Sunni area rejects Iraq charter

[cal04]

Partial results of the vote on a new Iraqi constitution suggest at least one Sunni province has rejected it. The 20% sample said 81.5% had rejected the draft in Salahuddin, but in Diyala - which has a slight Sunni majority - it was approved by just over 50%.

No figures were given for the other two Sunni provinces of Anbar and Nineveh. A two-thirds rejection of the charter in both would torpedo the project. As expected, the results suggested a very high approval by Shias and Kurds.

Map of Iraq's provinces
Adil al-Lami of the Independent Electoral Commission of Iraq (IECI) told a news conference he could not give a date for the announcement of final results but said it would take some days.

He said no "dangerous" violations of the electoral law had been reported by the complaints. "We have received more than 100 complaints from different parties... but these complaints are very simple, for very simple violations made by those guarding the elections," Mr Lami said.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/in_depth/4367356.stm
http://www.abc.net.au/news/newsitems/200510/s1488412.htm

[alcibiades_mystery]

1. Anbar definitely rejected it

Nineveh holds Mosul as is Kurd heavy, so it's up in the air. If you have anything like 80% rejection in Anbar, then the Constitution will do absolutely nothing, since it will only make concrete and objective the complete lack of political power and self-representation among the Sunni. Hell, it might even radicalize some moderates who have since been working within the process.

[Kagemusha]

2. I've heard Nineveh had a lot of ballot stuffing too.

Just to make sure the constitution wasn't rejected because it represents the Kurds' best chance at a peaceful conquest of Kirkuk.

[Dhalgren]

3. On "Washington Week in Review" last night, one of the reporters

said that she had been a witness (along with her camera man) at one polling station where she said almost every voter turned in multiple ballots. She said she saw one man stand in a booth and she could see his ballots and he voted "yes" on seven ballots and handed all seven to a poll worker who then "stuffed them" (her words) into the ballot box's slot. This referendum has no real meaning what-so-ever...

[Roland99]

4. And why isn't that video plastered over every network right now??!

[Dhalgren]

5. Exactly! The other reporters and Gwen Ifle (?), the moderator

just laughed and made jokes about it being like "Chicago politics" and they moved on like it was nothing. Ifle later apologized to any Chicagoans for her remark, but they never really addressed the invalid nature of the election...

[realFedUp]

6. It was Martha Radditz

who usually shills for the administration
but in this case the camera doesn't lie.