Iraq Oil Report

*But danger looms as workers can’t get to work
*Those at stations since Tuesday running out of supplies, food and sleep
*Basra violence threatens oil investment
*Recap of violence from Basra to Baghdad
*Port workers say military aims is to privatize
*Humanitarian aid desperately needed but unable to reach Basra
*KRG posts electricity tenders

Iraq oil flow cut by a pipeline bombing Thursday has returned, but continued fighting in Basra will soon take its toll.

“There’s a curfew in Basra so the workers are not able to go to work,” Hassan Jumaa Awad, president of the umbrella Iraqi Federation of Oil Unions, told United Press International’s Ben Lando via telephone from his home.

Gunfire grew loud during the interview Friday evening as Iraq’s military assault on the city closed out day number four with an estimated 100 dead and 500 injured. This has prevented workers in the field from leaving as well.

“They are stuck there and are not able to get out,” Awad said, “but our workers are still there and trying even without enough security they continue their work and they continue working the stations.”

He said food and supplies are being brought to the workers, whose usual eight-hour shift has lasted days with the violence’s end unclear, “but they are not sure how long this will continue.”

Violence imperils Iraq’s oil progress: Attacks in Basra come amid talks with Western firms, Hassan Hafidh and John D. McKinnon report for The Wall Street Journal.

The Iraqi military assault in Basra has seen a huge swing in new violence not only in Iraq’s second largest city and key oil hub, but throughout the south and especially in Baghdad. A special session of Parliament was called but only 54 of 275 members could make it to the Green Zone as the usually safer area was shelled, the BBC reports.

Thousands loyal to cleric Moqtada Sadr rallied in the Baghdad neighborhood Sadr City and called for Prime Minister Maliki to resign, the Voices of Iraq news agency reports. Sources tell Iraq Oil Report that areas of Baghdad controlled by the Sadr’s militia, the Mahdi Army, are on lockdown in protest, halting business in the capital that had seen an increase in stability after the surge.

In Basra, Iraqi armed forces stunned once again by the strength of militias relied on U.S. backup Erica Goode reports for the International Herald Tribune.

British airstrikes have also started in Basra, the South London Press reports.

Maliki, with the backing of Sadr nemesis Islamic Supreme Council for Iraq and the Kurdish Coalition, is not backing down Alsumaria TV reports, though has extended the deadline to lay down arms according to the AP.

The UK-based support group of Iraq’s unions, Naftana, has issued a statement condemning the Iraqi military action in Basra as an attack on workers’ rights and an assist to privatization of Iraq’s economy.

Naftana’s statement, requested by the Umm Qasr port workers and southern Iraq oil workers, said in part “The city streets were free of the occupying forces before the assault and the regime’s attacks will make it even more dependent on the occupation forces.”

The statement, which is reproduced in full at the end of today’s Iraq Oil Report, said this is a push to replace the dock workers and company with an international port firm, as documented earlier this month by James Glanz in The New York Times, and on the heals of Vice President Cheney’s visit to Iraq, and the creation of a British-led Basra Development Commission.

Voices of Iraq reports two cargo ships braved the fighting and made it to Umm Qasr port. Dubai Ports International said it will invest in Iraq’s ports, Voices of Iraq report in a separate article.

The humanitarian situation and aid operations continued to deteriorate in Basra as heavy fighting between government forces and militiamen of the Mahdi Army led by radical Shia leader Moqtada al-Sadr entered its third day, said Salih Hmoud, head of the Iraqi Red Crescent Society’s office in Basra.

The International Organization for Migration’s humanitarian activities in Iraq’s southern city of Basra and as well as in other southern governorates have been put on hold as violence and curfew prevent staff and partners from providing humanitarian assistance to internally displaced people (IDPs) and vulnerable populations.

Iraqi Ministry of Trade (MOT) formed on Friday an operations room to follow up sending foodstuff to Basra in the coming few days, Voices of Iraq report.

Five Things You Need to Know to Understand the Latest Violence in Iraq, by Joshua Holland and Raed Jarrar in Alternet.

Iraq’s Oil, Power & Economy

Moscow has stepped up its attempts to become Washington’s main rival in the Middle East with an audacious attempt to win a large stake of Iraq’s oil wealth, Adrian Blomfield reports for The Telegraph. Glossing over his opposition to the American-led invasion and a prolonged period of poor relations with Baghdad, President Vladimir Putin wrote to Nouri al-Maliki, the Iraqi prime minister, this week setting out the case for Russian investment in the energy sector.

It was announced this week that Lukoil president Vagit Alekperov visited the Middle Eastern country and reached an agreement with its leadership to establish a working group that will work out conditions for implementation of the West Qurna-2 project, Marina Pustilnik also recaps for Moscow News. In addition to this, Lukoil’s subsidiary Lukoil Overseas will take part in tenders for development of new fields in Iraq after the country’s government approves the new Law on Oil.

The Kurdistan Regional Government Ministry of Electricity announced invitations to companies to express their interest in submitting bids and proposals for the contract for a 132 kV OH TL Chamchamal Power Plant Connection to the Suleimaniah System, and the extension of 132/33/11kV GIS Substations.

Iraq to cancel tax reduction from employees’ monthly salaries, Alsumaria TV reports.

Kirkuk Update

Iraq’s autonomous Kurdish region would be ready to accept an equitable political solution other than a referendum to the controversial issue of control of the oil-rich Kirkuk area, a senior official said on Friday.

“If there is any other solution (than the referendum), the government of Kurdistan is committed to be part of this solution, that could be an option,” the Kurdish government’s official responsible for external relations told Agence France-Presse. “The government of Kurdistan would be ready to accept a political agreement that would satisfy all the parties,” added Falah Mustafa Bakir.

Kirkuk is threatened by a lack of water, Alsumaria TV reports.

The Iraq Press Roundup, by UPI’s Hiba Dawood.

The Naftana statement on workers in Basra:

Press Release
28 March 2008

Basra Assault Confirms Presence of British forces a Threat to Political and Trade Union Rights in Iraq

In a series of telephone calls from Basra over the past 48 hours, Iraqi trade union activists appeal for solidarity and describe how the so-called ‘Security Plan’ started midnight 24 March with intense shelling and fire from all kind of weapons.x

The attacking forces now besieging Basra stretched all the way to the city from Dhi Qar province. Two armoured divisions are deployed, in addition to thousands of policemen, backed by US and British planning and air cover. They have cut off electricity supplies, food and water on the city of 1.5 million people. Hundreds have been killed or injured in a savage, premeditated and unprovoked attack, now spreading to much of Iraq as the people protest and show solidarity with Basra’s beleaguered people.

They describe the attack as far worse than the invasion of 2003 and begun in the same barbaric manner that the criminal Saddam employed against Basra to crush the March 1991 people’s uprising. They remind us that the present puppet Iraqi government sentenced Saddam’s Defence Minister to death few months ago for similar crimes of waging war on civilians. The assault is
backed by the US and British occupation forces, particularly in providing
air cover. US planes are also bombarding areas in the Basra, several southern cities and Baghdad, where tens of thousands marched yesterday denouncing the “puppet regime”. It is now, along with many other cities, under a strict curfew enforced by regime and occupation forces.

Trade union leaders have asked us to inform the public in Britain that the government’s attack on Basra serves the occupation. The city is “steadfast” and the onslaught will end in “utter failure.” The city streets were free of the occupying forces before the assault and the regime’s attacks will
make it even more dependent on the occupation forces, they stressed.

Naftana, the UK support committee for the Iraqi Federation of Oil Unions in the struggle for democratic trade unionism in Iraq, condemns British collusion in the preparation of the assault on Basra city and British participation in air strikes.

Naftana urges all to join in calling for an immediate withdrawal of British forces from Iraq, ending the US-led occupation, and the payment of reparations to Iraq.

In the absence of adequate media coverage of the nature and context of this savage onslaught, Naftana wants to set the record straight on UK involvement.

In December 2007, the Basra Development Commission (BDC) was formally announced after discussions between Gordon Browne and Iraqi Deputy Prime Minister Barham Salih. (1) Browne appointed a British businessman, Michael Wareing, Chief Executive of KPMG International as “Commissioner”, apparently heading the BDC. (2) Wareing visited Basra in February and made outrageous comments, confirming his real interests to be those of predatory
business rather than the security, development and well-being of Basra and its people.

Wareing told The Observer: “If you look at many other economies in the world, particularly the oil-rich economies, many of these places are quite challenging countries in which to do business. … Frankly, if you can successfully operate in the Niger Delta, that is a very different benchmark
from imagining that Basra needs to be like London or Paris.” (3)

Wareing’s appointment was welcomed by Iraqi Deputy Prime Minister Barham Salih, a major advocate of the 2003 invasion and of privatisation. On March 13 the British Defence Minister Des Browne met with Salih in Basra Airport. Browne promised to show new action on ’security’ in Basra province and to bring Umm Qasr port up to ‘the highest international standards’. (4) What this meant was made clear by Salih who threatened the Governor, people of Basra and port workers’ union of Umm Qasr saying ‘there must be a very strong military presence in Basra to eradicate these militias’. (5)

What Salih, himself a former militia leader, was concerned about were organised port workers who had earlier confronted the American SSA Marine corporation in Umm Qasr and the Danish Maersk corporation in Khor az-Zubair in the two years after these companies were imposed by the occupying forces in 2003. (6) The new plans involve privatisation measures opposed by
the port workers, who are supported by other trade unions and port management. It is likely that the planned corporate takeover of the port is required in order to facilitate the activities of international oil companies.

Nevertheless, the scale of what was afoot was not apparent, but the link between military action and breaking trade unionism was. On March 17-18 the US Vice-President Dick Cheney was in Baghdad meeting with the Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki who presently heads the attack on Basra city. (7) Top of the agenda was the oil law (8) and how to insure its passage. The oil law means that international oil majors will control Iraqi oil for many decades.

Various reports reveal that the present carnage was coordinated and agreed with British and American leaders. Naftana believes they commanded it. Why? The tide of national public opinion has turned against long-term troop deployment in both the UK and the USA. If the war was fought for oil and total domination of Iraq, then those most closely associated to those
interests must speed up their plans. The present onslaught aims to break popular resistance, especially from the Sadrist movement, to the passage of the oil law and to the occupation itself. Beyond that, with local elections looming next autumn, it aims to destroy morally and physically the popular base which would otherwise be set to drive, first from local power, and subsequently from national power, the US/UK allies, Nouri al-Maliki (al-Dawa party), his main allies in the Supreme Islamic Council, led by Abdulaziz al-Hakim, and the Kurdish leaders, Talbani and Barzani.

Naftana calls on all who support democratic trade unionism to stand by the people of Iraq, with the port workers of Umm Qasr and the oil workers of Southern Iraq, with workers in Baghdad and many other cities who are in danger of physical elimination.

Naftana For further information on Naftana and IFOU: Sabah Jawad – 07985 336886 sabah.jawad@googlemail.com
Kamil Mahdi – k.a.mahdi@exeter.ac.uk
Sami Ramadani – 07863 138748 sami.ramadani@londonmet.ac.uk

Notes for editors: Naftana (’Our Oil’ in Arabic) is an independent UK-based committee supporting democratic trade unionism in Iraq. It works in solidarity with the IFOU. It strives to publicise the union’s struggle for Iraqi social and economic rights and its stand against the
privatisation of Iraqi oil demanded by the occupying powers. For more information see the IFOU’s website HYPERLINK
“http://www.basraoilunion.org” www.basraoilunion.org

(1) http://www.eeegr.com/events/info.php?refnum=562&startnum=A0

(2) http://www.kpmg.com/Press/KPMGLeaderappointed.htm
(3) http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2008/feb/24/iraq.oil
(4) http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk_politics/7294144.stm
(5)http://www.nytimes.com/2008
/03/13/world/middleeast/13basra.html?_r=1&scp=1&sq=iraqi+troops+move+to+seize+control+of+iraqi+port&st=nyt&oref=slogin
(6) Since 2003 the first shortened its name to SSA Marine. See on Umm Qasr:
http://www.allbusiness.com/transportation/marine-transportation-ferries/5665051-1.html

and http://www.publici.net/wow/bio.aspx?act=pro&ddlC=56
and on Khor az-Zubair http://www.corpwatch.org/article.php?id=13196
and http://www.corpwatch.org/article.php?id=12490
(7) http://online.wsj.com/article/SB120593326652748375.html
(8)http://www.breitbart.com/article.php?id=080317082409.1u8it4sf&show_article=1

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