EU calls for urgent gov. formation as protests intensify in Iraq’s Basra
ERBIL (Kurdistan 24) – The European Union (EU) on Thursday highlighted the urgent need for Iraq to form a new government and respond to the demands of the people as protests escalate and turn to violence in the country’s oil-rich southern province of Basra.
“The escalating violence at protests in the southern part of Iraq, which in the last two days reportedly left at least a further six protestors dead and many more injured, underlines the urgent need for a formation of a representative new government that will respond to the aspirations of the Iraqi people,” Maja Kocijancic, Spokesperson for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy/European Neighborhood Policy and Enlargement Negotiations said in a statement.
For the fourth day in a row, hundreds of protesters, angry about the federal government neglecting Basra’s infrastructure and the deaths of demonstrators, poured into the streets on Thursday, setting fire to many political party offices and government buildings.
The protests have been ongoing for weeks as people demand better public services, including clean water, regular electricity, and better employment rate. So far, over 20 people have died while protesting, and hundreds more were injured, according to local human rights groups.
The demonstrations come as Iraqi parliamentary blocs are still in political gridlock, as negotiations over the formation of a new government following May 12 national election continue.
“The European Union calls on the Iraqi security forces to show maximum restraint and for protesters to keep protests peaceful,” Kocijancic stated.
Oil production in Basra accounts for 95 percent of Iraq’s oil output. The country is the second-largest oil producer in OPEC.
“The EU looks forward to the formation of a government as soon as possible so that the multiple challenges Iraq faces are addressed,” the statement continued.
The new Iraqi Parliament has, so far, on two occasions failed to elect a Speaker and deputies. Winner of the May 12 election, Muqtada al-Sadr, has called on parliament and the incumbent Prime Minister and head of the current caretaker government, Haider al-Abadi, to meet on Sunday to address one of the most pressing issues in Iraq: the protests in Basra.
Other challenges outlined by the EU include “the stabilization of areas liberated from Da'esh [Islamic State], the return of close to two million IPDs, corruption and poor services and a range of economic challenges, as reflected in the legitimate grievances expressed by protesters.”
She reiterated support to Iraq and noted that the EU “will work with the new government in support of the stability, security, inclusive democracy and prosperity that all Iraqis deserve.”
Iraq remains high on Transparency International’s list of national levels of corruption as widespread fraud and mismanagement in state institutions are some of the most significant challenges facing the country since the fall of the former regime.
According to the group’s 2017 Corruption Index, Iraq ranks 166, the tenth most corrupt country out of a total of 176.
Editing by Nadia Riva