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Annan disappointed over Iraq transition
process
6.10.2005
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New York, 6 Oct.
(AKI) - Criticising changes that the Iraqi
parliament made on Sunday to rules for this month's
constitutional referendum as "patently
inappropriate," Secretary-General Kofi Annan called
Wednesday's reversal of the decision "very
important," but said the transition process in the
war-torn country has not "worked as we had hoped."
Under the interim constitution, the referendum will
come into force if half the votes cast nationwide
are in favour, but go down in defeat if two thirds
of the votes in three of the war-torn country's 18
regions are against it. Sunday's action raised the
bar in the latter clause to mean two thirds of all
registered voters, not just those voting, while
leaving the nationwide stipulation as it was.
"I think it is very important that the Iraqi
parliament reversed itself, because that decision
was patently inappropriate and we made that clear to
them," Annan said in a press encounter at United
Nations Headquarters in New York.
The UN has been providing technical and planning
support to the Independent Electoral Commission of
Iraq and this week the director of the UN Electoral
Assistance Division, Carina Perelli, said
preparations for the referendum on 15 October were
largely complete. Early indications on how the vote
will proceed from a technical point of view are
positive, she added in Baghdad.
Annan voiced the hope that the Iraqis will find a
process of reconciling and maintaining a united and
peaceful Iraq.
"We support an all-inclusive process and we had
hoped that this electoral process and the transition
arrangements would pull the Iraqis together. It has
not worked as we had hoped, but we still urge the
parties to work together and I believe the reversal
by the parliament of the decision last night would
help the process."
He was asked if he had any plans to give the UN a
higher profile in Iraq. "I think we are very active
in Iraq, we are as active as we can be and I think
we played a very effective role in the elections, in
the constitutional process," he replied.
"We are working with them on the referendum and
eventually, for the elections in December. And I
think those are important contributions by the UN. I
don't think we can do any more at this stage,
because of the security environment," he added.
Meanwhile in Baghdad, Annan's envoy, Ashraf Qazi,
noted that the referendum will be presented to the
people of Iraq during Ramadan. He emphasised the
need for all Iraqis to participate in the referendum
in order to express their democratic choice to
accept or reject the text, and called on all parties
to ensure that the political process is "credible,
fair and inclusive."
In a statement on the occasion of the holy month,
Qazi also expressed hope that with the start of
Ramadan, "the process of political dialogue,
reconciliation and compromise would gather strength
and deliver the Iraqi people from the killings,
violence and prevailing insecurity."
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