Iraq's constitution seemed headed toward passage yesterday despite strong opposition from Sunni Arabs who turned out in surprisingly high numbers in an effort to stop it. The apparent victory was muted, though, by the prospect that the vote result might divide the country further.
Rejection seemed more and more impossible as vote-counting continued across the country. In one key finding, Ninevah, one of three crucial northern and central provinces that Sunni Arab opponents pushed hard to swing their way, appeared to have gone strongly for a "yes" vote.
In London, US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice predicted it was likely to pass, although she cautioned that she did not know the outcome for certain.
US casualties
Meanwhile, five US soldiers were killed in Iraq on Saturday when their vehicle was hit by an improvised bomb in the western city of Ramadi, the US military said yesterday. The deaths took to at least 1,970 the number of Americans to die in the Iraq war.
Few in Ramadi took part in Saturday's referendum because of clashes between US and Iraqi forces and Sunni Arab insurgents.
According to a vote count from 260 of the provinces 300 polling stations, about 300,000 in Ninevah voted "yes" for the constitution, and only 80,000 voted "no," said Samira Mohammed, spokeswoman for the election commission in the province's capital, Mosul, and Abdul-Ghani Boutani, a senior official in the Kurdistan Democratic Party.
Ballots from the remaining 40 stations still had to be counted, but it would be impossible to turn the vote around to a two-thirds "no" Sunni opponents would need.
The constitution is a crucial step in Iraq's transition to democracy after two decades of rule by Saddam Hussein's dictatorship. Washington is hoping it passes so that Iraqis can form a legitimate, representative government, tame the insurgency and enable the 150,000 US troops to begin to withdraw.
Majority assured
A nationwide majority "yes" vote is assured by the widespread support of the constitution among the Shiites -- who make up 60 percent of the country's 27 million people -- and the Kurds -- another 20 percent.
So to defeat the constitution, Sunnis have to muster the two-thirds rejection in any three of Iraq's 18 provinces. They were likely to reach that threshold in the vast Sunni heartland of Anbar province in the west. Salahuddin province also looked possible, but with Ninevah out of the running, they would need to get the province of Diyala, which will also be difficult.
An elections official in Baghdad told reporters that indications point to the charter having been approved. The official spoke on condition of anonymity because the counting was still going on.
Sunnis turned out in force in Saturday's voting, a stark contrast to parliamentary elections in January, which they boycotted as a protest to a political process they felt was handing the country's Shiite majority unfair power. That move cost them, leaving them a miniscule presence in parliament.
The lines of Sunnis at the polls in the key electoral battleground states suggested they wanted to now participate in the political system.
Now the question is whether they will accept the passage of a constitution despite a significant "no" vote among the Sunni community. While moderates could take a more active role in politics, hard-liners could turn to the insurgency, deciding violence is the only hope of retaining influence in the country.
also see story:
DETERRENCE: With 1,000 indigenous Hsiung Feng II and III missiles and 400 Harpoon missiles, the nation would boast the highest anti-ship missile density in the world With Taiwan wrapping up mass production of Hsiung Feng II and III missiles by December and an influx of Harpoon missiles from the US, Taiwan would have the highest density of anti-ship missiles in the world, a source said yesterday. Taiwan is to wrap up mass production of the indigenous anti-ship missiles by the end of year, as the Chungshan Institute of Science and Technology has been meeting production targets ahead of schedule, a defense official with knowledge of the matter said. Combined with the 400 Harpoon anti-ship missiles Taiwan expects to receive from the US by 2028, the nation would have
North Korea yesterday fired about 10 ballistic missiles to the sea toward Japan, the South Korean Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS) said, days after Pyongyang warned of “terrible consequences” over ongoing South Korea-US military drills. Pyongyang recently dashed hopes of a diplomatic thaw with Seoul, Washington’s security ally, describing its latest peace efforts as a “clumsy, deceptive farce.” Seoul’s military detected “around 10 ballistic missiles launched from the Sunan area in North Korea toward the East Sea [Sea of Japan] at around 1:20pm,” JCS said in a statement, referring to South Korea’s name for the body of water. The missiles
North Korea tested nuclear-capable rocket launchers, state media reported yesterday, a day after Seoul detected the launch of about 10 ballistic missiles. The test comes after South Korean and US forces launched their springtime military drills, due to run until Thursday. North Korean leader Kim Jong-un on Saturday oversaw the testing of the multiple rocket launcher system (MRLS), the Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) said. The test involved 12 600mm-caliber ultra-precision multiple rocket launchers and two artillery companies, it said. Kim said the drill gave Pyongyang’s enemies, within the 420km striking range, a sense of “uneasiness” and “a deep understanding
‘UNWAVERING FRIENDSHIP’: A representative of a Japanese group that co-organized a memorial, said he hopes Japanese never forget Taiwan’s kindness President William Lai (賴清德) yesterday marked the 15th anniversary of the Tohoku earthquake and tsunami, urging continued cooperation between Taiwan and Japan on disaster prevention and humanitarian assistance. Lai wrote on social media that Taiwan and Japan have always helped each other in the aftermath of major disasters. The magnitude 9 earthquake struck northeastern Japan on March 11, 2011, triggering a massive tsunami that claimed more than 19,000 lives, according to data from Japanese authorities. Following the disaster, Taiwan donated more than US$240 million in aid, making it one of the largest contributors of financial assistance to Japan. In addition to cash donations and
RSS