The release of photographs of rows of flag-draped coffins stirred political controversy in America, reports Anayat Durrani The Pentagon has objected to a Web site showing United States Air Force photographs of rows of flag-draped coffins carrying the remains of American soldiers killed in Iraq and Afghanistan. The photos show the coffins arriving at the nation's largest military mortuary, the Dover Air Force Base in Delaware. Arizona resident Russ Kick was given the 361 photos from the Air Force after filing a request under the Freedom of Information Act in March 2003. Initially denied, Kick appealed the decision and was then given a CD from the Air Force with the 361 photos on 14 April. He posted the photos to his Web site www.thememoryhole.org. The Pentagon's actions to ban the photos came after a cargo worker was fired by Maytag Aircraft Corp after her photograph of 20 flag-draped caskets was first published on the front page of Sunday editions of The Seattle Times. Tami Silicio, 50, was fired after military officials raised "very specific concerns" about the photograph taken in Kuwait and for violating company and Defense Department policies, said William L Silva, Maytag president. Her husband, David Landry, who was a co-worker, also was fired by Maytag Aircraft, a contractor based in Kuwait International Airport. Maytag released a statement saying that it regretted the release of the photo, and that the company "fully concurs with the Pentagon's policy of respecting the remains of our brave men and women who have fallen in service to our country". Silicio took the photograph in a cargo plane set to depart Kuwait International Airport in early April. She sent the photo to a friend in the US who passed it on to the Times. Silicio has said she provided the photos to the paper to demonstrate how respectfully the soldiers' bodies are treated on return to their families in the US. Because of the media attention generated by Silicio's photo and the photos posted on Kick's Web site, Pentagon officials called a news conference to discuss its media policy. Deputy Undersecretary of Defense John Molino said the Pentagon did not call on Silicio to be fired, saying Maytag made that decision. He also confirmed that the Air Force did in fact release the photos to Kick. However, Molino said that the photos should not have been made public under a Pentagon policy prohibiting media coverage of fallen American soldiers. "Quite frankly, we don't want the remains of our service members who have made the ultimate sacrifice to be the subject of any kind of attention that is unwarranted or undignified," Molino said. A Pentagon policy drafted during the Gulf War in 1991, but not strictly enforced until last year, prohibits the media from publishing photos of caskets containing the remains of American soldiers. Officials argue the policy was put into place with backing from families to ensure the privacy and dignity of soldiers killed. Critics, including some members of Congress, have called the policy an attempt by the administration to hide the human cost of war. First Amendment activists have protested against the government to repeal the policy saying it hides the reality of war and actually dishonours those who died for their country. In an interview, Kick said he believes the public should be allowed to see the pictures. "I would make the argument that trying to hide the photos of these people who gave everything for their country is actually dishonoring them," Kick said. "They went over there in all of our names and died, and then when they come back home, they're hidden behind a curtain. I think that's wrong." Still, officials believe the current policy banning media from news coverage of arriving flag-draped coffins must remain in effect. "It's a policy the families say they like," Molino said. "And it's also a policy that has spanned more than one administration, more than one political party." The photos surfaced at a time when the death toll in Iraq has rapidly climbed, with more than 100 troops killed in this month alone. Since the war in Iraq began last year in March, more than 700 US soldiers have lost their lives, according to Pentagon figures. A war that began with the goal of liberating Iraq has quickly transformed into a dangerous occupation with almost daily casualties. President George W Bush was said to be moved by the photos and stood firmly in support of the Pentagon's decision to stop the release of additional photos. "The president has seen the photos and his reaction is ... it's a reminder of the sacrifice that our men and women are providing in Iraq and around the world ... it's a testament to their service," White House spokesman Trent Duffy told reporters. Duffy added that the policy that was put into place following the first Gulf War was to protect the privacy of military families. "We must pay attention to the privacy and to the sensitivity of the families of the fallen, and that's what the policy is based on and that has to be the utmost concern." The National Military Family Association, an advocacy group, said in a statement, "there is no apparent consensus among families about whether they want events surrounding the death and burial of their service member made public." The group added: "Sensitivity to the grief of surviving families should be paramount." On NBC's "Today" show, Republican Senator Lindsey Graham of South Carolina agreed with the Pentagon's ban on photos from Dover because "there's no ceremony held; it's a caretaking event." General Richard B Myers, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, told reporters that the ban is "all about families, and it's all about treating remains properly." Protecting the privacy of military families has been stated as a "first priority" by the administration. But some lawmakers argue that banning the media serves to benefit the White House as well, particularly in a time of heightened casualties and an increasingly wary American public on the war in Iraq. Critics argue that the Pentagon's policy banning photos from Dover has also served to keep a painful reminder of war's human cost out of the public eye and conscience. Democratic Representative Jim McDermott of Washington, who served in the Navy during the Vietnam War, said photos of coffins coming home from Vietnam greatly influenced the way Americans perceived that war "As people began to see the reality of it and see the 55,000 people who were killed coming back in body bags, they became more and more upset by the war," he said. "This is not about privacy. This is about trying to keep the country from facing the reality of war." Senator John Kerry addressed the issue during a rally for his presidential campaign in Iowa on Sunday. He criticised the firing of two Maytag cargo workers who photographed flag-draped coffins. He said the images should be viewed to understand the sacrifices soldiers make for their country and to honour it when they return home. "We shouldn't hide that from America," Kerry said to his supporters. "If they are good enough to go and fight and die, they're good enough to be received home with full honours in America."
