A nation without constitution will have a constitution soon-
Iraqi authorities began Friday handing out millions of copies of a draft constitution in time for next week's hotly contested referendum on the post Saddam Hussein
charter.
British forces, grappling with increased attacks on their troops in southern Iraq, announced the arrest of 12 Shiite militiamen and expressed grave concern that some of the detained were serving police officers.
Many households received their copy of the proposed constitution along with subsidised foodstuffs in exchange for state-issued ration tickets, but the text was also available in public buildings, hospitals, universities and even jails.
Up to five million copies were to be printed with the help of the United Nations ahead of the October 15 referendum. "The printing is rolling slower than expected but we will be able to finish by October 14," a senior official in charge of the process said Thursday.
The target of five million copies might not be met, however, "because of the extremely limited timeframe. We will probably reach 3.5 million" in Arabic and one million in Kurdish, said the official
who asked to remain anonymous.
UN funding provided for an additional 400,000 copies in Turkomen and Assyrian, languages spoken by significant minorities of Iraqis. "There's a huge demand. Iraqis want to read the constitution, whether they favour or oppose it," the official said, adding that some Iraqis were going straight to printing shops to get their copies. |
