Posted on 07/30/2005 3:31:53 PM PDT by churchillbuff
CAIRO, Egypt - The framers of Iraq's constitution appear likely to enshrine Islam as the main basis of law in the country — a stronger role than the United States had hoped for and one some Iraqis fear will mean a more fundamentalist regime.
Arab constitutions vary widely over the role of Islamic law, ranging from Lebanon, where the word "Islam" never appears, to Saudi Arabia, which says the Quran itself is its constitution.
Culture weighs far more heavily than the constitution and law, particularly when it comes to women. In Gulf nations — where the constitutions spell out a slightly lesser role for Islamic law, or Sharia, than in Egypt — women are more segregated and wear more conservative veils covering the entire face.
Kuwait, for example, bans alcohol and only gave women the right to vote this year, in contrast to Egypt, where beer, wine and liquor are sold openly and women have been voting since the early 20th century.
Yet most Gulf nations' constitutions state that Sharia is "a main source" of legislation, while Egypt takes the more definitive phrasing of "the source" — a fine distinction taking on major importance in Iraq.
Former Egyptian President Anwar Sadat amended the constitution during the 1970s, changing the language from "a source" to "the source" to beef up his Islamic credentials rather than to start implementing Sharia.
But in Iraq, some fear the Shiite Muslim leaders who want similar wording in Iraq's constitution hope to lay the groundwork for a more fundamentalist rule, at least in Shiite-dominated areas.
Already, Shiite leaders in some southern cities have tried imposing Islamic-based rules, pressuring women to wear headscarves and forcing liquor stores and music shops to close.
A draft of the constitution published last week in the government Al-Sabah newspaper put Islam as "the main basis" of law. But the constitutional committee — made up of Shiites, Kurds and some Sunnis — is still haggling over the language.
Fouad Massoum, the Kurdish deputy head of the committee, said it will discuss the role of Islam in meetings Sunday.
"We, in the Kurdish coalition, want Islam to be one of the sources of legislation," he said.
Iraq's most prominent Shiite Muslim cleric, Ayatollah Ali Sistani, has said he wants to preserve a strong role for Islam in the document, but also shuns the direct rule by clerics seen in his country of birth, mainly Shiite Iran.
Mouafak al-Rubaie, a national security adviser and a Shiite, met al-Sistani on Saturday and said the main concern of the Shiite religious leadership is to "preserve the Islamic identity of Iraq and its people, which means preserving a united Iraq and people as a state."
When U.S. administrators ran Iraq, they insisted on language setting Islam as "a source" of legislation when an interim constitution was approved in March 2004. But the same Shiites who backed "the main source" last year now dominate, and American officials have less influence over a sovereign Iraqi government.
Six Arab nations do not mention Sharia at all in their constitutions: Algeria, Morocco, Tunisia, Libya, Lebanon and Jordan.
Lebanon, where the Christian population is large and the president is a Christian, is the sole Arab state not to set Islam as the national religion — in fact, the constitution does not use the words "Islam" or "Christianity" at all, a reflection of its 1975-1990 civil war between sectarian militias.
Tunisia has taken one of the most liberal tracks in the Arab world, abolishing polygamy in 1956 and banning the headscarf in schools and other public establishments. Authorities regularly urge women to avoid the hijab, though more women have been donning scarves in past years.
The one area where Islamic law is nearly universal is in personal status law — rules concerning marriage, divorce and inheritance. Sharia allows men to divorce their wives by proclamation and grants daughters half the inheritance that sons receive.
In Syria and Libya, the constitutions are more concerned with laying out their nationalist ideologies — Libya's socialism and Syria's pan-Arabism — than with Islam.
At the opposite extreme lie Iran and Saudi Arabia. Iran's constitution lays out its Islamic Republic headed by a supreme leader, supposed to be the country's most knowledgeable Muslim cleric.
Saudi Arabia, home of Islam's most sacred shrines, states in the first article of its Basic Law that the Quran and the Prophet Muhammad's traditions are the nation's constitution, later saying, "Saudi society will be based on the principle of adherence to God's command."
Is this the fourth or fifth time this article has been posted in the last week?
Just damn. We rid them of their Baathist problem and they decide to create another Iran. I guess the best we could have hoped for was another Turkey, but it looks like it's going to turn into a real "turkey".
I posted an article on the subject a few days ago. Different article, though, with narrower focus and few details. This is a new and different article, offering names and comments, and broader perspective - i.e. , what other Mideast countries have in their constitutions. Are you saying that articles on this subject shouldn't be posted?
I wish I knew how this fit into the Grand 'Strategery' picture. From where I'm standing, this is ripe for failure. Islam is the anathema of liberty, peace, tolerance and equality.
I would be better to wait until they actually have written the Constitution and debated it in the assmebly.
Some things never change, even after a war.
I'm not sure why. There's no moratorium on talking about John Roberts prior to his confirmation hearings, or posting articles about CAFTA before the final vote, or any other issue that hasn't come to a head, as far as I know.
Because, we have enough to worry about in Iraq as it is, it does no good to worry about something that may or may not happen and something that we can't change.
What happens with federalism and other issues are far more important to the future of Iraq then whatever the Constitution says about Islam.
In fact what matters by far the most is the election in December, if the Sunnis vote and Allawi picks up more seats we will have a secular anti Iranian government in Iraq.
I choose not to live my life in the "big D" -- denial. I don't avert my eyes from news in the world, even stories that might make me uncomfortable.
Ah yes, the exacting punishment of Sharia is to be applied evenly /sarcasm
This is bad news - a disappointment but not a surprise.
The article doesn't specifically say how Islamic laws might be written into Iraq's constitution. But, given a chance, people don't always opt for "freedom" and liberty. We see that happening in our own country.
Plus, there's a big difference between Middle Eastern countries, where I guess governments were formed under Islamic law, versus the U.S. where our laws trace back to natural law. It'd be great if they'd adopt a U.S.-version for their constitution, but that's not who they are.
Hoo boy.
It's the 4th or 5th time you have complained about people having an opinion while it is being drafted. Do you have no opinion on legislation until is already law too?
What is your problem with people discussing what it all probability will be in the Constitution?
You do realize that FR is based on people posting articles for comment, don't you?
Everyone is getting their shorts in a knot over this, the fact is this is just the first draft and it hasn't even gone before the coucil for approval yet. Much of this language will be revised and the word "the" will be changed to "a" by the final draft. Even the Grand Ayatollah Sistani doesn't want sharia law as the law of the land. He just wants the law of the land not to conflict with sharia.
So that means the experiment in democracy has already failed?
That's reassuring. (Not)
IRAQ THE MODEL
http://iraqthemodel.blogspot.com/
An emergency conference...
Iraq's constitution drafting committee called for an emergency summit for the leaders of political parties and religious factions in Iraq in order to override the remaining obstacles that are hindering finishing the final points of the constitution.
The chief of the CDC, Humam Hammodi mentioned that they hope that the final draft will be available after the proposed Saturday conference which will be attended by Iraqi president Jalal Talbani and the president of the Kurdistan region Masoud Barzani.
This piece of news was mentioned this morning on several Iraqi newspapers and this call for a big conference obviously came after the semi-complete draft was released last Tuesday which was faced by a lot of disagreement and objections in the Iraqi street and from several political parties especially those of minorities.
The main points that are going to be discussed in this conference will-in my opinion-include the shape of the federalist system of the state, the issue of considering Islam the main source of legislation, the name of the state as well as case of considering Persian ethnicity among the components of the Iraqi society.
I have expressed my disagreement with the draft in the last post and actually I noticed that most of the people I met in the last couple of days share the same concerns I have and many people are disappointed by the weak performance of the CDC.
Let's not forget that many of the public opinion polls that were conducted in Iraq in the past two years showed that a maximum of 15% of the voters would favor an Islamic state, so if the Saturday conference failed in dealing with the above points I mentioned, then I expect this constitution will be rejected by the voters.
- posted by Omar @ 14:01
Comments (73) Tuesday, July 26, 2005
If this is going to be the final draft, then I'm going to say "NO".
This morning, Al-Sabah had the exclusive right to publish the current draft of the constitution.
This draft will be submitted to the national Assembly to get the Assembly's approval before putting it to the October referendum.
Of course the draft is tool long to fully translate and it would've taken me a few more days to do that so I have chosen the most important parts of it and translated them.
Here are they for you to read:
*Words in between brackets are still not agreed upon by all members of the CDC.
*My comments are in Italics.
Section One:
Fundamental principles:
1-the republic of Iraq (the Islamic, federal) is a sovereign, independent country and the governing system is a democratic, republican, federal one.
The Islamic republic of Iraq!? NO WAY.
2-Islam is the official religion of the state and it is the main source of legislations and it is not allowed to make laws that contradict the fundamental teachings of Islam and its rules (the ones agreed upon by all Muslims) and this constitution shall preserve the Islamic identity of the majority of the Iraqi people (with its Shea't majority and its Sunni component) and respect the rights of all other religions.
This is the deadliest point if approved; Islam or any religion cannot and must not be the main source of legislation.
3-The Iraqi community is made of two main ethnicities; these are Arabic and Kurdish and of other main ethnicities; these are Turkmen, Chalideans, Assyrian, Armenian, Shabak and (Persian) and Yazidi and Mendayeen, all of which are equal in rights and duties of citizenship.
Why is it that no one heard of this ethnic component before? Or at least lets say that no one heard them (if they exsited) say that they want to be recognized as Persian Iraqis!
4-Arabic language is the official language of the Iraqi state and Kurdish language is (together with Arabic) the official language in the region of Kurdistan and for the central government, regions and provinces have the right to choose any local language as an additional official language if the majority of its citizens approved the choice in a referendum.
5-The Iraqi state is part of the Islamic and Arabic worlds or (the Iraqi state is a founding member of the Arab league and the Islamic conference organization).
Do we really need to put that in the constitution? After all, our "Muslim and Arab brothers" brought us nothing but troubles.
6-Sovereignty is for the law and the people is the source of authorities, practicing it through direct general secret voting (or by secret direct voting and referendum) and through its constitutional institutions.
8-The Iraqi state is one entity in land, people and sovereignty.
9-The family is the bas of the community and the state preserves the family's genuine Iraqi identity that is based on patriot, religious and ethical values and the state also is responsible for protecting maternity and childhood and looks after the youths and provide the appropriate environment to assure the development of their skills and capabilities.
I don't know for sure what they mean by saying "the state preserves the family's genuine Iraqi identity that is based on patriot, religious and ethical values" but it doesn't sound great anyway
10-Basic freedoms and rights that are stated in the constitution are granted for everyone and no law that undermines them shall be made (to be attached to no 2).
11-All ideologies that include racism, terrorism and "takfir" (or promote or publicize these concepts) are banned and especially the Saddmist Ba'ath and this one cannot be part of the political plurality of the state.
12-Internal and foreign relationship of the Iraqi state are to be built on principles of peace and cooperation with all nations, especially the neighboring ones.
13-Iraqi state commits to the international treaties unless if this could result in a conflict with this constitution.
14-Iraqi armed forces in all their forms and systems are part of the Iraqi people resembles it ethnic, religious and sectarian composition.
These forces are under the command of the civil authorities. Its duty is to defend the Iraqi state and must not interfere with political affairs and has no role in transition of power.
Using these forces in oppressing the Iraqi people is banned.
15-the religious references (the clergy) enjoys its independence and advisory position as a highly valued religious and national symbol (there are some reservations on this clause).
16-Holy places and shrines in the Iraqi state possess a legal character for what they represent as religious and cultural beings and the state has to preserve their sacredness and to protect the freedom of practicing ceremonies in these holy places.
17-the center of Baghdad is the capital of the Iraqi state.
Designating another city as a capital is possible under a special legislation.
18-The flag of the state, national and religious holidays are to be chosen and identified according to a law.
Section Two
Basic rights and public freedoms
1-All Iraqis are equal before the law regardless of gender, race, color, opinion, religion, sect or belief and discrimination based on these differences is prohibited.
2-Every Iraq has the right to live and be safe and enjoy freedom and privacy and it is not allowed to deprive any individual of these rights unless in accordance with the law and after a judicial order from a specialized judicial authority.
3-All Iraqis are to have equal opportunities in accordance with the law.
4/a-Iraqi nationality is a right for every Iraqi and a citizen may not be stripped of this nationality for any reason.
It is the foundation of the individual's citizenship and the source of his rights and duties and a citizen has the right to claim it back if it was taken from him.
Having more than one nationality is allowed.
4/b-The Iraqi is everyone born for Iraqi parents and a non-Iraqi women married to an Iraqi man has the right to claim Iraqi nationality after staying for 5 continuous years in Iraq after the marriage.
4/c-Iraqi nationality must not be granted for political reasons or in any way that could change the demography of the state.
4/d-The related processes are to be regulated by laws.
5-It is not allowed to exile an Iraqi citizen from his country and he cannot be prohibited from traveling inside or inside Iraq.
6-The state protects the basic rights of women including equality with men in accordance to the Islamic share'at and the state helps the women in creating balance between their duties within their families and their duties within the community.
Equality according to Islamic Share'at? Thia is totally new to me!
7/b-It is prohibited to employ children in demeaning jobs or in any job that does not suit their ages.
The state has to take enough measures to protect children
8-Private property is a protected right and every Iraqi has the right to use, invest and benefit from this property according to the law.
Private property cannot be confiscated unless for a case that serves public benefits and only after paying a fast and sufficient compensation.
9-Human freedom and dignity are protected by the law and no one can be arrested or interrogated unless by judicial orders.
All sorts of physical and mental torture or inhuman treatment are prohibited and any confession made under torture or threats is of no judicial value and those who have their rights violated have the right to as for to be compensated for the damage that was inflicted.
10-Papers of preliminary interrogation must be submitted to the specialized judge within 24 hours after the arrest is made and this 24 hour period is subject to renewal for one time only and for the same duration.
11-Every person has the right to express his opinion in any means granted by the law provided that order and ethics are not breached.
The state provides the following:
a-The freedom of press, journalism, advertising and peaceful demonstrations.
b-The freedom to establish organizations, political parties and union as well as the freedom of joining these entities.
12-The freedom of belief and religion is protected and so is the freedom to practice them in accordance with the law provided that the practice does not violate order and ethics.
13-Every person has the right to enjoy personal privacy and this includes:
a-The privacy of homes is protected and it's forbidden to search or enter homes unless in accordance with the law.
b-Conventional mail, E mails, faxes and phones are to remain secret and private and they must not be monitored unless there's a judicial or security need for that.
14/a-Crimes and punishments are to be defined only by the law.
b-The judiciary is independent and is liable to nothing but the law.
15-Every one has the right to claim justice in a court of law.
16-The right of defense is protected in all stages of trials.
17-The defendant is innocent until he's found guilty in a court of law.
18-Trilas are public unless otherwise stated by the court.
19-A defendant may not be tried for the same charge more than once unless new evidence appeared and no punishment harsher than the one valid at the time of committing the crime can be imposed.
20-Punishment is restricted to the criminal.
22-No law functions in a retrograde way unless otherwise stated by the law.
23-the defendant may not be forced to give a statement for any reason.
24-The court appoints a lawyer for the defendant and on the state's expense if the defendant was not able to pay for a lawyer.
25-The best law for the defendant is to be used.
27/b-The establishment of civil society organizations is prohibited if these organizations could harm the community.
The formation of militias or paramilitary organizations is prohibited whether they were in secret or in public.
Full document in Arabic.
This was all I could translate in the time I had and I guess this is what Iraqis care about most.
The parts I left are talking about the relationship between the regions/counties and the central administartion and other subjects like the rules for nominating the members of the supreme court and the duties of the different components of the government and these I will probably translate later.
Now back to what I think of this draft,
Although this document will be subject to further negotiations and modifications, my first look at it made me decide that I'm going to say "NO" to this constitution.
Islam has been introduced in many clauses and not only Islam, sectarianism was introduced into the draft in a disgusting way and frankly speaking, such things will make me feel so unsafe if results of the referendum came positive for this draft.
However, what eases my worries is that we're going to have the chance to say "YES" or "NO" and all of us know that it's much better to allow this critical step to take the time it needs than to end up with a useless (or even harmful) constitution.
And anyway, even this draft is way better than the 'no constitution' state we lived in for decades.
The other reassuring factor here is that amendments can be done two years after the constitution is 1st approved and then once again four years after that.
We have fought for a long time to reach the point where we can write a constitution that serves our needs and protects our future from oppression and dictatorship.
I say it once again, we're practicing AND learning democracy at the same time and the people may be fooled once but they can't be fooled all the time.
- posted by Omar @ 16:13
Comments (398)
Iraqi women discuss the constitution
Day by day and as the deadline for finishing the draft of the constitution approaches, we see more hot debates and more active public activities and more interaction with this historic event that will decide the future of life on the lands of Mesopotamia and it's interesting (yet not surprising to me) that daily-life concerns couldn't stop Iraqis from engaging discussions and debates when it comes to writing the constitution.
In the latest episode of "Dostorna" (a program produced by the Iraqia TV and literally means "our constitution) an interesting debate took place among Iraqi women; they discussed constitution, Share'at and how these subjects deal with women rights and needs and the difference in view points was actually obvious between secular/liberal women and religious/conservative women.
The show was attended by an exclusively female audience and questions were directed to the main characters of the show (4 women; 2 secular and 2 religious sitting against each other to the left and right of the stage.
The debate was direct and frank and dealt with many hot topics in Iraq which included controversial topics like hijab, basic freedoms (according to civil constitutions), equality between men and women and the percentage of women's representation in the National Assembly.
Right now, there's a big argument about the "137" law (or the social affairs law) which the Islamists failed at passing once and now it seems that many Iraqi women are determined to stop the Islamists from passing this law this time and actually many of the secular women expressed their disapproval of the attitude and opinion of some female Assembly members who were accused of "acting against the interests of other women".
A female colleague told me this yesterday:
"How could female assembly members support law 137? They want a full vote in the assembly but they want other women (and themselves) to have only half a vote and be treated as half a person before law!!"
Her observation is very interesting and requires stopping at because frankly speaking, I see that some women are acting against women's interests to satisfy the parties they follow which are of course religious parties.
However, what's good here after all is that we can all share and exchange thoughts in public and without fear. We're learning democracy and practicing it at the same time and this can make our steps rather slow and confused but I believe that we have passed (forever) the times where a dictator can rule Iraq.
The people will rule from now on and although the people might make a wrong choice once, they cannot go completely corrupt.
The real cause for concern is the growing relationship between Iraq's new government and the Iranian mullahs. We appear to have succeeded in setting up pro-Iranian regimes on both sides of Iran.
Saying Iraq will be a "democracy" and saying that Islam will be the source of law, isn't compatable - or is it? Turkey's considered a democracy. What's the status of Islam there? Likewise Pakistan.
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