Iraqi people vote in new constitution

The people of Iraq have voted in favour of the new constitution, it has been announced.

The results of the October 15 vote showed that 78% of voters backed the constitution, while 21% voted against it, the Independent Electoral Commission of Iraq announced. Voter turnout was 63%.

It was feared that opponents of the constitution – mainly Sunni Muslims - would gain two-thirds of the vote in at least three provinces, which would have been enough to prevent the constitution becoming law.

However, only two provinces – Salahuddin and Anbar – voted against the constitution by more than two-thirds. In Ninevah, a mixed Sunni and Shia province, where it was feared that opponents could achieve a two-thirds ‘no’ vote, the final vote was 55% - not enough to prevent the constitution becoming law.

Despite reports of alleged vote-rigging in Ninevah, the Electoral Commission said that it had found “no cases of fraud that could affect the results of the vote”.

The majority of Kurds and Shi’ites are in favour of the constitution, while the majority of Sunnis are opposed to it, fearing that Iraq would be split into three autonomous regions as a result. This would lead to a Kurdish-region in the north and a Shia-dominated region in the south, leaving Sunnis – who are in the minority in Iraq – in the poorer central and western regions.

The constitution will not pave the way for elections in a new Iraqi Parliament to take place in December.

Foreign Secretary Jack Straw welcomed the result of the vote. He said: "This is an important step in the development of a democratic, stable and inclusive Iraq.

“Although the draft Constitution has now been passed by the referendum, there is a review mechanism included in the draft. It is vital that there is maximum participation across all parts of Iraq in the elections in December, to ensure a fully representative government and Council of Representatives that will have the job of taking forward the implementation and review of this Constitution."

However, Liberal Democrats foreign affairs spokesperson Sir Menzies Campbell, said that the result should be given a “guarded welcome”. He said: “Progress towards full-scale elections at the end of December is a necessary condition for an effective exit strategy for British forces. But the constitution is by no means perfect in a number of significant respects.

"Between now and December there is a real risk that insurgency will increase, and British forces may come under greater pressure than ever before."

(KMcA/SP)