Iraqis may finally be putting their collective foot down.
http://hrw.org/...
Parliament Approval Key to Ending Culture of Impunity for Serious Abuses
(New York, January 9, 2008) – Iraq’s parliament should approve legislation to end immunity for foreign private security contractors, Human Rights Watch said today. The legislation would effectively rescind Order 17 of the now-defunct, US-led Coalition Provisional Authority (CPA), which grants foreign contractors and their non-Iraqi employees immunity from Iraqi criminal prosecution.
The US-led coalition created a legal vacuum that allows foreign contractors in Iraq to commit serious abuses with no fear of punishment. It’s time for the Iraqi parliament to pass a law ending immunity for foreign security personnel who commit crimes in Iraqi.
The draft legislation approved by Iraq’s cabinet rescinds Order 17, though it specifies no means for dealing with past military incidents. It's merely a small step on the way to independence.
These laws deal mainly with military contractors or mercenaries:
Iraq’s cabinet passed the measure on October 30, 2007, sending it to parliament, which has been struggling to draw enough members to reach quorum for votes on numerous contentious pieces of legislation. Human Rights Watch called on Iraqi legislators to ensure the prompt approval of this law.
"The US-led coalition created a legal vacuum that allows foreign contractors in Iraq to commit serious abuses with no fear of punishment," said Sarah Leah Whitson, Middle East director at Human Rights Watch. "It’s time for the Iraqi parliament to pass a law ending immunity for foreign security personnel who commit crimes in Iraqi."
However the other issue are the enormous profits harvested by by contruction and engineering projects that are skimmed away by foreign companies and unscrupulous lawmakers:
http://ipsnews.net/...
Northrop Grumman's information and services, and electronics divisions showed 15 percent and 7 percent growth, respectively, for the second quarter compared to the same fiscal quarter last year.
General Dynamics' combat systems unit experienced a 19 percent growth in sales due to continued demand for tanks and armored vehicles while Lockheed Martin announced a 34 percent rise in profits to 778 million dollars.
Lockheed's newest revenue projections are now as high as 41.75 billion dollars.
Nothing is being done with that profiteering. You can buy more than five powerstations for five million bucks. You can buy a national infrastructure.
http://www.rebuild-iraq-expo.com/
There's still an expo for engineering projects and contruction bids.
Project Rebuild Iraq 2008 is going to be a high-profile event showcasing one of the most ambitious, investment-opportunity-laden reconstruction undertakings of your era. It's going to be the biggest, most comprehensive Iraq reconstruction event ever held. If you are a construction sector player eyeing the Iraq reconstruction market, looking for a well-timed point of entry, seeking to gain maximum exposure and brand consolidation for your projects, or simply looking for potentially-rewarding business contacts, then Project Rebuild Iraq 2008 is the show for you. And if you're already active in Iraq's thriving reconstruction market, then Project Rebuild Iraq 2008 is going to immeasurably polish your profile.
And they are making huge amounts of cash. It's a bonanza for a select set of companies.
Iraq's reconstruction market is worth a stunning $100 billion - making it one of the biggest anywhere in the world - and is set to expand further, as yet more contracts are signed and projects drawn up. Frenzied construction activity surrounds hundreds of projects, worth billions of dollars, and spanning every single sector of Iraq's rebounding economy. Iraq's liberal, open markets - almost entirely free of restrictions - are helping fuel construction sector activity. Meanwhile, ever more leading manufacturers and suppliers from across the globe are seizing lucrative slices of Iraq's construction market, and in doing so are helping positively forge the future of the country.
There's positively no way that sort of lucre will ever be passed up US companies. Here's a sector breakdown:
Local administration & civil society $300 million
Health, education & employment $7 billion
Infrastructure $11 billion
Electricity $13 billion
Agriculture and water resources $3 billion
Security and police $5 billion
Oil $8 billion
Culture $1.5 billion
Note the huge amount in the power generation market. It's the big sector for spending. Look who's in charge of that:
http://www.timesonline.co.uk/...
MOST of Baghdad’s street lamps went on last week for the first time in years. It was a small improvement in the quality of life, but in the twinkling light the Iraqi capital looked a little less menacing and a lot more familiar. Ahmed Chalabi, the former darling of American neoconservatives who lobbied hard for the overthrow of Saddam and later became deputy prime minister, toured the city with quiet satisfaction. The street lamps were the clearest sign yet that the reconstruction of Baghdad, a city of rubble, concrete and blast walls, is not a forlorn hope.
In a remarkable political comeback two years after he failed to win a seat in the Iraqi parliament, Chalabi has re-emerged as a key player who could determine whether President George W Bush’s effort to secure Baghdad succeeds. Earlier this month Nouri al-Maliki, the Iraqi prime minister, put Chalabi in charge of restoring essential services to the capital. If 2007 was the year of security, 2008 will be "a year of reconstruction, a year of infrastructure repair and a year of — if there is going to be a surge — a year of the surge of the economy", General Joseph Fil, the US commander in Baghdad, said last week.
Yes Mr Chalabi's back! These are the most important contracts that will be apportioned in the coming years. Buy stock in Amgen...is all I can say!