Deal on Iraqi constitution could divide Sunni Arabs

Baghdad (dpa) - A last minute deal on Iraq's draft constitution which is to be put to a vote this weekend could spark division among Sunni Iraqis, it emerged Wednesday.

A spokesman for the Iraqi Islamic Party (IIP), one of the main Sunni Arab parties, said his party would call on its supporters to ratify the constitution in Saturday's referendum.

However, Saleh al-Mutlaq, a leading representative of the National Dialogue Council, an umbrella group of Sunni Arab parties, told Deutsche Presse-Agentur dpa on Wednesday morning: "These changes do not satisfy our demands. They are not enough to change our position of disapproval.''

During negotiations on Tuesday evening, representatives of Shiite, Kurdish and some Sunni Arab parties agreed on a mechanism allowing for the constitution to be amended after its ratification.

The next parliament, to be formed after elections scheduled for December, will set up a commission to consider proposed amendments which would then have to be ratified in a new referendum.

Sunni Arabs, who make up about 20 per cent of the population, have rejected the current constitutional draft which proposes a federal system of government with a large measure of regional autonomy.

Iraqi parliament speaker Hashim al-Hassani has called for a special sitting of Iraq's National Assembly to "discuss the progress in the constitutional process and deal with the results of Tuesday's negotiations between the political blocs'', a statement issued by the parliamentary office said.

It is not clear whether the changes to the text are to be put to vote on Wednesday or whether they will merely be brought to the attention of assembly members. dpa fi/gm cb sr