BAGHDAD, 17 August 2005 — Kurdish leaders insisted Monday they have no plan to secede from Iraq even if they want the new constitution to give them the right to do so — one of the issues that forced a delay in finishing the draft charter.
Meetings were to resume today among Iraqi leaders seeking to finish the draft by the new deadline — midnight Aug. 22.
Iraqi leaders expressed confidence they would overcome differences over remaining issues, including Kurdish demands for self-determination and the role of Islam, by Monday.
However, many leaders were equally sanguine about prospects for meeting the original Aug. 15 deadline. If no agreement can be reached this time, the interim constitution requires that Parliament be dissolved.
Different groups gave conflicting information on what had been resolved and what stood in the way of a deal.
Shiite lawmakers cited the role of Islam — an issue that affects women’s rights — and self-determination for the Kurds, which Arabs fear would mean they would eventually secede from the country.
President Jalal Talabani, a Kurd, insisted the Islam issue had been solved and “you will see in the constitution that it is not a problem.”
Prime Minister Ibrahim Jaafari, a Shiite, mentioned federalism, the election law and the formula for distributing revenue from oil and other natural resources. Sunni negotiator Mohammed Abed-Rabbou said “the most important point is federalism.”
Most also cited Kurdish demands for self-determination — step beyond federalism because it would imply the right to break away from Iraq. US Ambassador Zalmay Khalilzad insisted that self-determination was “not on the table.”
Talabani, leader of the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan, acknowledged that his fellow Kurds wanted self-determination but brushed aside talk of secession.
“There are rumors that the Kurds want to secede, but they are for unity,” he told reporters yesterday. He said he expected the constitution to be finished “before the deadline.”
At least 15 people were killed yesterday in Baghdad and central Iraq in insurgency-related violence.
