A
Dream Called Electricity
By Ali al-Fadhily
19 June, 2007
Inter Press Service
BAGHDAD, Jun 18 (IPS) - Simmering in the summer heat,
Iraqis now have a dream called electricity.
It is a part of the bigger
dream of reconstruction that collapsed. On all measurable levels, the
infrastructure is worse than under the former regime of Saddam Hussein,
even when it was crippled by the harshest economic sanctions in modern
history.
Iraqis lack security, jobs,
potable water, and these days when it really pinches, electricity.
"Electricity is life,"
said 45-year-old Zahra Aziz, a schoolteacher and mother of four, using
a hand-fan in an attempt to cool herself. "Modern life depends
on power, and we do not have that here. Having no electricity means
having no water, no light, no airconditioning, and in other words, no
life."
Most people IPS spoke to
in Baghdad said they get one hour of electricity in 24 hours.
"June is a very hot
month, and this permanent electricity failure is just another way of
giving Iraqis slow death," Umayma Salim, a doctor who quit her
work at a hospital in Baghdad due to security threats told IPS.
"We are getting all
kinds of diseases -- sunstrokes among those work outdoors to provide
their children food, and psychological effects on all people. The weak
functioning of hospitals and other infrastructure facilities have brought
all kinds of complications of health and life."
"We are boiling here
Sammy," a woman said to her husband on her mobile phone while talking
to IPS. "You enjoy the breeze and electricity in Jordan my dear,
but do try to take us off this frying pan. We are sweating like Niagara
falls over here."
Temperatures in Iraq are
usually above 40 degrees centigrade in June, and can jump to more than
50 degrees in July and August.
"We cannot supply frozen
and cooled food properly because of electricity failures," Jamal
Rfai, a supermarket owner in Baghdad told IPS. "We bring very limited
quantities and if there is any curfew or trouble in the street, then
it is all wasted because of the heat, and of course no one will compensate
our loss."
Workers at water service
stations speak of incessant electricity cuts. "The main problem
we are facing is electricity supply," a worker who gave his name
as Ahmed told IPS. "We have our standby generators, but they are
meant to be used in emergency, not for so many hours a day as we do
nowadays. Besides, the fuel supply is also not sufficient."
Waiting time at petrol stations
in Baghdad continues to average more than 24 hours. People sleep in
their cars, or hire others to sit in their cars for them. And there
is no guarantee there will be petrol at the end of the wait.
Most factories have stopped
production because of the security situation and the lack of electricity.
"I moved my plastic
bags factory to another area seeking better security, but now I cannot
work because there is no electricity," Ahmad Ali, a factory owner
from Baghdad told IPS. "We are wasting our time hoping for something
that we will never have because this occupation intentionally kills
life in this country."
Similar complaints are coming
from farmers. Many say production is down at least 80 percent from what
it was before the U.S.-led occupation.
"It is deliberate damage
caused by the occupation," Salim Abdul-Sattar, a local politician
from Baghdad told IPS. "To cut electricity is to cut the main vein
of life, and that is the main goal of the occupation."
Abdul Sattar believes that
the occupation authorities "could have provided electricity in
a few months if they wanted to, but this problem is useful for what
they call creative chaos."
Most of Iraq faced near total
electricity failure last week. Iraqi media outlets like al-Hurra and
al-Iraqiyah which are known to be heavily influenced by the U.S. government
broadcast messages claiming that terrorists had attacked the main electricity
stations, causing power outages.
"We are now used to
hearing such lies," a government engineer who works at one of the
stations told IPS.
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