Benchmarks in Iraq from an Iraqi Perspective

I receive daily reports from Iraqis who are following the horrible story. Read what Omar Ziada, an Iraqi, has to say about benchmarks:

By Omar Ziada

It seems that everyone these days is talking about benchmarks. Mr. Bush started it by setting out certain benchmarks for the Iraqi government to meet but the goal posts seems to be moving back all the time. He asks that the Maliki government must be given more time to fulfill these benchmarks, yet there is no end in sight. I only wish he was this laid back about matters in Iraq when he took the decision to go to war as John Stewart of the Daily Show pointed out the other day in his Bush vs Bush scenario.

I remember the ultimatums the late Saddam Hussein was given in 2003 when I was still in Baghdad and the war drums were beating. I remember how Mr Bush gave Mr Hussein and his sons 48 hours to leave Iraq or else...

I remember the extraordinary pressure that was exerted on the United Nations Monitoring, Verification and Inspection Commission's inspection team once they arrived in Baghdad. I remember the U.S. forces that were piling up in Kuwait, Saudi Arabia and Jordan while Iraq was trying its best to fulfill the inspectors every wish. I even remember how Fox News and the rest of the U.S. media mocked the old regime when they presented all the information they had on WMDs and how they called the previous regime a bunch of liars who defied the international community -- a regime that refused to implement Security Council Resolutions pertaining to WMDs!

Iraq poured its heart out to the international community time and time again and for thirteen years of the sanctions and during each of the six month revues at the Security Council Iraq presented its case and stated that there were no WMDs left. Even when Secretary Powell presented the case of WMDs in front of the UN Security Council and the schematic drawings of mobile chemical factories playing an audio of some one talking to someone about hiding something.... Or even better yet, the little plastic container he had in his had filled with a biological agent that could kill off a city. Mr. Tenet of the CIA, who fed all this information to the Secretary, has no recollection of it being such a slam dunk case!

It was also pretty impressive how President Bush quickly setup an investigation into the UN Oil for Food Program to see how much money was skimmed off of Iraq's revenues. Strange! He cared that much for Iraq's oil revenues! Of course he wouldn't mention in public that the SC resolutions restricted Iraq from gaining any cash to pay for its civil servants. Iraq requested the Security Council on a number of occasions to revisit its decision, but the request was always denied. The UN organizations were even sympathetic to the Iraqi Ministries that they were working with and tried to help but couldn't.

This, of course, was part of destroying the civil administration of Iraq in parallel to the sanctions to bring down the regime. Yet the former regime began charging for contracts signed under the Oil for Food Program in 2002 and through each of the Ministries concerned. (I believe the amount was 5% or 10% of the contract value.) This was then given to each of the ministries in Iraq to pay for its staff and requirements, but of course President Bush said that it went directly to Saddam Hussein. I guess he forgot how much it would cost to run a country and maintain its infrastructure especially under sanctions. I'm pretty sure that Saddam did use a bit of the money to fund his own lifestyle, but looking around the Arab world and to its leaders, don't they all? What about President Bush himself and the companies that he profits from, like the Carlyle Group for example?

Yet, I've now realized that this is how business is conducted in the United States and that you must give ultimatums and benchmarks to bring about goals and changes. So I would have expected the President to carry on his tough-guy, cowboy, macho style and kick some butt! Toss a shoe up in the air these days and it will land on a benchmark waiting to happen!

Is there no urgency anymore? Aren't people dying every day in Iraq? Isn't the world shaking about Iraq as it shook during 9/11?

I mean, seeing President Bush laughing and smiling with the Queen of England puzzled me a bit. Don't they brief him on U.S. casualties each day? How many Iraqis have died? Strike the latter. But the U.S. casualty figure is at 27 today for the month of May! There are now 3,378 United States service members dead and 24,314 wounded. And an additional 26,188 wounded or sick and required air transport out of Iraq.

Is this what he wants? He isn't asking for any changes because he's clearly "Staying the Course!" He talks of benchmarks to bring about change but does he know which of them he must push the Maliki government to achieve or has he fired his benchmarks advisor? The guy that did such an excellent job in the run up to the war in 2003!

I am an Iraqi and I would like to demand 48 hours for the Maliki government to shape up or ship out.

The Arab countries along with the international community voiced their opinions at the Sharm Al-Shaikh's security meeting on Iraq the other day calling on the Maliki government to start real efforts in the reconciliation process and direct talks with the resistance. It reminded me of the criticism both the U.S. and UK continued to make when it came to the former regime and Iraq's non-compliance with the "will of the international community."

Well, are we going to see deadlines for implementation now? Will we see the U.S. drafting a Security Council Resolution enforcing the will of the international community onto the current Iraqi government?

Isn't anyone going to come out and call Mr. Maiki a liar? How about the butcher of Baghdad? Iranian agent? Enforcer of sectarian divide? What about all the corruption that's going on? Will no one condemn that? Shouldn't we be seeing international auditors auditing the Coalition Provisional Authority and Mr Bremer's activities? Shouldn't auditors investigate the corruption within all the Iraqi Ministries and companies that have worked in Iraq? President Bush can even hire Paul Wolfowitz to head the team investigating corruption since he's about to lose his job at the World Bank and was one of the architects of the war on Iraq!

I would have thought that since U.S. tax payers paid for some of this money that the U.S. government would be keen to prosecute those involved! Surely President Bush would be more interested in that more so than Saddam's skimming percentages?

It has taken ages to issue an Security Council resolution on Iran, but back a few years ago Iraq would get at least 4four condemning resolutions a year! What happened to the old days of tough benchmarks where targets must be met by a certain day and even on a specific hour?

Bring them back I say!

If President Bush has lost his benchmark advisor, then I'll fill in by proposing the following:

- Start by pulling US troops to securing the boarders in a month's time.
- Bring down the sectarian walls that divide the neighborhoods of Iraq within two weeks.
- Reinstate the national draft starting from 16 to 26 years of age immediately. Iraq can easily recruit 500,000 cadets. Exclude those in higher education. Mix ethnic and religious cadets together and allocated them inside the capitol to start with. Immediate effect with training duration of 1 month for cadets. I did it back in 1990 during my university summer break and it was mandatory. In a months time we trained from 4am to 8pm every day, I had all the training I needed to go into combat. It was very different from the training Mr Bush has been talking about since 2003!
- Fund councils to pay for neighborhood cleanup and community projects. This can start within a month's time. Employment should strictly be within the community and supported by businesses from within the community to start generating jobs quickly. This was one of the programs we ran when I was with the United Nations Development Programme, UNDP in Iraq, and it worked wonders. This should come into effect once the new army has spread throughout the capitol and controlled the streets.
- Reinstate the old police and security forces to take over from the corrupt and militia backed forces. This should be done after the army sizes control of the capitol. It will take around a month to re recruit the old police force provided the army has control of the city. Curfews must be maintained during the first few months from 12am to 6am.
- Hold new elections with a proper international monitoring system. I worked on the first elections held in East Timor where photo ID cards and proper documentation was mandatory to validate the registered voters, unlike the blue dye on the finger that washed off with a solvent. Oh how proud Mr Bush was with that blue dyed finger! What an achievement and a grand milestone that was!
- Reinstate the professionals back into their civil positions and take out the friends and nephews of the members in the Governing Council that have infested public offices with their corruption and illiteracy. This can be done immediately after the control of the army on Baghdad.
- uphold the law and the separation of powers. Give back power to the courts and put the real criminals behind bars. Issue extradition orders for those criminals and war profiteers who are now residing in the US, Europe and Arab world.
- Rewrite the constitution of Iraq based one nation, one flat and equality to all. This should be done within 5 months and by the end of the year there should be a national referendum to approve it.
- review all laws that have come under the CPA, Mr Bremer and the Iraqi governments there after. Special UN bodies should take on the role of assisting in this task.
- Authenticate the true number of civilian casualties across the country. This must be done to bring justice to those who were the cause.
- The Iraqi army must also secure the country's oil and gas lines. The Ministry of Oil must first meet public demand and then look at investments and exportation.
- The former regime's national subsidization of health care, education, water, electricity, oil and gas must be reinstated.
- Reconstruction should only be given to Iraqi companies or foreign companies that employ Iraqi engineers, technicians and workers. This will start once Iraq has security.
- Laws for establishment and continuation of political parties must be in accordance with the constitution and the unity of the country. Most of today's political parties preach sectarian and ethnic divisions while others that have representation within the Iraqi Parliament do not recognise the national flag!
- The government will need to reinstate laws against the carrying and purchasing of weapons. This can only be done after the security situation improves dramatically. The government can then start a program where it pays a fee higher than the black market value of the weapon itself ensuring that a profit would be made to those who hand in their arms.
- Public and private banks must be encouraged to provide part of their banking business to fund micro credit schemes where unemployed entrepreneurs can be given a small loan with no interest payable within a set number of years to start a business of their choice. I was also involved in such a program where UNDP in Iraq funded close to 700 micro credit projects for disabled people. It had a success rate of 98%. It's based on the Grameen Bank.

These are a few benchmarks that the Iraqi government can easily achieve if President Bush and his coalition of the willing were ready to enforce them. These benchmarks are from an Iraqi who understands what Iraq is about and how the conflict can be resolved within a few months.

For me every day that goes by is a loss filled with death and destruction that could have been prevented. I don't have time to waste and neither do my people.