~snip~ Faleh Abood Umara is the general secretary of the Federation of Oil Unions. Hashmeya Muhsin Hussein is the president of the Electrical Utility Workers Union. They are currently touring the United States. This week they will be in D.C. speaking with members of Congress and later will attend the U.S. Social Forum in Atlanta, GA.
Hashmeya Muhsin Hussein is the first woman to head a national union in Iraq. Faleh Abood Umara is a founding member of the oil workers union and worked for the Southern Oil Company in Basra for 28 years. In 1998, he was detained by the Saddam Hussein regime for his activities on behalf of his coworkers. He has served on the union's negotiating team with both the Oil Ministry and British occupation authorities to defend the rights and interests of oil industry workers in the post-Saddam era.
Earlier in his tour, Umara told Reuters that the "proposed law amounted to a raid by the international oil cartel" and "unions representing thousands of workers in the industry would take strong measures to oppose it, including strikes if necessary. ... We think the proposed oil law doesn't serve the interests of the Iraqi people at all. It emphasizes or confirms American hegemony over Iraqi oil fields." ~snip~
http://www.accuracy.org/newsrelease.php?articleId=1510