Thursday, September 14, 2006
Mashhadani - plan for federalism politically dead
Politics
Mahmoud al-Mashhadani, a Sunni Arab who is the speaker of the Iraqi parliament said Tuesday that the plan for a federal Iraq is politically dead. Mashhadani said that legislation to implement federalism, would likely be postponed indefinitely after a meeting of political leaders on Wednesday.
"If federalism is to be applied now, it will lead to the secession of the south and the establishment of an Islamist extremist state in the centre of the country," said Mashhadani who is the third-ranking official in the government. He predicted the outcome of Wednesday's meeting of political leaders would be to agree on the principle and then postpone the topic for four years."
In the Shia holy city of Najaf on Tuesday, Abdul Aziz al-Hakim, leader of the Supreme Council of Islamic Revolutuion in Iraq (SCIRI) issued a full defense of federalism, which he described as a basic constitutional right of all Iraqis. Analysts say Hakim hopes to become the leader of the Shia region, which would comprise about nine of Iraq's 18 provinces. Grand Ayatollah Ali Sistani, the most revered Shia cleric in Iraq, had ordered Shia politicians to back off from the plan in order to prevent bitter infighting.
Mashhadani said the country is not prepared for federalism because its government is not strong enough to provide security and services, and because of troubled relationships with some neighboring countries.
