पंतप्रधानपदासाठी अल्लावी यांच्या नावावरून इराकी आंदोलकांमध्ये नाराजी..

अल्लावी हे संसदेचे माजी सभासद तसेच माजी मंत्री आहेत, त्यामुळे जी व्यवस्था बदलली गेली पाहिजे त्या व्यवस्थेचाच ते एक भाग असल्याची टीका देशातील तरूण आंदोलक करत आहेत. यामुळेच अल्लावी यांच्या नावाला त्यांनी विरोध दर्शवला आहे.

Iraqi protesters reject nomination of PM-designate Allawi

Published : Feb 2, 2020, 7:35 PM IST

बगदाद - इराकच्या पंतप्रधानपदी मोहम्मद अल्लावी यांचे नाव पुढे येताच, देशातील आंदोलकांनी त्यावर तीव्र नाराजी दर्शवली आहे. देशात सुरू असणाऱ्या सरकारविरोधी आंदोलनांमुळे माजी पंतप्रधान अदेल अब्दुल महदी यांनी दोन महिन्यांपूर्वी राजीनामा दिला होता. त्यानंतर विरोधी पक्षांकडून अखेर अल्लावी यांच्या नावावर एकमत झाले होते, मात्र त्यालाही आता आंदोलकांनी विरोध दर्शवला आहे.

गेल्या कित्येक महिन्यांपासून इराकच्या प्रमुख शहरांमध्ये, विशेषतः दक्षिणी भागात सरकारविरोधी आंदोलने सुरू आहेत. देशात सुरू असलेल्या भ्रष्टाचार आणि रक्तपाताची जबाबदारी सरकारने घ्यावी; देशात निवडणुका घ्याव्यात आणि पंतप्रधानपदी अपक्ष उमेदवाराची निवड व्हावी अशा काही मागण्या हे आंदोलक करत आहेत. अल्लावी हे संसदेचे माजी सभासद तसेच माजी मंत्री आहेत, त्यामुळे जी व्यवस्था बदलली गेली पाहिजे त्या व्यवस्थेचाच ते एक भाग असल्याची टीका देशातील तरूण आंदोलक करत आहेत. यामुळेच अल्लावी यांच्या नावाला त्यांनी विरोध दर्शवला आहे.

इराकच्या दक्षिणेकडील शहर असलेल्या दिवानियाहमध्ये आंदोलकांनी सरकारी कार्यालयांवर मोर्चा काढत, एक दिवसासाठी ते बंद ठेवण्याची मागणी केली. तर, विद्यार्थ्यांनी शाळा आणि महाविद्यालयांमध्ये ठिय्या आंदोलन केले. हिल्लाह शहरातील आंदोलकांनी रस्त्यांवर येत वाहतूक ठप्प केली. "अल्लावी हे लोकांनी निवडलेले नेते नाहीत" अशा आशयाची घोषणाबाजी यावेळी आंदोलक करत होते. देशाची राजधानी असलेल्या बगदादमध्येही शेकडो विद्यार्थी रस्त्यावर उतरले होते. यावेळी त्यांनी अल्लावी यांच्या छायाचित्रावर मोठी काट मारलेले पोस्टर्स हातात घेतले होते.

२००३ मध्ये हुकुमशाह सद्दाम हुसैन याची सत्ता कोसळल्यानंतर अल्लावी खासदार म्हणून नियुक्त झाले होते. त्यानंतर त्यांनी देशाचे माजी पंतप्रधान नुरी-अल-मलिकी यांच्या सरकारमध्ये संचार मंत्री म्हणून दोन वेळा त्यांची नियुक्ती करण्यात आली होती. मात्र, सरकारमधील भ्रष्टाचाराचे कारण देत दोन्ही वेळा त्यांनी आपल्या पदाचा राजीनामा दिला होता. देशाचे राष्ट्रपती बरहम सालेह यांनी विरोधकांना आपला उमेदवार निवडण्याची शनिवारपर्यंतची मुदत दिली होती. अन्यथा आपण स्वतः पंतप्रधानपदासाठी उमेदवार जाहीर करू, असा इशारा त्यांनी दिला होता. त्यानंतर, विरोधकांनी अल्लावी यांचे नाव पुढे केले होते.

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PRI ESPL INT
.BAGHDAD FES27
IRAQ-PROTESTS
Iraqi protesters dig in heels despite new PM-designate
Baghdad, Feb 2 (AFP) Furious anti-government youth dug in their heels in Iraq's capital and south on Sunday, rejecting the previous evening's nomination of Mohammad Allawi as premier after months of demonstrations and political paralysis.
Allawi was named prime minister-designate after a hard-won consensus among Iraq's rival parties, who had struggled to agree on a candidate since outgoing premier Adel Abdel Mahdi resigned under growing street pressure two months ago.
Mass rallies have rocked Baghdad and the mainly-Shiite south since October, with protesters demanding snap elections and an independent prime minister as well as accountability for corruption and recent bloodshed.
Young demonstrators have expressed contempt for the ruling elite and on Sunday, they slammed Allawi -- a former lawmaker and minister -- as part and parcel of the system they want to overhaul.
"Mohammad Allawi is rejected, by order of the people!" read a new sign hung in the holy city of Najaf on Sunday.
Young men with their faces wrapped in checkered scarves had spent the night torching car tyres in anger at Allawi's nomination and smouldering remains still blocked the main roads on Sunday, an AFP reporter there said.
In Diwaniyah, further south, protesters marched into government buildings to demand they close for the day while students began sit-ins at schools and universities.
Protesters in Hillah blocked off all roads leading into the city and chanted, "Allawi is not the people's choice!"
In Baghdad, hundreds of students flooded the streets around the main protest camp of Tahrir Square, carrying Allawi's photograph with an "X" over his face.
"We are here to reject the new prime minister because he has a well-known history within the political class," said 22-year-old university student Tiba.
Allawi, 65, served as a parliamentarian immediately after the 2003 US-led invasion that toppled ex-dictator Saddam Hussein, then was twice appointed communications minister under former prime minister Nuri al-Maliki.
But he resigned both times, accusing Maliki of turning a blind eye to graft in a country considered among the top 20 most corrupt in the world by Transparency International.
His appointment came after days of crisis talks prompted by President Barham Saleh, who said he would select his own candidate if the political blocs of Iraq's parliament did not nominate someone by Saturday.
Allawi had been among the top contenders for the post, but the stalemate continued into the late afternoon, Iraqi government sources told AFP on condition of anonymity.
The talks were very secretive and it remains unclear what finally unlocked a deal, but on Saturday evening, Allawi announced his own nomination in a video posted to Twitter.
There was no official statement from Saleh, but Abdel Mahdi congratulated his successor and the pair pledged to meet soon to ensure a smooth transition.
In his first formal address, Allawi vowed to form a representative government, hold early parliamentary elections and ensure justice for protest-related violence.
More than 480 people have died and nearly 30,000 have been wounded since the rallies began on October 1, but few have been held accountable for the bloodshed.
Allawi has one month to form his government, but ensuring its independence may prove a challenge, said Sajad Jiyad of the Iraq-based think tank the Bayan Center.
"If we've learned anything from the previous PM, it's that this is the most difficult part: pushing back against the political blocs' demands," Jiyad told AFP.
In Iraq, cabinets are typically formed after complex horsetrading whereby parties demand lucrative and influential ministerial posts based on their share of parliament.
If Allawi fails to resist ministerial candidates proposed by parties, "it will back up what protesters are saying" about his allegiance to the factions, Jiyad added.
Among the most powerful of Iraq's political players is populist cleric Moqtada Sadr, who welcomed Allawi's nomination on Saturday as a "good step".
Sadr backed the protests in October and his die-hard followers are widely recognised as the most organised and well-equipped among anti-government demonstrators.
But on Sunday, Sadr ordered members of his movement to organise with security forces to reopen roads and schools, contrary to what other protesters across Iraq were doing.
"The revolution must go back to being restrained and peaceful," Sadr wrote on Twitter.
That tweet and his endorsement of Allawi were seen as a betrayal by other protesters in Baghdad, who chanted "Don't tweet however you please," hinting at Sadr, and "We are a young, leaderless revolution!" (AFP)
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