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SYDNEY, Australia (AP)
-- Apathy and apprehension are keeping exiled Iraqis
from registering to vote for Iraq's Jan. 30
elections, the head of Australia's overseas voting
program said Saturday.
Despite predictions that as many as 50,000 Iraqis
living in Australia could join the electoral rolls,
only 6,500 have so far registered to vote in their
homeland's first independent election in nearly 50
years.
The voter registration period was originally
scheduled to last seven days, but officials on
Saturday extended the timeframe by two more days to
help boost turnout.
Earlier this week, election officials also extended
the operating hours of polling stations around the
world to help accommodate registrations outside
business hours.
Nevertheless, Australia's voter registration numbers
continue to lag behind expectations.
Bernie Hogan, the head of Australia's overseas
voting program, on Saturday revised his registration
target to 10,000 Iraqis and said he has been
disappointed by the response.
"It's a mixture of apathy and apprehension," Hogan
told The Associated Press, explaining why he
believed Australia's Iraqi community was keeping
away from the polls. "The apathy comes from people
who say nothing's going to happen, it's a sham, I'm
comfortable here in Australia and I'm not going to
get involved."
But a larger section of the community is simply
suspicious of the process, he said, afraid of adding
their names to a government-sponsored list they fear
could be used against them.
"They're very distrusting," Hogan said. "After
decades and decades of tyranny and government abuse
they're not confident about the future of government
and they're not confident about the use of
registration material."
Hogan said registration turnout had been lowest in
the Shiite and Kurdish communities, while members of
Australia's thriving Assyrian community have
embraced the election with open arms.
"This is a historical moment for all Iraqis," said
Oberon Yalda, 52, at a voter registration station in
Sydney. "Especially (the) Assyrians - this is the
first time we can vote for our own people."
Alber Oraha, a 40-year-old cabinet maker who fled
Iraq in 1986, said he could not wait to cast his
vote.
"This thing is really something big for me, coming
in to vote, to chose which one I want to rule my
country in a democratic way," he said "It's like a
dream, a dream come true."
© 2005 The Associated Press.
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