Thursday, November 16, 2006
Constitution amendment committee elects chairman
Politics
The newly formed committee to consider amending Iraq's constitution on Wednesday elected its chairman and two deputies and will begin its work soon on such controversial issues as federalism and the status of former members of Saddam Hussein's Baath party, members said. Shiite legislator Hummam Hammoudi was elected as president and lawmakers Fouad Massoum, a Kurd, and Ayad al-Samarraie, a Sunni Arab, were named deputies. Twenty-two of the 29-member committee attended Wednesday's meeting, member Abdul-Karim al-Ineizi said.
The committee includes 12 members from the Shiite bloc, five Kurds, four members of the Sunni Arab Iraqi Accordance Front, two from former Prime Minister Ayad Allawi's secular Iraqi list, five representing minorities and one from the bloc of Sunni Arab politician Saleh al-Mutlaq. Shiite, Sunni Arab and Kurdish political leaders in parliament formed the constitutional committee in September and its job will be to review any changes on the constitution and see to their approval.
Hammoudi said the committee should have proposed amendments before parliament by mid May 2007. They must be approved by a majority vote in the 275-member legislature. Two months after they are approved by parliament a referendum will be held throughout the country, he said. Al-Samarraie said types of amendments will be either technical or political such as Iraq's identity as an Arab country, federalism and de-Baathification. The new constitution was adopted in a national referendum Oct. 15, 2005.
The committee includes 12 members from the Shiite bloc, five Kurds, four members of the Sunni Arab Iraqi Accordance Front, two from former Prime Minister Ayad Allawi's secular Iraqi list, five representing minorities and one from the bloc of Sunni Arab politician Saleh al-Mutlaq. Shiite, Sunni Arab and Kurdish political leaders in parliament formed the constitutional committee in September and its job will be to review any changes on the constitution and see to their approval.
Hammoudi said the committee should have proposed amendments before parliament by mid May 2007. They must be approved by a majority vote in the 275-member legislature. Two months after they are approved by parliament a referendum will be held throughout the country, he said. Al-Samarraie said types of amendments will be either technical or political such as Iraq's identity as an Arab country, federalism and de-Baathification. The new constitution was adopted in a national referendum Oct. 15, 2005.
