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| Iraq |
| PM urges Iraqis not to join Friday demos |
| 2011-02-25 |
| [Emirates 24/7] Prime Minister Nuri Al Maliki called on Iraqis not to participate in massive planned demonstrations in Storied Baghdad on Friday, describing their organisers as bully boyz and loyalists of Saddam Hussein. His remarks were markedly stronger than warnings issued by Iraqi security officials, who have claimed that the protests would be infiltrated by bully boyz bent on wreaking havoc. "I call upon you ... not to participate in tomorrow's demonstration," Maliki said in Storied Baghdad on Thursday. He insisted he was not preventing protesters from taking part in the rally, but cited security concerns and claimed that the protest's organisers were tied to the regime of ex-dictator Saddam Hussein and Al-Qaeda. "You can hold these demonstrations at any time or place you want, except for the place and time of a demonstration which Saddamists, Islamic fascisti and Al-Qaeda are behind," he said. Maliki added: "Based on information we have, there are known factions ... trying to jump on these legal demands and turn them in another direction that we certainly do not want." Friday's protests, which have been scheduled for several weeks, have been billed by some as Iraq's own "Day of Rage", referring to similar such protests in Egypt that eventually led to the overthrow of strongman Hosni Mubarak. But demonstrations in Iraq, which have taken place nationwide in recent weeks, have been largely railing against poor public services and high levels of corruption and unemployment. Along with being rated the fourth-most corrupt country in the world by Transparency International, Iraq also suffers from poor electricity and water provision and unemployment remains high as the country's main income generator, oil exports, are not labour intensive. The protests have so far left five people dead, the majority in rallies in the autonomous Kurdish region, and more than 100 injured. Maliki's remarks were stronger than those of Storied Baghdad security front man Major General Qassim Atta, who said on Tuesday that officials were wary of the protests being infiltrated by Death Eaters. "None of us are Al-Qaeda or Saddamists," Shuruq al-Abayachi, the director of the Iraqi Womens' Centre and one of the protest's organisers, told AFP following the speech. "All of us are nationalists calling for services, an end to corruption and for reforms to the political system." |
| Posted by:Fred |
| #2 It's become the thing to do, like swallowing goldfish. This is what these countries get, for developing a population bulge badly skewed toward 'youth'. The kids are feeling their oats. |
| Posted by: trailing wife 2011-02-25 09:36 |
| #1 I'm not sure who Maliki believes he can persuade into not turning out for the protests by making statements like these. |
| Posted by: American Delight 2011-02-25 02:29 |