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| Iraq |
| Basra bid for autonomy falls short of required vote |
| 2009-01-20 |
| Basra's bid to become an autonomous region, fell short of the 10 per cent of votes required according to the Independent Electoral Commission. This failure will most likely lead to further division and quarrelling between political parties vested in the region. Among those opposed to Basra's autonomy bid were Shiite parties affiliated with Prime Minister Nouri Al Maliki, Abdul Aziz Al Hakim, and Moqtada Al Sadr. The Baathists also opposed the bid. "Conflicting parties worked together for a common goal, which was to abort the Basra autonomy bid. This happened through voter intimidation, but we will reassert our bid for autonomy next year," Basim Al Musawi, member of the Basra Governorate Council told Gulf News. Only 5 per cent of the votes counted favoured autonomy. "It is ironic that the Baath party and Al Maliki's Dawa Party as well as the Islamic Supreme Council, worked together to obstruct the vote counting," Zahra Al Saadoun, a political researcher in Basra told Gulf News. The failure of Basra's bid, scores a major political victory for the Shiite Alliance under Abdul Aziz Al Hakim, who has long rejected the project due to his vision for an expanded federal project to include nine Shiite provinces in the southern and central Iraq. |
| Posted by:Fred |
| #4 Mucky is alive and infesting Austin according to Shipman. .com, I fear , is no longer with us, but enjoying a beverage with Lucky in RB Valhalla |
| Posted by: Frank G 2009-01-20 21:58 |
| #3 Not in a long time, Deacon> :-( Wonder if he's ever coming back? (Wonder the same thing about .com, too.) |
| Posted by: Barbara Skolaut 2009-01-20 20:15 |
| #2 Betty, that should be Mookie, Mucky is a revered Garbler of the English Language who sometimes posts here. |
| Posted by: Deacon Blues 2009-01-20 19:17 |
| #1 Hard to understand why Mucky was against it, since the main goal of his Iranian handlers seems to be to strip the oil-rich Shi'ite south from Iraq, so it can be absorbed. Could he be getting frisky again? |
| Posted by: Betty Thromotle1773 2009-01-20 12:37 |