“This combination of a segmented city and an isolated government illustrates a unique example of a spatial regime that is not conducive to exercising the rights guaranteed by the Iraqi constitution—such as the freedoms of movement, congregation, peaceful protest, and ultimately expression of public demands or complaints—and a regime that also hinders the creation of a critical mass of protesters or activists that could potentially influence the government.”

Publication: “Obstructing Reform,” Sada: Carnegie Endowment for International Peace (August 8, 2013).

Keywords: space, urbanism, concrete, walls, barriers, divisions, segregation, Green Zone, politics, government, mobilization, protests, dissent, society, participation, democracy, change, unity, Baghdad, Iraq, South West Asia, Arab world

Image: Amin Alsaden