Daily Life Harder For Most Iraqis Since Invasion

by Peyman Pejman

Six months later, many Iraqis are openly asking whether the end of 35 years of Saddam Hussein's tyrannical rule has brought them the benefits they expected.

"When the Americans came, people were happy," Ban Ali, a mother of two told IPS. "We thought the Americans would increase the food ration or give each family $50 to improve their livelihood. But nothing has changed. Same amount of food, same quality of food."

The quality of food matters, but these issues are not the primary concern for most Iraqis. Security and jobs are.

No official figures are available, but some estimates place unemployment around 80 percent. In Saddam's days less than half the people had no jobs.

Added now to the dilemma is the plight of 450,000 former Iraqi army officers and conscripts who find themselves with no money and nothing to do.

Part of the problem is psychological. "During Saddam's time an army officer enjoyed great respect among the people," Ali says. "He was considered high-ranking. He cannot now accept to go and work in a shop or open a small business for himself." Many other ranking government employees share the same attitude.

Daily life is indeed harder now than during Saddam's time. Complaints do not come just from ordinary Iraqis. Ranking politicians too are complaining.

"Certainly what's different from six months ago is that Saddam is no longer around, and that is a great thing," says Sherif Ali Bin Hussein, a member of the former royal family in Iraq. "But the down point is that the standard of living for average Iraqis is now even lower than it was during Saddam's time. There is a serious problem of marginalization and isolation of the people from the political decision-making process."

Officials with the coalition forces argue that the situation has improved drastically and will improve every day they remain here. They say a lot has been achieved in the past six months and that Iraqis should think long term.

Paul Bremer, the U.S. administrator in Iraq and other officials from the coalition forces blame the media for over-emphasizing the daily attacks on U.S. and British soldiers in an area dubbed the "Sunni Triangle" to the north of Baghdad, where support for Saddam and his regime remains higher than in other parts of the country.

"This is an area that is 5 percent of the country but in which we are facing 99 percent of the attacks," says Lt. Col. George Krivo, spokesman for the coalition forces. "It is an area that has no strategic importance."

He admits, however, that this 5 percent of the area is keeping a third of the 140,000 U.S. forces in Iraq busy.

"I must warn you that on the road ahead there will be attempts for tremendous attacks by terrorists and non-compliant forces," Krivo says. "I think it is very, very likely that one day America will wake up in the morning and hear that we have suffered a dozen or so casualties in one attack."

The coalition forces and the Iraqis differ on the standards that can be used to measure success.

For Iraqis, these are an immediate and dramatic improvement of lifestyle and conditions. Coalition forces, in typical military style, measure success incrementally and over time.

People like Ali want immediate improvements in the food allotment. Krivo and his colleagues judge success by whether one more school was painted and whether electricity production increased by a few megawatts.

"It is West meets East," says one Iraqi man. "We are just not sure if this was the right time and this was the right forum for this discussion."