up a university there. He’s traveled to Europe, Turkey, India, Russia and spent his honeymoon in South America. He hopes this work will lead to other international work opportunities.
“Ultimately, Carter and I would like to work overseas,” he said.
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