The research conducted in this report took place prior to the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic and provides a qualitative picture of perceptions of select Basrawi residents on the impact of the 2019 protests. The Iraqi government\u2019s efforts to combat the virus have had a negative effect on all forms of political life, including the national protest movement we covered in this report. Already active on social media, the movement is being kept alive in the virtual space and by small groups of committed activists who have remained in the public squares of Baghdad, Basra and Nasiriyah. As many of the grievances of protesters have not been addressed by the government, and the movement will almost certainly see a resurgence when social distancing measures are relaxed, and will be energized by the expectation that early parliamentary elections will be held in 2021.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"featured_media":1852,"template":"","tags":[296],"themes":[289],"types":[238],"languages":[8],"class_list":["post-1851","resource","type-resource","status-publish","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","tag-protests-iraq-movement","themes-civil-society","types-research","languages-lang-en"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\n