Power cut leaves thousands of Iraqi IDPs in the dark
HASSAN SHAM CAMP, Iraq - A power cut caused by lack of gasoline to run generators has thrown thousands of internally displaced Iraqis living in camps into the dark over the past week. The amount of gasoline they were given by the federal government this month was 36,000 litres, down from 100,000 litres.
Until last week, they had been receiving four hours of electricity a day.
The dark has made life difficult for Salwa Bakir, her husband and his second wife, together with their 15 children.
"We have 15 children and each one of them needs something. My youngest son is in a cradle and he cries when it is too dark at night. We cannot do anything during the nighttime," she said.
She is also worried about the approaching summer heat. "The summer will soon arrive and there will be no cold water or air conditioners. Is this life?” she asked.
Camp residents have taken matters into their own hands, pooling money to buy gas so they have enough power to charge their mobile phones.
In a corner of Hassan Sham U2 camp, it is now normal to see long queues of men waiting for their turn to recharge their cellphones.
"We are around 30 to 40 men, gathering around each other and collectively raising money. Some people contribute only 500 dinars and some others 1,000 dinars to buy gasoline so we can turn on the generators,” said Waleed Zeyad, another displaced person from Mosul.
Camp authorities have appealed to Iraq’s migration ministry to resolve the problem.
"We believe the solution is a powerline that transmits electricity to the town of Hamdaniya and runs over Khazir camp. It is possible to connect electricity from that powerline to the three camps," said Arif Abdulla, in charge of IDP camps at the Barzani Charity Foundation.
"However, the Iraqi government has not agreed to this suggestion. They say the cost will be too high," he added.
Speaking to Rudaw English on the phone, Ali Abbas, spokesperson for the migration ministry, said the Iraqi Oil Ministry is in charge of gas allocations and his ministry just "hands them over to the camps."
He dismissed claims that they cut off the gas supply as “a lie.”
Until last week, they had been receiving four hours of electricity a day.
The dark has made life difficult for Salwa Bakir, her husband and his second wife, together with their 15 children.
"We have 15 children and each one of them needs something. My youngest son is in a cradle and he cries when it is too dark at night. We cannot do anything during the nighttime," she said.
She is also worried about the approaching summer heat. "The summer will soon arrive and there will be no cold water or air conditioners. Is this life?” she asked.
Camp residents have taken matters into their own hands, pooling money to buy gas so they have enough power to charge their mobile phones.
In a corner of Hassan Sham U2 camp, it is now normal to see long queues of men waiting for their turn to recharge their cellphones.
"We are around 30 to 40 men, gathering around each other and collectively raising money. Some people contribute only 500 dinars and some others 1,000 dinars to buy gasoline so we can turn on the generators,” said Waleed Zeyad, another displaced person from Mosul.
Camp authorities have appealed to Iraq’s migration ministry to resolve the problem.
"We believe the solution is a powerline that transmits electricity to the town of Hamdaniya and runs over Khazir camp. It is possible to connect electricity from that powerline to the three camps," said Arif Abdulla, in charge of IDP camps at the Barzani Charity Foundation.
"However, the Iraqi government has not agreed to this suggestion. They say the cost will be too high," he added.
Speaking to Rudaw English on the phone, Ali Abbas, spokesperson for the migration ministry, said the Iraqi Oil Ministry is in charge of gas allocations and his ministry just "hands them over to the camps."
He dismissed claims that they cut off the gas supply as “a lie.”