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Taste of a Nation (clip)

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    So we've talked about
    how climate change
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    can mess with food supply,
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    but conflict can too.
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    Farmers flee, ports get cut off,
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    and bombs can devastate
    the utilities that irrigate land,
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    and keep the water clean.
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    That's exactly what happened in Iraq.
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    And it's changing how people get
    the key ingredient in their national dish.
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    (Tarek) For thousands of years,
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    these marshes have provided
    the people of southern Iraq with fish.
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    Lots and lots of fish.
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    Carp has been the favorite here,
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    going back all the way to
    when this area was part of Babylonia.
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    It is grilled and seasoned
    to make masgouf,
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    which is now known
    as Iraq's national dish.
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    Decades of war, invasion,
    and political instability
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    have devastated the country's waterways.
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    But fish's place in Iraqi culture
    is as strong as ever.
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    What has changed is how people get it.
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    TASTE OF A NATION
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    (Tarek) We are in the [unclear] marshes,
    it's four in the morning,
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    we're heading out with some fishermen
    who use electricity to catch their fish.
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    It's an illegal form of fishing,
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    but it's one way for people to make money.
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    (Samer) This is the generator,
    and this is the converter.
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    It outputs two cables, live and ground.
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    The ground cable goes into the water.
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    And the live cable
    is attached to my net here.
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    So the power stuns the fish to my net,
    and I scoop it.
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    (Tarek) Samer Kadhim comes to the marshes
    five times a week for electrofishing,
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    a method his father taught him
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    that helps him to quickly catch
    large amounts of fish at once.
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    Electrofishing is illegal
    in most countries, including Iraq,
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    because it can destroy ecosystems
    and already fragile fish populations.
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    (Tarek) What kind of fish
    do you catch here?
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    (Samer) We fish carp,
    tilapia, and boshbosh.
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    This is tilapia.
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    And this is boshbosh.
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    Since it's an illegal job,
    aren't you afraid of getting arrested?
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    No, I'm not afraid.
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    The police have nothing to do with it.
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    They don't arrest you.
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    It's how we get our daily income.
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    There are four or five people
    in each house,
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    a family.
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    We have God and fishing.
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    ♪ And I sharpen them ♪
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    ♪ the knives of time, I sharpen them ♪
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    ♪ I sharpen them, and my father
    never had mercy on me ♪
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    (Tarek) Abu Haider is a fisherman
    and a tour guide.
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    He grew up in the marshes,
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    watched them changed,
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    and in the '90s, mourn their loss.
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    That's when then president
    Saddam Hussein drained the marshes--
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    the Middle East largest wetlands--
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    as a military strategy
    to control his opposition.
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    Water returned to the marshes in 2003,
    but it wasn't the same.
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    (Abu Haider) When we lived here,
    the area was not like this.
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    The water was sweet.
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    We didn't filter the water,
    and drank directly from the marsh.
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    If everything remains as it is,
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    what do you think would happen
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    in the marshes and its life in the future?
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    The first shortage will be in fish.
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    The fish resources will dry out.
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    (Tarek) Pollution has made losing fish,
    or at least one safe enough to eat,
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    a very real and looming threat.
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    But, for now, fish is savored,
    especially when it comes to masgouf,
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    and preparation is taken very seriously.
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    (Abu Haider) So, let's get them
    in the the dishes.
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    Be careful. Don't burn your hand.
    Turn it upside down.
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    Move it like this.
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    (Tarek) This is marshland fish.
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    (Abu Haider) Marshland fish.
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    (Tarek) Very tasty.
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    How much has the taste
    of this fish changed
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    in comparison to fish back in the day?
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    The days in the past were better.
    In the '80s.
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    In the '80s, the water
    was clean and clear.
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    It was tastier than this fish.
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    (Tarek) The water from the marshes
    flows south to Basra, Iraq's fish capital.
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    The quality of water here got so bad,
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    that in 2018, more than 100,000 people
    were hospitalized
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    with symptoms related
    to contaminated water.
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    Widespread protests broke out against
    what people believe caused the crisis--
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    government negligence and corruption.
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    The situation did little to change
    Basra's reputation for fish,
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    but restaurants have had to adjust.
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    [Mata'am Ma'a Shaari] is one of the city's
    most popular spots,
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    and specializes in masgouf.
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    We usually bring the fish
    and every day is fresh.
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    This is actually raised in ponds,
    it's not really from the river, you know.
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    (Tarek) They've turned away
    from wild caught fish
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    in favor of those raised on farms,
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    which many owners see
    as safer and more dependable.
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    This cutting method
    is specific to masgouf.
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    You go from the head to the tail.
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    (Tarek) On a day like today,
    which is Friday,
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    how many fish do you grill?
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    Well, around 80 or 80 or 70.
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    (Tarek) How important
    is masgouf to Iraqis?
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    Masgouf has really specific importance,
    to be frank with you.
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    It has a special taste, you know,
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    like even the time they spend
    when they grow the fish,
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    it gives value to the dish.
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    So people love it.
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    (Tarek) All the factors that threaten
    the country's fish
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    are not going away anytime soon.
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    But in some ways,
    they've made fish more appreciated,
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    a way to feel connected to what Iraq is...
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    and has been.
Title:
Taste of a Nation (clip)
ASR Confidence:
0.79
Video Language:
English
Team:
Eating With My Five Senses
Project:
COUNTER SPACE_(CLIPS)_The Issues - (Ep17-Ep24)
Duration:
06:57
Jenny_PM published English subtitles for Taste of a Nation (clip)
Jenny_PM edited English subtitles for Taste of a Nation (clip)
Jenny_PM edited English subtitles for Taste of a Nation (clip)
Jenny Lam published English subtitles for Taste of a Nation (clip)
Jenny Lam edited English subtitles for Taste of a Nation (clip)
Jenny Lam published English subtitles for Taste of a Nation (clip)
Jenny Lam edited English subtitles for Taste of a Nation (clip)
Jenny Lam published English subtitles for Taste of a Nation (clip)
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