Agencies falter under inert government
BAGHDAD, Iraq – Gunmen waving their weapons out the windows of unmarked cars are the most distinct sign of what it’s like to live without a government. They’ve been roaming the streets freely in the four months since Iraqis elected a parliament.
There are other hints, too: The squatters who’ve taken over an Air Force building. The armed, illegal vendors who’ve staked out their claims to sidewalks. The prospect of another hot summer with no new power plants to drive air conditioners.
In the wake of stalled government talks, Iraqi institutions have begun to drift, their lack of oversight and leadership seriously hampering efforts to curb militias, improve infrastructure and get on with the work of governing.
The long list of moribund projects has grown, and public officials whose jobs are stymied by the word “interim” have begun to despair.
“Summer is coming, and we need to get started on many projects,” said Raad Haris, a senior official in the Ministry of Electricity. “They cannot be done unless a government is formed.”
That leaves a familiar face in charge of daily production of electricity – former exile leader Ahmed Chalabi, who once had designs on running the whole country. His decisions, however, might have more effect on the average Iraqi than those of the political factions that failed again Monday to find a consensus candidate for prime minister.
In the courtroom where Saddam Hussein is tried, meanwhile, prosecutors who themselves have been charged with Baath Party membership have not been fully investigated, said Ali Lami, an official with the Debaathification Committee, which hasn’t even met with government officials to discuss the charges.
“Unfortunately, this is not do-able since it appears that the Cabinet could not send a representative because the politicians are busy in meetings to establish a new government,” Lami said. “We are hoping that we could sort things out before the next episode of Saddam trial begins.”
The Ministry of Human Rights, which reports and investigates abuses, has only three offices in the country. Plans to put one in each of the 18 provinces to make it easier for victims outside Baghdad, the capital, to lodge their complaints, have fallen by the wayside.
“The minister can’t take decisive actions because she feels she is a guest of the ministry,” ministry official Kamil Amin said of his boss, interim Minister of Human Rights Nermine Othman.
“Iraq is facing a very complex political crisis,” said Hessian Fallouji, a Sunni member of Parliament.
“There is no practical excuse for this delay,” he added. “Four months have passed and the count continues. Obviously, this delay will negatively affect the social and economic standards of the country.”
Little hope of change emerged Monday, when representatives of the Shiite Muslim bloc announced they had further delayed a decision on whether to withdraw their nomination of interim Prime Minister Ibrahim al-Jaafari, and have not decided on who might be a palatable alternative to Kurds and Sunni Arabs.
Rise in violence
During the four month post-election limbo, violence has increased dramatically. Bodies are uncovered daily in Baghdad. This weekend, at least 80 people died when suicide bombers attacked a Shiite mosque during Friday prayers.
On Monday the U.S. military said that three soldiers had died in the Western Anbar province in separate incidents on Saturday and Sunday.
In the provincial capital Monday, gunmen and American troops clashed after a mortar attack on a U.S. base downtown. An Iraqi police officer said four people were killed, although the military could not confirm the clashes or the casualties.
Close to Balad, U.S.-led troops killed a woman and wounded three men in a gunbattle at what was described as a “safe house” for insurgents. Four rebels were detained. Near the southern city of Basra, Qais Abdul Lateef, a local mayor, was gunned down while driving home with his wife, according to local police.