‘Organising Against Oil Privatisation’ - Iraqi Union Holds Second Strategy Conference

Hundreds of trade unionists, political and community leaders, experts and academics, will gather in the Basra Institute of Petroleum tomorrow (Monday August 7th) to discuss the future of Iraq’s oil. ‘Organising Against Oil Privatisation’ - Iraqi Union Holds Second Strategy Conference

Hundreds of trade unionists, political and community leaders, experts and academics, will gather in the Basra Institute of Petroleum tomorrow (Monday August 7th) to discuss the future of Iraq’s oil.

One of the aims of the conference is to develop a consensus and articulate a strategy to counter attempts to privatize Iraq’s oil industry. New Oil Minister Dr Hussein Shahrastani recently announced that Iraq’s new Energy Law will be passed by the end of the year. It is widely predicted to advocate for controversial Production Sharing Agreements to be signed with foreign oil majors. Until now, there has been no public consultation involving trade unions or other civil society groups on the country’s energy policy and economic future.

The Union believes that Iraq’s oil industry is the sovereign property of the Iraqi people and that revenue from the sale of oil should be used to rebuild Iraq on terms and conditions democratically agreed by the Iraqi people.

The two-day conference will see discussion papers presented by leading industry experts as well as trade union leaders.

The Union held its’ first historic anti-privatisation conference in May last year. Attendees included NGO and trade union delegates from the UK and USA.

At a recent press conference on union involvement in the forthcoming energy law, GUOE President Hassan Jumaa Awad stated:

‘Officials who want to prepare laws related to Iraqi oil must involve specialists in oil policies as well as professional organizations such as unions. In this way, the law will be complete and not lacking anything.’

The Union also called for the participation of Unions in ‘decisions related to work and workers’; ‘political decisions issued by the state which are related to investment and other issues’; participation ‘in the boards of directors of productive companies in order to draw up practical company policies and to be aware of issues related to companies’; and to ‘allow workers’ representatives to be involved in the provincial councils’.

UK-based NGO War on Want is a partner to the union and has provided funding to enable the conference to go ahead.

Unfortunately it was not possible to facilitate the participation of foreign delegates due to the unstable security situation in Basra.

The Union will issue a statement on decisions agreed and future steps following the conference.

Contacts

GUOE Hassan Jumaa Awad Al Assadi, President of the General Union of Oil Employees (Arabic Only) 00964 7801 001 196

Naftana (UK Support Group for the GUOE)
Ewa Jasiewicz/Sabah Jawad, 07749 421 576 freelance@mailworks.org or 07985 336 886 sabah.jawad@idao.org

PLATFORM Greg Muttitt, Researcher with PLATFORM and Specialist in Iraqi Oil Policy and the UK Agenda. Author of ‘Crude Designs’ report on Production Sharing Agreements in Iraq http://www.crudedesigns.org/ 07970 589 611

War On Want Paul Moon, International Programmes Department 020 7549 0555


Notes for Journalists

The GUOE represents over 23,000 oil workers across four provinces in nine state oil and gas companies. It is independent of all trade union federations in Iraq.

Many of the Union’s activists fought against and were persecuted by, the Baath regime. Hassan himself was jailed three times by the regime.

The Union has organised strikes, export interruptions and protest actions over foreign corporate interference (Kellogg Brown and Root was expelled from workplaces by union activists in 2003), unpaid wages, slashed wages, deliberate degradation of industrial assets, oil smuggling and corruption.

The union has also reconstructed war-damaged drilling rigs, refineries, port equipment and pipelines.

Naftana (Arabic: 'our oil') was set up by UK activists after contact with the GUOE. We are in regular contact with the leadership of the union.

See www.basraoilunion.org for statements from the union