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Will Abadi’s Reforms work?
8/22/15
By Mustafa al-Kadhimi for*Al-Monitor.*Any opinions expressed are those of the author, and do not necessarily reflect the views of*Iraq Business News.
The Iraqi parliament voted Aug. 11 to approve Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi and parliament Speaker Salim al-Jabouri’s economic, political and administrative reform measures in response to the demands of the Iraqi street.
These measures include*doing away with the positions of vice president of the republic and deputy prime minister, ending special allocations for the presidency, governmental*bodies and institutions, reopening past and current cases of corruption and placing them under the supervision of a supreme committee to combat corruption, and tasking a number of judges to investigate the*cases and prosecute corrupt persons.
The reforms also included major measures such as reducing the number of ministers, ending sectarian and party quotas for top government positions,*energizing the judiciary to prosecute corrupt officials*and limiting law enactments. This followed unprecedented, mounting anti-government protests that carried major weight among Iraq’s politicians.
People have been*calling for the realization of their demands for some time. Protests took place on more than one occasion in various cities, including demonstrations in Dhi Qar*province*south of Baghdad*in February 2014 that called for improved services, especially electricity. Thousands of protesters also*took to the streets*in Basra on Aug.*7, 2014, demanding reform and the fight against corruption.
When the government did not respond to calls for improved services, people then demanded*comprehensive reform.
However, this does not necessarily mean that their demands will be implemented on the spot, especially in a country suffering from complex crises at all levels, political divides, economic collapse*and an ongoing, raging war against the Islamic State (IS), which controls large swaths of Iraq’s territory.
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8/22/15
By Mustafa al-Kadhimi for*Al-Monitor.*Any opinions expressed are those of the author, and do not necessarily reflect the views of*Iraq Business News.
The Iraqi parliament voted Aug. 11 to approve Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi and parliament Speaker Salim al-Jabouri’s economic, political and administrative reform measures in response to the demands of the Iraqi street.
These measures include*doing away with the positions of vice president of the republic and deputy prime minister, ending special allocations for the presidency, governmental*bodies and institutions, reopening past and current cases of corruption and placing them under the supervision of a supreme committee to combat corruption, and tasking a number of judges to investigate the*cases and prosecute corrupt persons.
The reforms also included major measures such as reducing the number of ministers, ending sectarian and party quotas for top government positions,*energizing the judiciary to prosecute corrupt officials*and limiting law enactments. This followed unprecedented, mounting anti-government protests that carried major weight among Iraq’s politicians.
People have been*calling for the realization of their demands for some time. Protests took place on more than one occasion in various cities, including demonstrations in Dhi Qar*province*south of Baghdad*in February 2014 that called for improved services, especially electricity. Thousands of protesters also*took to the streets*in Basra on Aug.*7, 2014, demanding reform and the fight against corruption.
When the government did not respond to calls for improved services, people then demanded*comprehensive reform.
However, this does not necessarily mean that their demands will be implemented on the spot, especially in a country suffering from complex crises at all levels, political divides, economic collapse*and an ongoing, raging war against the Islamic State (IS), which controls large swaths of Iraq’s territory.
[You must be registered and logged in to see this link.]
