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BAGHDAD, 19 Sep 2005 (IRIN) - The new Iraqi
draft constitution has finally been sent for
printing after weeks of disagreement between
political leaders over sticking points which will
now be decided upon in a referendum on 15 October,
officials said.
"We have reached a very important step in the
democracy in Iraq. There was a delay in its
completion but I can say that it is all part of a
new democratic process," Hussein al-Shahristani,
deputy speaker of the Iraq National Assembly, said
on Sunday.
The final document was sent to the United Nations
Assistance Mission for Iraq (UNAMI) who will print
and distribute 5 million copies to Iraqis before the
referendum, a UN spokesman said.
The Sunni Arab minority has rejected the document
which was approved by the country’s dominant Shiite
and Kurdish blocs.
Federalism, women rights, references to Saddam
Hussein's Sunni-dominated Ba’ath party and the
description of Iraq as a Muslim, but not Arab,
country, are still the sticking points which have
brought Sunni leaders to call on their communities
to vote against the constitution and prevent its
adoption.
Al-Shahristani explained that several changes had
been made in the final text of the constitution that
was adopted by the drafting committee and sent to
parliament on 28 August and hoped that this would
make the document more palatable to all Iraqis.
Nicholas Franklin, head of the UN team assisting in
drafting the constitution, said they were fully
aware of the gravity of their task and would expend
all their efforts to ensure the perfection of the
referendum printing.
The news that the draft is due to be printed has
been welcomed by many members of Iraqi population.
"I cannot wait to receive one of these printed
copies because it is the first time that Iraqis will
have the pleasure of having a constitution drafted
by Iraqis and not military or dictatorial forces,"
said Mayada Salam, 38, a Baghdad resident.
Meanwhile, the human rights watchdog, Amnesty
International, has expressed concern that an
important provision contained in previous versions
of the Iraqi draft constitution is no longer
present.
The provision (Article 44) emphasises Iraqis' right
to enjoy guarantees and safeguards enshrined in
international human rights treaties ratified by
Iraq, Amnesty said in a statement on Friday, adding
that many Iraqi human rights organisations had
expressed dismay at the Transitional National
Assembly's decision to remove it.
"While the proposed new constitution encompasses
many positive human rights provisions, removing this
provision is a serious step backwards," the
statement noted.
"These treaty obligations to respect fundamental
human rights were not respected under Saddam Hussein
but the inclusion of Article 44 in the new
Constitution represented a real opportunity for Iraq
to open a new chapter in human rights protection. It
is one that must not be lost," it added.
Men and women of different sexual orientation have
also complained about a threat to their rights under
the new constitution because legislation must be
based on Shari’ah (Islamic law) which they contend
would not sufficiently protect their rights.
The coming referendum will take place under very
tight security and the government believes it will
be more secure than last January’s election because
this time around the Sunni Arabs will be
participating – if just to vote against the draft
constitution.
"There [still] are many points of disagreement with
other members in the National Assembly but I believe
that there is not enough time to wait and let such
small and foolish divergences delay the referendum,"
al-Shahristani said.
Iraqi constitution experts, however, believe that
more work should have been done to bridge
differences. A rejection of the document would be a
severe blow to the country’s progress and
rebuilding.
"Since they couldn’t get a minimum of agreement with
the Sunni leaders, I believe that a surprise could
happen on 15 October with the rejection of the
document, which will bring more delay to democracy
in Iraq," Said Ziad, an official observer in the
government drafting committee, noted.
www.irinnews.org
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