SUNDAY, JUNE 20, 2010
KLMNO
Protest over patchy electricity leaves 1 dead, 3 hurt in Basra
by Aziz Alwan and Leila Fadel
baghdad — At least one person was killed and three others were injured Saturday in the southern port city of Basra when police fired into a crowd of unruly pro- testers demanding electricity and potable water to help cope with the blistering summer heat, offi- cials and witnesses said. Frustration is running high across the country as Iraqis com- plain that they get only a few hours of electricity a day. The protesters threw bricks and stones and tried to rush the provincial government building. The violence prompted Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki to send a delegation to Basra, the hub of Iraq’s oil wealth, to address the electricity problem. He said in a statement that electricity officials should be held accountable for
the shortages. More than three months after
Iraq’s national elections, Iraqi an- ger is growing as the political elite jockey for top jobs. Despite the convening of parliament this week, the formation of a govern- ment is weeks, if not months, away. Many say officials care more about a seat of power than public services. “What happened this morning is because of the fake promises by the government to improve the essential services,” said Hameed al-Timimi, a protester and Basra resident. “This is not just a prob- lem in Basra, it is all over Iraq.” According to the Brookings In- stitution, more electricity is being generated today in Iraq than be- fore the U.S. invasion. But de- mand is nearly twice as high as supply. Most homes in the capital receive about four hours of elec- tricity a day.
Iraq’s newspapers carry politi-
cal cartoons mocking the state of the infrastructure. In one, a fami- ly drenched in sweat waits in line for a turn to stand in front of a fan operated by a generator. Iraqis typically pay about $200 a month for generator power that can run one or two appliances in their homes when the electricity is out. Iraqis have taken to un- conventional means to beat the heat. Some sit in their cars with the air conditioning on or drench themselves in water before sleep- ing on cool tile floors. The protesters in Basra marched with a coffin represent- ing electricity affixed to a mini- van. One man jumped onto the coffin and wept to show grief for the lack of services. Local government officials said the police shooting was being in- vestigated. Protesters said they would probably demonstrate
Iraq war deaths
Total number of U.S. military deaths since 2003 and names of the U.S. troops killed recently in the Iraq war, as announced by the Pentagon:
4,410 Fatalities
hostile actions:
3,488 In
non-hostile actions:
922
Tallies may be incomplete because of lags in reporting.
K Pfc. Alvaro R. Regalado Sessarego, 37, of Virginia Beach; 1st Battalion, 36th Infantry Regiment, 1st Brigade Combat Team, 1st Armored Division, based at Fort Bliss, Tex. Died May 30 at Brooke Army Medical Center, San Antonio, of noncombat injuries suffered April 18 in Dahuk.
In
K Pvt. Francisco J. Guardado- Ramirez, 21, of Sunland Park, N.M.; 1st Battalion, 41st Field Artillery Regiment, 1st Brigade Combat Team, 3rd Infantry Division, based at Fort Stewart, Ga. Died June 2 in Baghdad of noncombat injuries.
K Sgt. Steve M. Theobald, 53, of Goose Creek, S.C.; 287th Transportation Company, based in Livingston, Ala. Died June 4 near Kuwait City of injuries suffered in a vehicle accident.
K Sgt. Israel P. O’Bryan, 24, of Newbern, Tenn.
K Spec. William C. Yauch, 23, of Batesville, Ark.
SOURCE: Defense Department’s
www.defenselink.mil/news
again after the funeral for the man, Haider Salman, who was killed Saturday. Also Saturday, sporadic vio-
lence continued in the capital. Three roadside bombs killed two people and wounded 14, includ- ing four policemen. A rocket at-
The two soldiers were assigned to 5th Battalion, 20th Infantry Regiment, 3rd Stryker Brigade Combat Team, 2nd Infantry Division, based at Joint Base Lewis-McChord, Wash. They were killed June 11 in Jalula.
K Spec. Christopher W. Opat, 29, of Spencer, Iowa; 1st Squadron, 14th Cavalry Regiment, 3rd Stryker Brigade Combat Team, 2nd Infantry Division, based at Joint Base Lewis-McChord, Wash. Died June 15 in Baqubah of noncombat injuries.
All troops were killed in action unless otherwise indicated.
Total fatalities include 13 civilian employees of the Defense Department.
A full list of casualties is available online at
www.washingtonpost.com/nation.
THE WASHINGTON POST
tack killed one person, and five women were found dead in their home.
fadell@washpost.com
S
The World
A11
LETTERFROM DELHI ‘We cannot forever be
stuck in Gandhi’s image’ Lawmakers’ pay raise proposal rankles masses
by Rama Lakshmi in new delhi
dals. They are lampooned in movies, stand-up comic rou- tines and street plays. In opinion polls, they often rank lowest as youth icons and highest as those viewed most cor- rupt. Many Indians cling to the image of a frugal and bare- chested Mahatma Gandhi as the epitome of a politician, even as the burgeoning middle class experiences new wealth and conspicuous consumption. So when a committee of federal lawmakers submitted a proposal last month seeking a fivefold pay increase, people were shocked. They bashed the idea in tweets, around the dinner table and on TV. Some even praised the British, whose members of Parliament recently decided to trim their salaries in these uncertain economic times.
P Indian lawmakers currently
take home about $372 a month, an amount most say is embar- rassingly low. If the raise goes through, they would make about $1,860 a month — a little less than the average IT graduate makes fresh out of college in the big city. “We cannot forever be stuck in Gandhi’s image from the freedom movement. In comparison, peo- ple think we are all corrupt crooks looting the nation,” said Sanjay Nirupam, a Congress Par- ty lawmaker from Mumbai, who wrote a recent op-ed in the Indi- an Express newspaper arguing for a raise.
Nirupam calls himself a “pro- fessional politician,” a near-blas- phemous term in India. “My expenses are enormous. About 200 people come to see me every day. I have to offer them all at least a cup of tea, or they will abuse me and call me a miserly politician,” Nirupam said. “Most of Mumbai’s politicians own beer bars to supplement their in- comes.”
But in a country where about 300 million people earn less than $1 a day, the thought of a politi- cian enjoying a meal in a five-star hotel or traveling in luxury cars still rankles the masses. “Our members of Parliament already enjoy VVIP status in In- dia. They don’t serve us, they lord over us. They do no work, and most are already so corrupt that they do not deserve a salary hike,” said C.P. Rai, 71, a New Delhi resi- dent who in the past three years has filed three queries about leg- islators’ salaries under the Right to Information law. “All Pay, No Work,” an editorial in the Times of India newspaper said about the proposed raise. Lawmakers’ take-home pay might be low, the newspaper said, but the perks they enjoy — such as free housing, health care, pow- er, water and air travel — add up to almost $88,372 annually. Since May, lawmakers have also been exempt from paying tolls on national highways. In TV debates, several said long toll lines delayed them for important meetings. One said they posed a security risk.
An analysis conducted last year by the Association of Demo- cratic Reforms, an electoral watchdog group, found that of the 258 incumbent lawmakers
New Delhi
Indian Ocean
who ran for reelection, the assets of more than half had risen be- tween 100 percent and 9,100 per- cent during their five years in of- fice. About 70 percent were mil- lionaires.
Such is the public outrage over perks that in April, a Bangalore lawyer filed a public interest law- suit in the high court challenging lifelong pensions for elected rep- resentatives. “Politics is a high-stakes game
in India. Each candidate spends millions in the election cam- paign. Where does all this money come from? If they already have all this money, why do they need more?” asked Trilochan Sastry, the founder of the electoral watchdog. “If the ridiculous raise goes through, we should insist on some performance measures, too.”
Some say that low salaries force lawmakers to depend on business interests and lobbyists to sustain their lifestyles. “There is a lot of hypocrisy among Indians. They want young professionals to enter politics, but do not want them to be paid well,” said M.R. Madhavan, head of research at the PRS Legislative Research, a group that tracks par- liamentary practices. But not all members of Parlia- ment want more money. Lawmakers from Communist
parties, many of whom live in modest apartments and often carpool to work, told the prime minister that they do not want a big raise. “The idea of leaders giving themselves a raise is inappropri- ate. There should be an inde- pendent body to decide this,” said D. Raja, a lawmaker from the Communist Party of India. “The raise should not appear to be ex- orbitant in the present economic conditions. Only then people will understand.” The bill will soon be intro- duced in Parliament, where it is expected to face little opposition.
lakshmir@washpost.com
oliticians have an image problem in the world’s larg- est democracy. They are blamed for everything — air- line crashes, poverty, terrorism, hunger, cricket scan-
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