Sunnis look
beyond the draft By Mohammed
Amin Abdulqadir
ARBIL - Iraqi political
factions have still not been able to work out an
agreement on a new constitution, despite extended
deadlines and growing US pressure.
In
another last-minute standoff, Iraqi leaders put
off a vote Monday on a draft constitution,
adjourning parliament at the midnight deadline in
a bid for three more days to win over the Sunni
Arab minority. Shi'ite groups had announced an
agreement with Kurdish leaders, but Sunni leaders
denied a deal.
The
Shiite-Kurdish draft proposals would transform
Iraq from a centralized state into a loose
federation of Kurds, Shi'ites and Sunni Arabs. The
Sunnis, although numerically inferior to the
Shi'ites, dominated Iraq under Saddam Hussein and
they now oppose decentralization, fearing they
will be denied oil wealth and become politically
marginalized.
Shi'ites and Kurds have
enough seats in parliament to win approval for a
draft without the Sunnis. But the Sunni minority
could still ruin the constitution when voters
decide whether to ratify it in an October 15
referendum. The constitution would be defeated if
it is opposed by two-thirds of the voters in three
of Iraq's 18 provinces. Sunni Arabs form the
majority in at least four.
Given the sharp
differences over fundamental issues, leaders
involved in the negotiations have become
increasingly pessimistic that there will be a
breakthrough.
"It's really impossible that
talks would reach a final result in the remaining
time since the views are so far from each other,"
Falakaddin Kakayee, 62, a top Kurdish negotiator,
told Inter Press Service (IPS)from Baghdad.
"Shi'ites are pushing for a religious
state with a lot of restrictions on individuals,
women and minority rights," he said. "The issue
here is not just Kurdish demands. Basic freedoms
and democracy are at stake."
The Iraqi
National Assembly (INA) had unanimously voted last
Monday to extend the deadline by another week. But
after another week of talks the leaders from
different groups were still talking differences.
The latest talks have mainly been between
Shi'ites and Kurdish leaders after members of the
Iraqi constitutional panel failed to finalize a
draft agreement ahead of the first August 15
deadline.
Conflicting statements have
emerged over the points of disagreement. But major
differences have arisen around such basic issues
as federalism, the distribution of natural wealth,
the role of Islam in state affairs and women's
rights.
Iraqi Kurds demand a large degree
of autonomy for their areas and want Kurdistan in
the north to be considered a single administrative
unit in a constitution. They also want a
substantial share of the natural wealth in their
region. Shi'ite and Sunni Arabs see this as
preparation for secession.
But Shi'ites
want something similar. Earlier this month Abdul
Aziz al-Hakim, leader of Iraq's largest Shi'ite
party, the Supreme Council for Islamic Revolution
in Iraq, told a mass gathering of his followers in
Najaf that "establishing a Shi'ite federal region
in the southern part of Iraq is necessary and is a
public demand".
The remark provoked a
strong reaction from Iraq's Sunni minority, who
have ruled the country since its foundation in the
early 1920s until the fall of Saddam's regime in
2003. They consider calls for such federalism both
by Kurds and Shi'ites as signs of a break-up of
the country.
Another danger sign is the
differences over Islam. During the drafting of the
interim constitution in March 2004, Shi'ite
religious parties acceded to a provision that
would set Islam as just one of the sources of
legislation. But this time they are asking for
Islam to be the principal source of Iraqi law.
That demand has run into tough resistance
from Kurds and other secular forces. Iraqi women's
groups have held mass demonstrations against the
Shi'ite proposals.
"This is the biggest
violation, and a blow not only to the rights of
women but to all Iraqi individuals because it
restricts individual liberties and creates gender
discrimination," Khaman Zirar, 31, an activist and
a member of the Kurdistan regional parliament,
told IPS.
A senior official of the
Kurdistan Democratic Party led by Massoud Barzani
has warned of the possibility of "Kurds resorting
to the option of dissolving the INA" if talks do
not lead anywhere.
"For several days talks
between Iraqi political leaders are intensively
going on, yet instead of progress we have
witnessed setbacks regarding some issues," he said
in a statement.
He also denied reports
that Kurds have given up the option of
self-determination. The concept of respecting the
constitution is liable to different
interpretations, he said.
