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05/28/2004 Archived Entry: "The Builders of Iraq"

Posted by steve @ 05:26 PM EST [Link]

IRAQ IS ALREADY A SUCCESS STORY: Though the media doesn't bother to tell you, democracy is Iraq is blooming. As Charles Rousseaux points out in a story on TechCentralStation, democratically elected councils have sprung up everywhere in the country and the Iraqis are beginning to take control of their own futures.

Notwithstanding an awful start last year, when Coalition commanders cancelled elections shortly after announcing them, Iraqis have gained experience in self-government. President Bush noted that, "many of Iraq's cities and towns have elected town councils or city governments." Under the oversight of Paul Bremer, a group of local government representatives, including members of the Baghdad City Council, elected engineer Mahmood al Tamimi as city mayor last month.

The Baghdad City Council, largely a mix of previously apolitical technocrats, ranging from sheiks to secularists and from lawyers to engineers, has become a power in its own right. Council members were selected by their neighbors almost a year ago, and after first focusing on their neighborhoods, have since started to speak out on national issues. A February Washington Post profile of the group said, "They are the closest thing Iraq has to a democratically elected representative body with real clout." For instance, council member Ali Hadary pushed hard for the reassembly of classrooms, and received almost $500,000 to repair 20 schools in his area.

The entire Iraqi educational establishment is being rebuilt. Mr. Bush said, "Under the direction of Dr. Ala'din al-Alwan, the Ministry [of Education] has trained more than 30,000 teachers and supervisors for the schools of a new Iraq." According to the White House, over a third of the 15,000 teachers fired by Saddam have been rehired and more than 5.5 million Iraqi students are back at school. Earlier this month, the World Bank issued a $40 million grant to the Ministry of Education.

Schools aren't the only things going up. Spending on reconstruction is finally surging, according to retired admiral David Nash, who is overseeing construction. Earlier this week he said at a briefing, "Things are going very well." $75 million in new construction being set up each week. Over the last two months, $4 billion has been put towards specific projects. That is twice the amount two months ago, and the pace is still increasing. Over 8,000 Iraqis hammer away at those projects each day, bringing electricity and water to their fellow citizens. According to the Los Angeles Times, soldiers in Kut are even hiring away suspected followers of radical cleric Muqtada al-Sadr to work on reassembling an amusement park.

Mark my words, regardless of what happens in November, George W. Bush will be remembered by history as a liberator of millions -- both in Afghanistan and Iraq. He'll probably be more loved by Muslims than by Americans and Arabs have a very long memory. That's why there are still people running around the Middle East named after T.E. Lawerence.

Read on.