Historic collapse of SP, southern Iraq approaches state of rebellion

During the past week, Arab newspapers touched on the Syrian economic crisis, in addition to the Iraqi protests, as well as the Libyan crisis.

'The pound collapse hurts Syrians and surprises the regime'

In this context, Al-Sharq Al-Awsat newspaper said, "The deterioration in the exchange rate of the Syrian pound against the US dollar surprised the regime in Damascus, and increased the Syrians’ pain, whose living conditions have worsened in the recent period.”

Since more than two weeks, the exchange rate of the Syrian pound has been deteriorating on a daily basis, and recorded a historic record decline against the US dollar in the parallel market, which is the largest in the history of the local currency, as it reached in the afternoon, according to a number of market workers to 4000 pounds, after maintaining during the last three months a price between 2,700 and 2,900, and the official exchange rate in the "Central Bank of Syria" bulletin remained at 1250.

A worker in the parallel market told Al-Sharq Al-Awsat that “despite the measures taken by the security authorities to prosecute workers in the market, the exchange rate is witnessing a decline every hour due to the great demand for dollar,” which was equal to 46 pounds in 2011.

'Revolt against conservatives rages in southern Iraq'

Al-Arab newspaper said, “A new wave of popular protests began to take place in the governorates of southern Iraq, gradually moving towards a state of "rebellion" against the authority of conservatives linked to the influential political parties and forces to demand their dismissal and appointment of replacements chosen by the protesters themselves.”

Protesters in Diwaniyah governorate, south of the capital, Baghdad, demanded on Monday Governor Zuhair Al-Shaalan who belongs to the State of Law Coalition, led by former Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki to resign from his post on the grounds of “failure and mismanagement,” so that Diwaniyah is the third province to witness protests demanding the dismissal of the governor after the two governorates of Wasit and Dhi Qar in the south of the country.

Sources keeping up with the protest movement in southern Iraq said that the demand to change the governors, which has become at the top of the protesters' demands, indicates the start of a new phase of the movement during which the focus will be on pressure to reform local government directly related to the lives of the residents of the regions, after despair at reforming the regime as a whole, losing confidence in the central authorities and their ability to make a tangible difference in the socio-economic conditions in the governorates.

The sources pointed out that focusing on the governor’s position means putting pressure on the sensitive nerve of the large ruling parties, which have long represented conservatives who are controlling their appointment as sponsors of their interests in the regions, and guarantors of their influence and the sustainability of their control over economic resources and vital institutions in the provinces.

This explains the state of great resentment on the part of the senior leaders of those parties with the new protest movement in the governorates of southern Iraq, especially since it launched during the preparations for the early parliamentary elections scheduled for next October, when the presence of conservatives not affiliated with the major Shiite parties will make it difficult for the latter to engage in “electoral campaigns” in their traditional way, by using the state’s capabilities and tempting them or pressuring them to bring in the largest number of voters in those areas that these parties consider their main human reservoir.

'Disputes obstacle Dabaiba's mission'

Regarding the Libyan issue, Al-Bayan newspaper said: “The Libyan political scene is still stalling with regard to granting confidence to the new government headed by Abdel-Hamid al-Dabaiba, while the Speaker of Parliament, Aqila Saleh, called for a plenary session, next Monday, the eighth of March, in the city of Sirte, or in the current parliament headquarter in Tobruk, some voices began calling for voting for the new government through the application of "Zoom," due to the refusal of a large number of deputies in the western region to go to Sirte or Tobruk.

However, the Member of the Council, Mohamed Duma, confirmed that the city of Sirte is the most appropriate place to hold a session of Parliament, as it is a middle area and the place of consensus of the deputies, considering that the session to be held is considered valid, and a quorum is not required in it because the last session is still suspended and it is full, pointing out that the session if held in Sirte, it would attract about 80 deputies.

The "5 + 5" Joint Military Committee confirmed the readiness of the city of Sirte to host a meeting of the House of Representatives to hold the session on granting confidence to the government of national unity.

The committee clarified that after consultation and communication among its members, “it has been confirmed that the meeting place in the city of Sirte is ready and safe for a session to give confidence to the national unity government.”

On the other hand, the Member of Parliament, Aisha al-Tablqi, said that a number of parliament members refuse to attend the government’s confidence-granting session in Sirte or Tobruk. The session is likely to be held in Ghadames and not in Sirte, headed by the deputies of Aqila Saleh Fawzi Al-Nuwairi and Ahmid Houmeh, provided that the quorum is in the presence of 120 deputies to approve the government first then a new speaker is chosen for the council, and she added in press statements that “there are a number of members of Parliament who refuse to attend the session that Saleh called for, whether it was held in Sirte or Tobruk.”

The new government needs the votes of two-thirds of the representatives in order to gain confidence, provided that this is done after the vote in favor of the political agreement brought to power.

D.H