Hundreds of Iraqis protest draft oil law (oil industry workers in Basra)

[Barrett808]

Source: AFP

BASRA, Iraq (AFP) - About 300 oil industry workers gathered in Iraq's main oil port of Basra on Monday to protest a draft law that they said would allow foreigners to pillage the country's wealth.

"To compensate for the military and political failure of the US administration in Iraq, this administration is trying to control the country's wealth," the organisers said in a statement distributed to reporters.

"If this is endorsed by the parliament it would abolish sovereignty and hand over the wealth of this generation and the generations to come as a gift to the occupier," the statement said.

The protesters, employees of the Oil Pipelines Company, wore black surgical masks over their faces and carried banners and black coffins with the word "freedom" written on the sides.

Read more: http://news.yahoo.com/s/afp/20070716/wl_mideast_afp/iraqunrestoildemo

[acmavm]

1. Golly Gomer, the jig is up. They're onto us.

:sarcasm:

[snappyturtle]

2. Good news! Do you think we'll hear about the protest on MSM?

:rofl: :sarcasm:

[EFerrari]

3. Ingrates.

:sarcasm:

[seafan]

4. US officials say their new oil law will *equitably* divide (the last 20%) oil proceeds among Iraqis.

....While Exxon/Mobil, Chevron/Texaco, BP/Shell steal the first 80% and high-tail their profits out of Iraq. This is highway robbery wrapped in our flag.


Hundreds of Iraqis protest draft oil law, July 16, 2007




Iraqis shout slogans as they demonstrate in Basra. About 300 oil industry workers gathered in Iraq's main oil port of Basra to protest a draft law that they said would allow foreigners to pillage the country's wealth.(AFP/Essam Al Sudani)

.....

At issue is a clause in the draft hydrocarbon law allowing for production-sharing agreements with foreign oil companies, which many Iraqis see as a throwback to an earlier era of colonial exploitation.

"This law, in fact destroys the achievements of the Iraqi masses and especially the Law number 80 of 1961 and the nationalisation of 1973," the statement said.

The law from 1961, part of a bundle of socialist reforms issued by then-Prime Minister Abdul Karim Qassim, sharply limited foreign involvement in the oil sector.

US officials see the passing of the draft hydrocarbon law -- aimed at equitably distributing Iraq's oil proceeds -- as a crucial benchmark of the country's political process and a key component of national reconciliation.

[Ilsa]

6. If anything, the US taxpayers should be in line ahead of the damn oil companies.

And US taxpauers should be behind the Iraqi people. They should be living well on their oil revenues, not starving for electricity and clean water.

[Ilsa]

8. Where can I find a link to the 80-20% proposal? Thanks! nt

[seafan]

9. Links here:

"The Iraqi people refuse to allow the future of their oil to be decided behind closed doors."
January 9, 2007


Blood and oil: How the West will profit from Iraq's most precious commodity
January 7, 2007


Iraqi Oil Workers to Strike Over Privatisation Law
May 9, 2007

[Danieljay]

5. AS THEY SHOULD! We are STEALING their resources in the name of a "war on terror" n/t

[potone]

7. Good for them!

This is simply robbery. I am disgusted that Congress went along with this extortion.

[BeHereNow]

16. They went along with it because the are IN on it.

They will make a fortune too.
Trust me on this.

Welcome to DU.

BHN

[tanyev]

10. That's gratitude for you.

We are nice enough to allow them to live on top of our oil and this is how they repay us?



:sarcasm:

[gasperc]

11. well isn't this special

Cheney should have the law printed on toilet paper because that's all that it will be good for

[donkeyotay]

12. Funny how some topics can't be found in our free country's free marketplace of ideas.

Oil? Pillaging? ...chirping crickets...

[Drum]

14. Ain't that the truth.

If someone (industry, US gov, foreign gov) was trying to take Alaskans' rights to the oil revenue shares due them from the oil extractions from their state, you can bet there'd be much coverage.

The MSM's blind/deaf/mute act regarding any news that threatens corporations is just despicable.

If The People only heard about it, certainly the vast majority would oppose this oil-export agreement.

[Grandrose]

13. K&R

MSM is really on top of this "breaking news" and covering it like crazy!:sarcasm: :kick:

[robinlynne]

15. great.

[AntiFascist]

17. This is exactly how Iraq wins the moral high ground...

there were two ways we could have approached Iraq: 1) to help Iraq develop its oil fields so that they could profit from the oil and the (Western) world could benefit from a cheap supply, or 2.) take over the oil fields as payment for our bringing democracy and freedom to Iraq. We seem to be choosing the profitable yet stupid route and Iraq neither enjoys the benefits of democracy nor the freedom.

[IndianaGreen]

18. Kucinich: Congress Endorses Blackmail of Iraq (Dennis blasts the oil law!)

While the corporatist Hillary, and others like her, voted to exploit Iraq's oil and to deny any future Iraqi government with power to repeal the oil law, Dennis Kucinich has been waging a lone battle against colonialism and imperialism.

Kucinich: Congress Endorses Blackmail of Iraq

Washington, May 24 - WASHINGTON, D.C. — Congressman Dennis Kucinich (D-OH) hosted a news conference this afternoon with Antonia Juhasz, visiting scholar at the Institute for Policy Studies, and Denice Lombard, U.S. Labor Against the War, to discuss implications of Congress insisting on benchmarks in the Iraq supplemental that include passage of the Iraqi “hydrocarbon act.” The hydrocarbon act forces the Iraqis to privatize their oil. Below are the remarks from his speech:

“The Democrats will have an opportunity today to vote in support of, or against, the blackmail of Iraq. A vote for the benchmarks is a vote to demand the privatization of Iraqi oil.

“The House of Representatives will consider yet another version of the Iraq war funding legislation. Not only will Congress give the President another blank check, despite the new Democratic majority, Congress will also endorse the blackmail of Iraq.

“The benchmarks in today’s war supplemental force the Iraqis to privatize their oil industry by demanding passage of the Iraqi “Hydrocarbon Act.” The war supplemental blocks over a billion dollars in reconstruction funds if the Iraqis refuse to comply.

“This administration has misled Congress into thinking that pending Iraqi legislation before their Parliament is about fair distribution of oil revenues. In fact, except for three scant lines, the entire 33-page hydrocarbon law creates a structure to facilitate the privatization of Iraq’s oil.

“The truth is that the “Hydrocarbon Act” will open Iraq’s oil reserves to foreign investors, giving them, and not the Iraqi people, the ability to develop the majority of Iraq’s 80 known oil fields. The Iraq National Oil Company would maintain control of only approximately 17 of these oil fields.

“If this happens, Iraq will be the only country in the Middle East that does not maintain government control of its own oil industry.

“The wealth of Iraq, their rich oil resources, should remain in the hands of Iraq for the benefit of the Iraqi people.

“Passage of any legislation that includes insisting that the Iraq Government push the passage of a hydrocarbon act puts this Congress on record to promote privatizing Iraq's oil.

“Congress must stop all attempts by the Administration to allow multinational oil companies to take over Iraq’s oil resources.

“This is equivalent to blackmail and sends a strong message that the United States is not in Iraq to help the Iraqi people or defend democracy, but that this war is solely about oil.

“I would like to believe that this war has not been about oil. I would like to believe that there was some kind of a righteous cause connected to what we did; but I know better, and the proof is in this Hydrocarbon Act.

“I am here to say that there is another path that can be taken, and that path is part of H.R. 1234, a bill that I have written that would enable the war to end by Congress determining that no more money will go for this war, telling the administration that it must open up diplomatic relations with Syria and Iran, and moving in a direction where we put together an international peacekeeping and security force that would move in as our troops leave.

“And then we set the stage for real reconciliation that cannot come with the U.S. serving as an occupying army.

“We have a moral responsibility to the Iraqi people whose country we have ravaged with war to the tune of hundreds of billions of dollars of damage.

“Congress must put a stop to the exploitation of Iraq and ensure reconstruction of a nation now in shambles.”

http://kucinich.house.gov/News/DocumentSingle.aspx?DocumentID=65965

[Barrett808]

20. Thanks for this post.

At least somebody on the Hill is trying to do something right by the Iraqis.

[AntiFascist]

19. Not only are we trying to steal their oil...

but could Bush be doing this to stir up even more insurgents?? Enough is enough, doesn't the military have enough to deal with without this bullshit?!!

[ohio2007]

21. oil workers do not want to share the wealth with even other parts of the country

The protesters in Basra are also demanding that all profits remain in the local region. ie, no sharing with the other provinces.


The protesters, employees of the Oil Pipelines Company, wore black surgical masks over their faces and carried banners and black coffins with the word "freedom" written on the sides.

http://www.liveleak.com/view?i=cee_1184590207

The last time an assembled group marched during Saddams reign they were mowed down by helicopters.At least they are brave enough to risk being cut down by insurgents during this march.