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Iraq leaders to resume talks on
constitution
9.8.2005
By Mussab al-Khairalla
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BAGHDAD, Aug 9
(Reuters) - Iraqi leaders will resume talks on
Tuesday aimed at breaking a deadlock over drafting a
constitution the U.S.-backed government hopes will
help defuse a raging insurgency, a spokesman said.
A sandstorm that spread chaos across Baghdad
prevented a second round of talks on Monday,
stepping up pressure to meet an Aug. 15 deadline for
handing the charter to parliament.
Government spokesman Laith Kubba told reporters
Iraq's President Jalal Talabani would now hold two
meetings -- one grouping up to seven officials,
including Prime Minister Ibrahim Jaafari, followed
by a wider gathering of over 30 politicians.
Leaders from across Iraq's sectarian and ethnic
divides are trying to resolve sensitive issues such
as regional autonomy, the role of Islam and control
of oil revenues by Aug. 15.
A stark illustration of differing opinions was on
display at Firdaws Square in central Baghdad, where
crowds helped by U.S. forces brought down a statue
of former dictator Saddam Hussein after Baghdad fell
during the U.S.-led invasion in 2003.
A group of Islamist women clashed verbally with
secular women protesting on the square's central
reservation.
"Yes, yes to Islam, and the Koran is our
constitution," the women in traditional black cloaks
and veils chanted.
But Environment Minister Nirmeen Uthman, sitting
unveiled in a smart dress inside a campaign tent,
said: "We want to make sure there are no unjust laws
that deny women their rights. Islam should be only
one source of law, not the only one."
The Shi'ite-led interim government and its U.S.
sponsors want to press on with the political process
set in train with a Jan. 30 election to try to calm
the insurgency led by the Sunni Arab minority that
was dominant in Saddam's Iraq.
Talabani, a Kurdish former guerrilla leader, voiced
optimism about reaching a deal on the constitution,
despite the difficulties. "We are determined to go
on meeting until we find a resolution to all our
disputes," he said on Sunday.
The government came to power in April promising
stability and a brighter future. But suicide bombers
and gunmen kill dozens of people every week and many
Iraqis complain of poor services and high
unemployment.
Reuters
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