Iraq: May 27, 2003

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American civil affairs and special forces, working largely away from the media spotlight, have put together numerous large projects to restore utilities and government services in the country. Getting the economy going again is a major objective, but it is difficult because of decades of Baath party "socialism." Baath basically turned Iraq into a financial playground for party members. Baath party members owned most of the major businesses, and sorting out who should own what will take a lot of work. The judicial system has to be restored to deal with the ownership problems.