On June 25, 1992, following a surge in food prices, Saddam Hussein executed 42 merchants, who were arrested at their shops in the market and faced trial within a few hours on charges of sabotaging the economy. The execution of these merchants on the same day shook Iraqi society.
Writer Jamal Jassim Amin told Al-Monitor, “Shorja market was the hunger indicator throughout the economic blockade years in the 1990s.”
Shorja market is also a place where the deprivation of the Iraqi people becomes evident.
Presidential adviser Laith Shubbar told Al-Monitor, “Shorja market, as an economic and historic landmark, has not been given the required attention by successive governments, but was subject under Saddam Hussein's regime to violent shocks, notably the elimination of indigenous traders, the confiscation of their money and the attempt to blur the market’s true identity.” He added, “Large markets such as Shorja are a microcosmic and accurate representation of the country’s economic, political and social situation.”
The fact that the Iraqi authorities recognize the importance of Shorja and its influence on politics and the economy has led officials to visit it and to order security be strengthened at its entrances. Some restoration efforts have even been made by the government, and the market is exempted from programmed electricity cuts, unlike other areas.
The political, economic and social importance of Shorja market led parliament member Abbas al-Bayati to call in 2011 for the formation of a committee to investigate the fires there, noting, “There are ‘hidden hands’ behind these incidents that aim to sabotage the economy and disrupt the life of citizens."
(Baghdad image via Shutterstock)
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