Wednesday, September 29, 2010

Mugged by Iraq's reality

"The shipment of computer laptops that arrived in Iraq's main seaport in February was a small but important part of the U.S. military's mission in Iraq to win hearts and minds. What happened afterward is a tale of good intentions mugged by Iraq's reality.

The computers — 8,080 in all, worth $1.8 million — were bought for schoolchildren in Babil, modern-day Babylon, a gift of U.S. taxpayers. Only they became mired for months in customs at the port, Umm Qasr, stalled by bureaucracy or venality, or some combination of the two. And then they were gone.

Corruption is so rampant in Iraq — and U.S. reconstruction efforts so replete with their own mismanagement — that the fate of the computers could have ended as an anecdote in a familiar, if disturbing trend. Iraq ranks above only Sudan, Myanmar, Afghanistan and Somalia on Transparency International's annual corruption index."

4 comments :

Bruno said...

Mojo is sabotaging the attempts of the warmongers to portray Iraq as a new Eden! Surely, the warmongers will not take this lying down?

Iraqi Mojo said...

'Sunni insurgents also are blamed for a string of targeted slayings since bombings on Sept. 19 that killed more than 30 people in Baghdad. An Al Qaeda umbrella group later claimed responsibility.

On Sunday, gunmen using noise-suppressed weapons killed three top officials, including two senior police commanders and an employee of Iraq’s Committee on Anti-Corruption.

Baker said it’s part of Al Qaeda in Iraq’s efforts to “reestablish themselves’’ in Baghdad and gateways, such as their former stronghold of Fallujah to the west.'

Bruno said...

Actually I heard that it was more than 630 people killed altogether. Iraq has turned into such a shithole thanks to the invasion. :(

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