New York Times Editorial - An unkept promise in Iraq
New York Times Editorial - An unkept promise in Iraq
Copyright by The New York Times
TUESDAY, APRIL 18, 2006
Two years ago, the U.S. government promised to build more than 140 badly needed health clinics in Iraq, bringing basic care to underserved areas outside the big cities. That could have done a lot of good, saving innocent Iraqi lives and building good will for the United States in places where it has grown dangerously scarce. A generous cost- plus contract was awarded to Parsons Inc., an American construction company, to do the work, supervised by the Army Corps of Engineers.
Now, with roughly $200 million already spent and financing from Washington set to run out in less than nine months, it appears extremely unlikely that most of those clinics will ever be built. As The Washington Post reported this month, the Army Corps of Engineers predicts that no more than 20 clinics will be completed - out of 142.
America's good intentions should not be allowed to expire with so pathetically little achieved. America's three years in Iraq have been a cavalcade of squandered opportunities and unanticipated outcomes. Many of those are now, sadly, beyond retrieval. The health clinics are not.
There appears to be plenty of blame to go around for the health clinics fiasco. High on the list comes the Bush administration's stubborn refusal to factor the deteriorating military situation into reconstruction planning. By the time this contract was awarded, in the spring of 2004, it should have been clear that special security measures would be needed in many areas.
Beyond that, there appear to be some serious questions about the performance by Parsons and the quality of supervision by the Army Corps of Engineers. The office of the Special Inspector General for Iraq Reconstruction is looking into many of these issues and is expected to issue a report later this month. Sorting out the specific responsibilities is important for avoiding similar contracting debacles in the future.
Just as important is delivering on the original promise of health clinics. A new plan needs to be drawn up, taking a more realistic account of security conditions, and new financing needs to be found. Tighter contracts need to be written and enforced.
Recent decades have been cruel to the children of Iraq, which was a regional leader in health care 30 years ago. Then came Saddam Hussein's diversion of Iraq's wealth into weapons, wars and palaces, 12 years of crushing international sanctions and, finally, the invasion, occupation and insurgency. More children have probably died from lack of clean water and sanitation, malnutrition and lack of health care than from the missile, bomb and rocket attacks of invading armies and insurgent militias.
That terrible history cannot be undone. But Iraqi children and their parents can still be helped to overcome some of the enduring health consequences. Let it not be said that thousands more Iraqis died needlessly because America walked away from its promise of health clinics with less than 15 percent of the job done.
Copyright by The New York Times
TUESDAY, APRIL 18, 2006
Two years ago, the U.S. government promised to build more than 140 badly needed health clinics in Iraq, bringing basic care to underserved areas outside the big cities. That could have done a lot of good, saving innocent Iraqi lives and building good will for the United States in places where it has grown dangerously scarce. A generous cost- plus contract was awarded to Parsons Inc., an American construction company, to do the work, supervised by the Army Corps of Engineers.
Now, with roughly $200 million already spent and financing from Washington set to run out in less than nine months, it appears extremely unlikely that most of those clinics will ever be built. As The Washington Post reported this month, the Army Corps of Engineers predicts that no more than 20 clinics will be completed - out of 142.
America's good intentions should not be allowed to expire with so pathetically little achieved. America's three years in Iraq have been a cavalcade of squandered opportunities and unanticipated outcomes. Many of those are now, sadly, beyond retrieval. The health clinics are not.
There appears to be plenty of blame to go around for the health clinics fiasco. High on the list comes the Bush administration's stubborn refusal to factor the deteriorating military situation into reconstruction planning. By the time this contract was awarded, in the spring of 2004, it should have been clear that special security measures would be needed in many areas.
Beyond that, there appear to be some serious questions about the performance by Parsons and the quality of supervision by the Army Corps of Engineers. The office of the Special Inspector General for Iraq Reconstruction is looking into many of these issues and is expected to issue a report later this month. Sorting out the specific responsibilities is important for avoiding similar contracting debacles in the future.
Just as important is delivering on the original promise of health clinics. A new plan needs to be drawn up, taking a more realistic account of security conditions, and new financing needs to be found. Tighter contracts need to be written and enforced.
Recent decades have been cruel to the children of Iraq, which was a regional leader in health care 30 years ago. Then came Saddam Hussein's diversion of Iraq's wealth into weapons, wars and palaces, 12 years of crushing international sanctions and, finally, the invasion, occupation and insurgency. More children have probably died from lack of clean water and sanitation, malnutrition and lack of health care than from the missile, bomb and rocket attacks of invading armies and insurgent militias.
That terrible history cannot be undone. But Iraqi children and their parents can still be helped to overcome some of the enduring health consequences. Let it not be said that thousands more Iraqis died needlessly because America walked away from its promise of health clinics with less than 15 percent of the job done.
posted by Carlos T Mock at 1:24 PM
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