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| Iraq-Jordan |
| Iraq's parliament opens without deal on government |
| 2005-03-17 |
| BAGHDAD - Iraq opened a new 275-member national assembly but politicians failed to form a unity government in the landmark session, just days before the second anniversary of the US-led invasion of Iraq. Wednesday's inauguration won praise from US President George W. Bush, who said it was "a bright moment in what is a process toward writing of a constitution, ratification of a constitution, and elections". As the milestone 90-minute session began, a pair of mortars or rockets hit the sealed-off enclave of US and Iraqi institutions where the Baghdad ceremony was being held, but the US military reported no casualties. IThe historic inauguration, meanwhile, coming six weeks after elections, was largely ceremonial amid the political stalemate between the Kurds and Shiites. Haggling over Kurdish claims on the ethnically-divided, oil-rich city of Kirkuk and the status of their peshmerga militia was helping stall progress on key Cabinet appointments. The Shiite candidate for prime minister, Ibrahim Jaafari, said it could take another fortnight but denied that the talks had hit a brick wall. But the landmark parliament session served as a forum for Islamists, secular Iraqis, Shiites, Kurds and Sunnis to stake out their positions ahead of their main task of drafting Iraq's permanent constitution. Outgoing prime minister, Iyad Allawi, in a grey suit, strode to the podium as he completed the mission handed him last June when he was assigned the task of steering Iraq to its first free elections in half a century. "Dear brothers and sisters, we have great duties to face and stand up to. Much honorable Iraqis' blood has been shed to attain these goals," he said, flanked by red-white-and-black Iraqi flags and a table of white flowers. "One of the most important tasks is the inclusion of all the Iraqi people into the political process and in the government establishment." Following him to the podium was political rival and the winning Shiite United Iraqi Alliance (UIA) list's top candidate Abdel Aziz Hakim, dressed in the black turban and robes marking a descendent of the Prophet Mohammad. "We want a constitution that guarantees the rights of all, protects human rights and respects the Muslim identity of the Iraqi people," Hakim insisted, as he issued a message of Islamic moderation. Both Hakim and Allawi were at pains to reach out to the Sunnis, the ruling elite for most of Iraq's modern history until the fall of Saddam. The embittered minority is widely seen as fueling the country's insurgency. Kurdish chieftain Jalal Talabani, Iraq's probable next president, reminded the parliament to respect Kurdish rights, on a day which coincided with the anniversary of Saddam's gassing of the Kurdish village of Halabja in 1988 at the cost of some 5,000 lives. Outgoing Foreign Minister Hoshyar Zebari, a Kurd, said he expected a deal to be reached soon, while other Kurdish officials predicted a deal within a few days. Nonetheless, details on the shape of the cabinet were emerging, to preside over Iraq until a new round of elections in December. Iraq's presidency will likely go to Talabani and the two deputies will probably be a Shiite and a Sunni Muslim Arab. Outgoing Finance Minister Adel Abdul Mahdi, a Shiite, is a contender for one of the two deputy slots, while the Sunni leadership has four favorites for the other vice presidency post. They include interim President Ghazi al-Yawar, outgoing Industry Minister Hajem al-Hassani, tribal leader Sheikh Fawaz al-Jarba and senior politician Hussein al-Juburi. The speaker of parliament will likewise be a Sunni Arab, and Yawar, a tribal magnate from northern Iraq, is also in the running for that post. |
| Posted by:Steve White |