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Show HINCKLEY JOURNAL OF POLITICS SPRING 2001 are lower in UN-controlled areas, but how much significance one should give this is uncertain. Other central issues are the deteriorating infrastructure and the need for spare parts in many industries. The budget that allowed for spare parts under the oil-for-food program was recently increased in a UN Security Council meeting, but opponents do not believe this will help significantly. Currently, many of the problems are encountered when possible dual-use items come into question. Certain machines and chemicals that are necessary in the oil or farm industries may have also more nefarious uses, and therefore these contracts are held up by the UN in order to further investigate the planned end use of these items. If it can be determined that the end use will indeed be legitimate, contract approval is given. It is a difficult problem for the UN when a contract is submitted to provide a legitimate and needed item that very well may have an illegitimate use as well. This then forces delays or refusals of contracts, resulting in criticism of the sanctions regime, and the continued decay of the infrastructure. Moreover, this deterioration of the infrastructure compromises Iraq's ability to produce that which is needed to sustain itself, forcing it to become ever more reliant on imports. Though figures show that Iraq now imports as much food as it did before the Gulf War, its capacity to produce its own food has been diminished, especially as the country is currently experiencing its worst drought in fifty years with an irrigation system in grave need of repair (Department of State ZOOOc). Sanction supporters point to the fact that Hussein seems to get the required items he needs to build palaces, with elaborate fountains, and rebuild illegal oil refineries. These items, and the money used to purchase them, Hussein obtains primarily through illegal means and uses them to benefit himself and those comprising his inner circle. The oil-for-food program itself has also been the subject of much criticism from those who would see sanctions lifted. They view the contract approval process as slow and bureaucratic, citing late-arriving shipments, and a number of contracts that have been placed on hold (these holds do not include any contracts for food). In contrast, those who back sanctions state that approximately 90 percent of all orders placed have been approved, thus only a fraction are currently being held up, primarily due to legitimate concerns about their dual-use capabilities. Of course, sanction supporters are also quick to point out that Hussein has never taken full advantage of this program. As early as 1991, the Security Council attempted to create the oil-for-food program out of concern for the humanitarian situation, only to have it rejected by Hussein. The Council adopted a second oil-for-food resolution in 1995, which again met with refusal from Iraq. Finally in 1996, after five years of delays, Iraq agreed in theory to comply with the program, developed to help its own citizens (Department of State ZOOOc). The failure to order all the supplies for which money has been set aside under the program, including nutritional supplies for children and pregnant and nursing mothers, has also been a source of criticism by supporters of the sanctions. The Iraqi government also has been condemned for making poor choices when it does spend the money that it has been allocated. For example, six million dollars of the money allotted for medical supplies and equipment was used to purchase a gamma knife, used for complicated neurosurgery. Another four million was spent on a MRI machine. Ten million dollars was therefore spent on advanced equipment when many hospitals do not have enough disinfectant, sutures, vaccines or other such basic materials and medicines (Department of State ZOOOc). Another dubious use of the allocated money can be found in the importation of alcohol. Alcoholic beverages are legal under the oil-for-food program because they are classified as foods, but alcohol is illegal in Iraq. Nevertheless, significant quantities of alcohol are imported to benefit the privileged, using money intended to help the people of Iraq through the purchase of necessary food staples. The population is suffering from general malnutrition and an overall low standard of living. Sanitized water is not always available in some areas, the electrical system is deteriorating as much of everything else is, and the average relative wage of the Iraqi citizen has fallen drastically (Economist 2000). With the large number of children dying and the poor situation in general, some NGOs have begun to call the sanctions genocide. Yet Hussein is clearly far from doing all that is possible for his population. In fact, there is evidence that some of the food and medicine imported for his people under the oil-for-food program is then exported to be resold. On August 11, 1999, a Kuwaiti coast guard seized a vessel whose cargo contained 75 cartons of infant powder and 25 cartons of infant feeding bottles. The ship's captain admitted to committing six other similar violations (Department of State 2000a). The vessel, M/V Minimare was also diverted by UN forces and found to have contained 2,000 metric tons of rice that could have been used to feed the Iraqi population, but was instead to be sold for hard currency (Department of State 2000c). Therefore, not only is Hussein not taking advantage of all that is allowed under the oil-for-food program (which was further expanded on June 8, 2000), but that which his country does receive under the program does not always stay in the country. Hussein himself has accumulated massive amounts of personal wealth throughout this time period: in July 1999, Forbes magazine estimated Saddam's personal wealth at six billion dollars (Department of State 2000c). One of the numerous palaces he has constructed since the end of the Gulf War is Abu Bhurayb Palace, which is complete with crystal chandeliers, gold faucets, and elaborate fountains and waterfalls. In the middle of a severe drought, the water resources diverted to these fountains could greatly benefit a people whose crops are suffering from a severe lack of water. Furthermore, the pumping systems used in such fountains could be used for sanitation or irrigation needs, again depriving the population of valuable resources (Department of State 2000b). It is estimated that Hussein has spent over two billion dollars on palaces since the end of the war, clearly illus- 31 |