The Iraq oil law
The postcard we're sending Pelosi |
Before the 2003 invasion, the State Department's Iraq Group drew up plans for an Iraqi Oil Law. Its recommendations were incorporated into a draft law presented to the Iraqi parliament by the U.S.-appointed Interim Prime Minister of Iraq, and former CIA asset, Ayad Allawi. Since its introduction the law has been slightly changed, but its basics remain the same. The U.S. government has been pushing for its adoption.
Foreign Control
The proposed law would allow big oil companies to sit on a national board that has the final say about contracts—an obvious conflict of interest.
The law allows for oil contracts of up to 30 years. Even when the Iraqi government does get back on its feet, it will have to abide by contracts signed now, while it is weak domestically and internationally.
Only 17 of Iraq’s 80 known oil fields would be reserved for the Iraqi national oil company, which would be given no preference to develop newly discovered oil fields. Foreign oil companies would not be obliged to transfer technology, hire Iraqis, or reinvest any of their revenues back into the country.
Further Dividing the Country
The law has the potential to divide Iraqis and create regional instability. Under the law, most of the negotiations would happen at the regional level, with the national board having veto power, creating another division between regions. The national board would not have control over how much oil is leaving the country, which would make it very difficult for Iraq to abide by OPEC quotas if it wished to do so.
The U.S. government should not pressure Iraqis to pass this law. Help us pile thousands of postcards on the desk of Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi asking her to do everything in her power to let Iraqis decide what to do with their oil. Get your postcards here.
More great resources on the Iraq Oil Law are available at:
1. National Public Radio, The Diane Rehm Show
NPR’s Diane Rehm discusses the Oil Law with J. Robinson West, chairman of PFC Energy energy consulting firm; Antonia Juhasz, author of "The Bush Agenda: Invading the World, One Economy at a Time"; and Edward Wong, reporter for the New York Times. http://www.wamu.org/programs/dr/07/04/26.php#12837
2. Democracy Now
Amy Goodman interviews Raed Jarrar, Iraq Project Director for Global Exchange and translator of the Iraqi Oil Law, and Antonia Juhasz, author "The Bush Agenda: Invading the World, One Economy at a Time." http://www.democracynow.org/article.pl?sid=07/02/20/1523250
3. Alternet
“Benchmark Boogie: A Guide to the Struggle Over Iraq's Oil” by Antonia Juhasz http://www.alternet.org/waroniraq/56672
For recent news on Iraq, see our newsroom.
