Iraq Occupation Coming to a Head Over Oil

[babylonsister]

http://www.afterdowningstreet.org/?q=node/23393

Iraq Occupation Coming to a Head Over Oil
Submitted by davidswanson on Thu, 2007-06-07 16:09. Media

Oil Law Brings Theft of Resources Out in the Open, Oil Workers Strike Forces Maliki to Choose Between Iraqis and the Occupiers
By Kevin Zeese

The situation in Iraq is coming to a head. Oil workers have been on strike for three days and are being threatened by the Iraqi government and surrounded by the Iraqi military. The Parliament passed a resolution urging an end to the U.S. occupation and has refused to act on the oil law the U.S. is demanding. Both the Democrats in Congress and the Bush Administration have united around the passage of the oil law as the top benchmark for the Iraqi government.

If these trends continue it will become evident to the world what this war was about all along – oil. Even the U.S. media will have to publish an honest analysis of the Iraq oil law and why Iraqis are resisting it.

Perhaps the greatest threat to the U.S. occupation came this week when the Iraq Parliament passed a law opposing the continuation of the presence of U.S. forces in Iraq. The law requires the parliament's approval of any future extensions of the mandate, which have previously been made by Iraq's prime minister. Law makers say they plan on blocking the extension of the coalition's mandate when it comes up for renewal six months from now. The last time the UN mandate was extended Prime Minister Maliki acted without consultation with the parliament and they reacted angrily. Now, they are acting before the mandate can be extended to make their voices heard.

The parliament has not acted on the oil law submitted to them on February 26th despite aggressive U.S. pressure. The Democratic leadership in Congress joined with President Bush to make passage of the law the top benchmark to show success of the government. Both Vice President Cheney and Defense Secretary Gates have made recent trips to the region to urge passage of the law. But, the parliament is resisting – even threatening to take a vacation rather than pass the oil law.

In Congress, Dennis Kucinich has tried to raise the issue of the unfairness of the oil law in a Democratic caucus meeting. Rep. David Obey erupted in anger and name calling at Kucinich’s suggestion that the benchmark requiring passage of the oil law was part of the theft of Iraq’s primary resource. Kucinich did not respond to Obey’s angry name calling but instead made an hour long speech describing the Iraq oil law and how it would result in U.S. oil companies controlling their market and reaping most of the profits from Iraqi oil.

Iraq oil workers seeing this U.S. pressure have taken their own action. Members of the union have been on strike since Monday 4th June. Among the union’s demands is consultation on the proposed oil law, which the union opposes. On Tuesday, al-Maliki warned that he would meet threats to oil production “with an iron fist.” Maliki issued arrest warrants for leaders of the union on a charge of “sabotaging the economy.” The warrant specifically names Hassan Juma’a Awad, the leader of the 26,000-strong Federation of Oil Unions, and three other leaders of the Federation.

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[acmavm]

1. I still find it amazing that the neocons thought that the Iraqi people

would just allow them to walk in, bomb the place into the Dark Ages, and then meekly hand over their country and it's only resource to them, no muss or fuss whatsoever.

That has to be a 'benchmark' in dysfunctional thought.

[WinkyDink]

2. "sabotaging the economy". That's rich, ain't it?