Shengal reconstruction stalls as infrastructure lies in ruins
RastinewsTwelve years after the Shengal massacre, the town's Berberoj neighborhood still bears the scars of the war's opening days. Leyla Ana, one of 55,000 Shengal residents who applied for compensation but came away empty-handed for years, was forced to move back into the rubble of her ruined home.
80 percent of the town's infrastructure remains in ruins
Speaking to Rudaw, the governor of Nineveh said the budget allocated for Shengal had been broken up and spent on other areas. Residents now want a separate, independent budget for Shengal.
Leyla Ana came away empty-handed
Shengal's Berberoj neighborhood lies entirely in ruins, and the war's destructive impact can be felt on every street. Leyla Ana, who lives a few kilometers from the neighborhood, is one of 55,000 people who applied for compensation. Years later, she still has no result.
The elderly woman, whose house was razed by ISIS, returned to the rubble out of desperation, even though it is uninhabitable.
Leyla Meto, who returned, said: "We came back eight years ago, but we're still living like refugees in other people's homes. We haven't received any compensation, and our house is in ruins. We can't afford to rebuild it ourselves."
Reconstruction exists only on paper
The Iraqi government's promises to rebuild Shengal have yet to be fulfilled. So far, fewer than 5,000 people have received compensation, in varying amounts, activist Said Hemo said.
Activist Said Hemo had this to say on the matter:
"People built all the reconstruction work you see now with their own means. Unfortunately, the government has played no role. Erbil and Baghdad keep signing agreements, but those agreements bring neither compensation nor the return of residents. No concrete step is being taken to let people return to normal life."
Request for a separate budget
Nineveh Governor Abdulqader al-Dakhil said officials are working to set up a separate budget to rebuild Shengal. He admitted to the problems around the budget in these terms:
"From the start, we requested a separate fund for Shengal's reconstruction. But some politicians from areas such as Zummar, Gir Uzêr, Hamdaniya and Tal Kayf caused the Shengal budget to be split up. That left Shengal's share far below what the destruction requires. Now we are formally requesting that Shengal's budget be separated from Nineveh's. Shengal is a destroyed city, and Iraq's prime minister is pursuing serious work on this. God willing, the steps needed for Shengal's reconstruction will be taken."
Over the past five years, around 600 new houses have been built in central Shengal and 300 have been repaired. But 80 percent of the city's overall infrastructure remains unusable.
Source: Rûdaw