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Key issues likely will be deferred in Iraq
constitution
3.8.2005
By Sharon Behn
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Washington - The
new Iraqi constitution to be presented later this
month will not resolve many of the most difficult
questions that threaten to split the nation along
ethnic and sectarian lines, key participants in the
process say.
Rather, the parties expect to meet an Aug. 15
deadline for drafting a basic law by deferring tough
decisions on the details of the role of Islam,
women's rights, oil-revenue sharing and federalism
until after a new legislature is elected in
December.
Not everyone is happy with that decision, taken in
the face of strong U.S. pressure to meet the Aug. 15
deadline and keep Iraq's progress toward a permanent
government on track. The last possible moment for
seeking an extension was midnight Monday.
The Kurds, in particular, strongly oppose any delay
in a final decision on the future of the northern
city of Kirkuk, their role in the future of Iraq and
ownership of Iraq's natural resources.
They have proposed that the constitutional drafting
committee expand the provincial borders of Kurdistan
and are vehemently opposed to a Sunni proposal that
would recognize Iraq as an Arab nation. Kurds are
not ethnically Arab.
The Sunnis, meanwhile, worry that excessive
decentralization will take power from the Sunni
center of the country, while Shi'ites, backed by
some Sunnis on the committee, are pushing for a
greater role for Islam in the nation's laws.
Women's groups are worried that their rights will be
shoved aside in the rush to meet the deadline.
"Many Iraqi women are outraged by the idea that [the
current draft of the] constitution refers to Islamic
Shariah [law] as the primary legal source,
especially as it relates to the personal-status
law," said Manal Omar, regional representative of
Women for Women International.
Under Shariah law, women inherit half of what men
inherit, and may lose their equal rights in
divorces.
"Many women are not against Islamic law in the
constitution, but feel that safeguards need to be
put in place with regard to interpretations and
applications of an overarching Islamic Shariah,"
Miss Omar said in a telephone interview from Jordan.
The U.S. ambassador to Iraq, Zalmay Khalilzad, said
after meeting with women's groups yesterday that
equality for women "is a fundamental requirement for
Iraq's progress."
But an Iraqi official in contact with those drafting
the constitution said the Shi'ites -- who have a
majority in the interim legislature -- were unlikely
to agree to any rights for women that were not
acceptable under Shariah law.
"We have to respect the realities of Iraq," he said,
adding that women "have to be patient and accept the
reality. ... We will not put articles in against
women, [but] we can just not topple this one
overnight."
Once the new constitution is completed, Iraqis will
have two months to debate its terms before approving
or rejecting it in a national referendum.
If it is approved, a second national election will
take place on Dec. 15, and a permanent government
will be seated by Dec. 31. If voters reject the
constitution, the committee will go back to the
drawing board.
The hope in Washington is that if everything goes on
schedule, support for the Sunni-led insurgency will
dissipate and U.S. troops will be able to begin
coming home early next year.
Neil Kritz of the U.S. Institute of Peace, which is
advising the Iraqi parties in the drafting process,
said that it is important to keep the political
momentum going, even if many of the toughest
decisions are deferred.
"In that sense, it would almost be an interim
constitution. You can decrease support for the
insurgency by drawing others into the political
process, and [you] can set up a new time line to
review it within two years," said Mr. Kritz.
A U.S. source close to the drafting committee said
that U.S. political considerations rather than Iraqi
political needs appear to be driving the push to
finish quickly.
"The U.S. is putting on pressure because it is
viewed as tied to troop withdrawals," he said.
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