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American Morning

Are Things on Track in Iraq?

Aired February 25, 2004 - 09:37   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.


BILL HEMMER, CNN ANCHOR: The top American in Iraq, Paul Bremer, says things are on track. But some members of the Iraqi Governing Council do not think that is the case.
From Baghdad now, Dan, Senor, back with us here, senior adviser to the Coalition Provisional authority. And Hamid Al-Khafai, spokesperson for the Iraqi Governing Council.

Gentlemen, welcome back here to AMERICAN MORNING.

Oftentimes, Mr. Senor, we are criticized for not pointing out the positive that's happening in Iraq. Recently, an MIT professor said this is the most complex project ever under way since the 1940s. Put the good shade on it for us. What's happening from a positive sense in Iraq regarding reconstruction?

DAN SENOR, SR. ADVISER, COALITION PROVISIONAL AUTHORITY: Well, Bill, every day, life increasingly returns to normal for Iraqis. And just today, I was told that cell phones are now being sold in Iraq, a key medium for communication, expressing freedom of speech and freedom of information, and critical for free commerce. The first week the cell phones were out, they completely sold out, 200,000 subscribers in the first week of cell phones.

In fact, under Saddam Hussein, most Iraqis didn't even have access to land lines. They couldn't communicate with one other. They couldn't communicate with other parts of the country. They couldn't communicate outside of the country. And now, not only land lines are getting modernized, but cell phones, and the date and communications technology that's used for that will then set up ATM systems and credit card systems, and just a real modernization of the economy that's going on right now.

HEMMER: That's with the cell phone use and the economy you talk about. Let's talk about health care industry right now. A senior Iraqi official with the Ministry of Health says this about the current system: "It's definitely worse now than before the war. Even at the height of sanctions, when things were miserable, it wasn't as bad as this. At least then, someone was in control." How do you address that allegation?

SENOR: The health care system in Iraq, Bill, was completely underinvested in, chronically underinvested in, under Saddam Hussein, 35 years of devastation. I have visited a maternity ward in Basra where babies were in incubators from the early 1980s. the incubators technologies were from the early 1980s, and babies just born in a matter of days were expected to survive in those. This is what Saddam Hussein did, he took money from the health care system and used built up palaces and build up offensive military.

We have increased health care spending in Iraq over Saddam Hussein's last budget by 3,500 percent. He spent about 70 cents per capita under the last year of his regime, and we've brought it up substantially. All 240 hospitals are open in this country again. We're opening up over 200 primary health care centers. Prescription drugs are out and about. We are making progress, still a lot of work to do. It's not a clean and tidy process, but we're making progress.

HEMMER: To Mr. Khafai if I could then, Saturday is the deadline for this interim constitution. Varying reports about whether or not it will be approved or not by the weekend. What are the indications that you have now? Will it happen or not, in terms of approval?

HAMID AL-KHAFAI, SPOKESMAN, IRAQ GOVERNING COUNCIL: Yes, absolutely. We are going to announce it on Saturday, the 28th of February, as announced, and as it was announced on the 15th of November, the agreement. So it is on track, and as we speak, the Governing Council is meeting now to discuss and to finalize the transitional administration, Bill.

HEMMER: Yes, that's in the Governing Council. Do you think most Iraqis are aware of what's happening this weekend?

AL-KHAFAI: Yes, they are. And the press is the freest press in the world now, we have in Iraq. We have over 250 newspapers. We have tens of television radio stations. And the people here in Iraq are aware, because there's a freedom of information that they have never had in their history. They know about it. We have meetings, town hall meetings, and we also meet with the people of Iraq in the provinces, and the people of Iraq know everything, and we are trying to get them engaged in the political process, because that's the only way you can establish democracy, by engaging the people, and that's what we are doing.

HEMMER: It will be a revolutionary day if indeed that Constitution is approved this weekend. We will certainly watch it here at CNN. And, Mr. Senor, thank you, and Hamid Al-Khafai, thank you for your time in Baghdad.

AL-KHAFAI: It will be.

SENOR: Thank you.

AL-KHAFAI: Thank you.

TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com







Aired February 25, 2004 - 09:37   ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
BILL HEMMER, CNN ANCHOR: The top American in Iraq, Paul Bremer, says things are on track. But some members of the Iraqi Governing Council do not think that is the case.
From Baghdad now, Dan, Senor, back with us here, senior adviser to the Coalition Provisional authority. And Hamid Al-Khafai, spokesperson for the Iraqi Governing Council.

Gentlemen, welcome back here to AMERICAN MORNING.

Oftentimes, Mr. Senor, we are criticized for not pointing out the positive that's happening in Iraq. Recently, an MIT professor said this is the most complex project ever under way since the 1940s. Put the good shade on it for us. What's happening from a positive sense in Iraq regarding reconstruction?

DAN SENOR, SR. ADVISER, COALITION PROVISIONAL AUTHORITY: Well, Bill, every day, life increasingly returns to normal for Iraqis. And just today, I was told that cell phones are now being sold in Iraq, a key medium for communication, expressing freedom of speech and freedom of information, and critical for free commerce. The first week the cell phones were out, they completely sold out, 200,000 subscribers in the first week of cell phones.

In fact, under Saddam Hussein, most Iraqis didn't even have access to land lines. They couldn't communicate with one other. They couldn't communicate with other parts of the country. They couldn't communicate outside of the country. And now, not only land lines are getting modernized, but cell phones, and the date and communications technology that's used for that will then set up ATM systems and credit card systems, and just a real modernization of the economy that's going on right now.

HEMMER: That's with the cell phone use and the economy you talk about. Let's talk about health care industry right now. A senior Iraqi official with the Ministry of Health says this about the current system: "It's definitely worse now than before the war. Even at the height of sanctions, when things were miserable, it wasn't as bad as this. At least then, someone was in control." How do you address that allegation?

SENOR: The health care system in Iraq, Bill, was completely underinvested in, chronically underinvested in, under Saddam Hussein, 35 years of devastation. I have visited a maternity ward in Basra where babies were in incubators from the early 1980s. the incubators technologies were from the early 1980s, and babies just born in a matter of days were expected to survive in those. This is what Saddam Hussein did, he took money from the health care system and used built up palaces and build up offensive military.

We have increased health care spending in Iraq over Saddam Hussein's last budget by 3,500 percent. He spent about 70 cents per capita under the last year of his regime, and we've brought it up substantially. All 240 hospitals are open in this country again. We're opening up over 200 primary health care centers. Prescription drugs are out and about. We are making progress, still a lot of work to do. It's not a clean and tidy process, but we're making progress.

HEMMER: To Mr. Khafai if I could then, Saturday is the deadline for this interim constitution. Varying reports about whether or not it will be approved or not by the weekend. What are the indications that you have now? Will it happen or not, in terms of approval?

HAMID AL-KHAFAI, SPOKESMAN, IRAQ GOVERNING COUNCIL: Yes, absolutely. We are going to announce it on Saturday, the 28th of February, as announced, and as it was announced on the 15th of November, the agreement. So it is on track, and as we speak, the Governing Council is meeting now to discuss and to finalize the transitional administration, Bill.

HEMMER: Yes, that's in the Governing Council. Do you think most Iraqis are aware of what's happening this weekend?

AL-KHAFAI: Yes, they are. And the press is the freest press in the world now, we have in Iraq. We have over 250 newspapers. We have tens of television radio stations. And the people here in Iraq are aware, because there's a freedom of information that they have never had in their history. They know about it. We have meetings, town hall meetings, and we also meet with the people of Iraq in the provinces, and the people of Iraq know everything, and we are trying to get them engaged in the political process, because that's the only way you can establish democracy, by engaging the people, and that's what we are doing.

HEMMER: It will be a revolutionary day if indeed that Constitution is approved this weekend. We will certainly watch it here at CNN. And, Mr. Senor, thank you, and Hamid Al-Khafai, thank you for your time in Baghdad.

AL-KHAFAI: It will be.

SENOR: Thank you.

AL-KHAFAI: Thank you.

TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com