Sistani May Issue Edict Against Iraq Power Transfer

[NNN0LHI]

http://www.reuters.com/newsArticle.jhtml?type=worldNews&storyID=4676724§ion=news

KUWAIT (Reuters) - Iraq's top Shi'ite cleric may issue a religious edict declaring the June U.S. transfer of power to Iraqis illegal if an interim constitution article is not amended, a close aide said in remarks published on Saturday.

"If article 61 of the interim constitution is not changed, Imam (Ayatollah Ali) al-Sistani may issue a fatwa declaring illegitimate all those (Iraqis) to whom power is transferred in June," said Ayatollah Mohammad Baqer al-Mohri.

Sistani "may also order the Iraqi people to protest or carry out major popular demonstrations and sit-ins in all Iraqi cities," added Mohri.

The Kuwait-based aide to Sistani did not elaborate on the changes to article 61 wanted by Sistani.

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[alfredo]

1. Sounds like sand in the ointment.

Any chance of this not becoming a full blown civil war?

[enough]

2. Does Bushco every wonder why they got into this in the first place?

snip>

Mohri also urged the United Nations and the U.S.-run Coalition Provisional Authority running Iraq not to disagree with Sistani, "or else there will be pandemonium in Iraq, and protests and chaos will be widespread."

snip>

[mulethree]

3. Any clues what article 61 says? eom

[alcuno]

4. Article 61.

Sistani has consistently said he wants elections FIRST. He wants people who have been elected to write the permanent constitution, not the other way around.

Article 61
(A) The National Assembly shall write the draft of the permanent constitution by no later than 15 August 2005.
(B) The draft permanent constitution shall be presented to the Iraqi people for approval in a general referendum to be held no later than 15 October 2005. In the period leading up to the referendum, the draft constitution shall be published and widely distributed to encourage a public debate about it among the people.
(C) The general referendum will be successful and the draft constitution ratified if a majority of the voters in Iraq approve and if two-thirds of the voters in three or more governorates do not reject it.
(D) If the permanent constitution is approved in the referendum, elections for a permanent government shall be held no later than 15 December 2005 and the new government shall assume office no later than 31 December 2005.
(E) If the referendum rejects the draft permanent constitution, the National Assembly shall be dissolved. Elections for a new National Assembly shall be held no later than 15 December 2005. The new National Assembly and new Iraqi Transitional Government shall then assume office no later than 31 December 2005, and shall continue to operate under this Law, except that the final deadlines for preparing a new draft may be changed to make it possible to draft a permanent constitution within a period not to exceed one year. The new National Assembly shall be entrusted with writing another draft permanent constitution.
(F) If necessary, the president of the National Assembly, with the agreement of a majority of the members' votes, may certify to the Presidency Council no later than 1 August 2005 that there is a need for additional time to complete the writing of the draft constitution. The Presidency Council shall then extend the deadline for writing the draft constitution for only six months. This deadline may not be extended again.
(G) If the National Assembly does not complete writing the draft permanent constitution by 15 August 2005 and does not request extension of the deadline in Article 61 (D) above, the provisions of Article 61 (E), above, shall be applied.

[aquart]

5. Well, he's right, isn't he?

Elect under articles of confederation, write the constitution, then re-elect? Is that what we did?

[alcuno]

6. Can't recall.

It looks like delegates were appointed by their state legislatures each year and the person who was the delegate couldn't hold an office. Were the state governments elected at that time?

[Barrett808]

7. kick