US embassy cable - 05BAGHDAD4010

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 04 BAGHDAD 004010 
 
SIPDIS 
 
STATE FOR INR/R/MR, NEA/PPD, NEA/PPA, NEA/AGS, INR/IZ, INR/P 
 
E.0. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: OPRC, KMDR, KPAO, IZ, Media, Parliament 
SUBJECT: MEDIA REACTION: IRAQI GOVERNMENT, CONSTITUTION, 
FEDERALISM, SOVEREIGNTY, FOREIGN RELATIONS; BAGHDAD 
 
SUMMARY: Discussion on the Constitution, Iraqi Sovereignty, 
Federalism, and Foreign Relations were the major editorial 
themes of the daily newspapers on September 27, 2005. END 
SUMMARY. 
 
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TABLE OF CONTENTS 
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A. "On the Brink of the Referendum" (Al-Bayyan, 9/27) 
B. "Saudi Arabia, Iran, and Iraq" (Asharq Al-Awsat, 9/27) 
C. "The Constitution . Gateway to Rule of Law" (Al-Ittihad, 
9/27) 
D. "As Far As Alternatives Go." (Az-Zaman, 9/27) 
E. "The Constitution and Federalism" (Al-Dawa, 9/27) 
F. "Silent Regimes and Passive Watchers" (Al-Adala, 9/27) 
 
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SELECTED COMMENTARIES 
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A. "On the Brink of the Referendum" 
(Al-Bayyan, affiliated with Islamic Ad-Dawa party led by 
Ibrahim Al-Ja'afari, published this front-page unattributed 
editorial) 
 
"The referendum will be held within the few next weeks and 
we have to make use of the interim time by increasing 
interaction with people through conferences and forums in 
all provinces to ensure adequate education about this 
process. It is very important to educate people about the 
referendum so that they understand the basis for rejecting 
or approving the constitution. Religious authorities have 
endorsed the current draft constitution and this will 
encourage the passage of this draft. At the same time, many 
political groups across the spectrum have supported it. But, 
the most important facet is citizen awareness about the 
importance of this document. I think National Assembly 
members, and in particular Constitutional Committee Members, 
must be responsible for this mission. 
 
"They know how the constitution was drafted and for this 
reason they must make use of the short time left to hold 
meetings with people and explain to them why they should 
vote "Yes" to the constitution. There are a few groups 
(working behind the scenes) trying to exploit media outlets 
to obfuscate the constitutional process. In fact, we do not 
oppose those groups because they have right to freely 
express their opinions about the constitution. However, they 
should not turn people against the constitution by using 
futile excuses and insufficient proof as a way to convince 
some groups that the current constitution does not satisfy 
their ambitions. It is immoral to use deception and 
accusations to obscure the truth so that they can achieve 
two-thirds of the votes required to reject the constitution. 
 
"We just want to know why those groups want to thwart the 
constitutional process. The constitution is important 
because it is a document that has the consensus of a whole 
spectrum of Iraq's people. Any delay in the referendum will 
take the country backwards and this will not benefit anyone 
in Iraq. Any interruption in this process will prolong the 
coalition forces' presence in Iraq. For all these reasons, 
we have to work hard and seize the opportunity today to take 
the most important step in Iraq's history." 
 
B. "Saudi Arabia, Iran, and Iraq" 
(Asharq Al-Awsat, independent, London-based, Saudi-owned, 
published this page-nine editorial by Abdul Rahman Al- 
Rashed) 
 
"Usually, the Saudi Foreign Minister is not so easily 
angered but he couldn't tolerate the imbalance of Iran's 
infiltration in the south of Iraq. This infiltration 
threatens the whole region and may ignite a war that lasts 
for twenty years. In fact, the Iranians are interfering in 
Iraq because there has been no Arab presence in Iraq since 
the downfall of Saddam's regime. Saudi Arabia and Egypt have 
avoided establishing representation in Iraq as long as the 
Americans are here. As a result, Iran has intervened in 
Iraqi affairs to affect Iraq's religious establishment and 
due to the importance of Iraq's oil wealth. Iran's sudden 
affection for Iraq was also facilitated by disengagement 
from the Gulf States and Egypt's dismissal of interests in 
Iraq. 
 
"Unfortunately, most Arabs who are interested in Iraqi 
affairs are busy speaking about the occupation. They haven't 
taken into consideration the fact that American forces will 
leave at some point during the next three years. This 
neglect will automatically lead to Iranian dominance in Iraq 
because it is the most powerful country in the region. 
Moreover, the extended presence of the U.S. in Iraq will 
lead radical Shiite groups to clash with the Americans, in 
addition to the Sunni extremist groups that are presently 
fighting them. I think that Iran is making a big mistake by 
attempting to control important parts of Iraq or to call for 
separation or the federal division of the country. In the 
end, this will lead to new wars. 
 
"But, we must distinguish between radical Sunni calls that 
reject federalism and the positive call for federal 
experiments in Iraq; the federal system is not as bad as 
Sunni extremists claim. It is impractical to link all of 
Iraq's affairs with Baghdad because this policy is contrary 
to international standards that aim to reduce bureaucracies 
and engage regions. On the other hand, federalism means that 
Iraq is divided into 18 provinces that all meet together in 
the parliament-a model of which happened during the last 
elections. 
 
"Federalism allows Iraqi territories to enjoy their own 
interests without any concerns of separation and it gives 
the majority the most votes inside the parliament while at 
the same time not marginalizing the rights of minorities. 
[Despite that] the proposed system of federalism in the 
Iraqi constitution represents a dangerous division for the 
country that will divide Iraq into small countries that will 
fight with each other for years. Iraq's new crisis requires 
that none of Iraq's neighbors foment radical Shiite or Sunni 
elements within the country. In addition, they must not be 
involved in the battle of statements that often lead to 
disastrous policies." 
 
C. "The Constitution . Gateway to Rule of Law" 
(Al-Ittihad - affiliated with PUK, pro-coalition, published 
this page-three editorial by Abdul Hadi Mahdi) 
 
"All concerned political parties, and other Iraqi movements 
including those who oppose the draft constitution, are 
preparing for the coming referendum process. On both sides, 
this is the significant feature of a new democratic and free 
Iraq--depending on what their reasons are, all sides express 
their own points of view peacefully and freely. 
 
"This is an internal Iraqi affair, foreigners from outside 
Iraq have no right to interfere or to express their own 
opinions about the draft constitution or to claim that they 
are representing a certain Iraqi group. Actually, we have 
passed the most critical and decisive stage--drafting the 
Iraqi constitution and we have overcome complicated 
challenges facing our great Iraq. Iraqi sects: Kurds, Arabs, 
Shi'a and Sunni are united to face challenges from those who 
want to harm Iraq. 
 
"Recently, several statements have been released declaring 
that there is a fear that Iraq might be divided and we 
wonder if the timing for such statements was a coincidence; 
released in a decisive moment in Iraqi's lives when we are 
preparing for the coming referendum. All those claiming the 
right to express their fears for Iraq have been silent for 
two years now watching Iraqis paying with their blood as a 
price for determining their democratic future. Iraqis are 
ready to decide their future by saying yes to the 
constitution in the coming referendum and then they will 
open closed doors to a prosperous future in a state replete 
with laws and institutions. 
 
"Accepting or rejecting the constitution is not the end of 
the road for Iraqis, we can amend disputed articles in the 
constitution and we can have dialogue with the opposition. 
Still, all Iraqi efforts to change the constitution for the 
better will be a decisive decision. As our president 
Talabani said, `Only the holy Qur'an cannot be changed but 
we can change all other things.' It is our permanent 
constitution but we can always change its articles for the 
better and it is better to have this national compact than 
to have nothing to define our Iraqi future. In the upcoming 
referendum Iraqis will decide their future." 
 
D. "As Far As Alternatives Go." 
(Az-Zaman, independent, anti-coalition published this back- 
page column by Fateh Abdul Salam) 
"Iraqis have the right to know what is going on in Iraq. A 
few days ago President Bush said that he expects the worst 
with regard to the security situation (could it be worse?); 
British Prime Minister Tony Blair said he never expected 
violence to reach its current level; and France (a country 
not involved in the war) said it intends to host an 
international conference to save Iraq from impending 
division. 
 
"I do not want to get into the causes of these catastrophic 
results-they begin and end with the blind occupation, but I 
do want to ask about the alternatives available to 
Washington and question whether political achievements are 
possible in a country where America can do anything 
militarily. 
 
"Many Iraqi politicians continue to turn a blind eye to the 
realities of this third year of the new era, realities which 
differ from those three years ago. There is a whole new 
power structure in Iraq, with an additional center of power 
in the Green Zone. Crises have been created and proposals 
have failed to bring complete and final solutions. The U.S. 
presence will not lead Iraq to stability, nor will its 
withdrawal guarantee the country will survive the influence 
of neighboring powers. Do those individuals who deliver 
statements on television sense the seriousness of the 
situation in Iraq? 
 
"Iraq is in a very critical situation, and available options 
are complex, despite attempts to simplify them." 
 
E. "The Constitution and Federalism" 
(Al-Dawa newspaper, no bias, affiliated with the Al-Dawa 
movement, published this page-seven editorial by Hussein Al- 
Jabiry) 
 
"People around the world are competing to build and help 
their countries prosper, but when Iraqis decided to hold an 
election in order to form a Transitional National Assembly 
and government, an Iraqi group objected to holding elections 
justifying their stance by claiming difficult security 
conditions. The elections happened with wide participation 
in spite of the bad security situation and threats which 
were widely disseminated by the media and even some 
ministers within the former government. 
Elections succeeded, every one witnessed that success 
including the United Nations but objectors questioned the 
legitimacy of the elections and justified that by saying: 
`it doesn't represent all Iraqi sects.' 
 
"Iraq succeeded in the draft constitution process and formed 
a committee comprised of all sects, even those who didn't 
participate in the elections-but those who objected to the 
elections opposed certain items which the majority of the 
committee agreed upon. The objectors opposed the article 
referring to Iraq's Arab identity, in spite of the fact that 
many Arab constitutions lack this and Iraq is a country of 
multiple ethnicities. They objected to federalism and 
justified it by saying it would divide Iraq even though 
federalism unites the country, preserves its natural 
resources and puts the Ministries of Defense and Foreign 
Affairs under the umbrella of the central government. 
 
"The aim of the objectors is clear: they object to any 
endeavor that others have to rebuild the new Iraq. This 
situation reminds us of a popular tale: One day an Iraqi man 
married a foreign woman who was opposed to the relatives 
within his household. When they asked for certain kinds of 
food, she cooked food they couldn't stand until they 
discovered a solution-they asked her to cook food they 
didn't like and their goal was accomplished." 
 
F. "Silent Regimes and Passive Watchers" 
(Al-Adala, no bias, affiliated with SCIRI led by Abdul Aziz 
Al-Hakim, published this last-page column by Hamza Shamkhy) 
 
"Regimes are silent and people are passively watching the 
terrorism and destruction that is happening daily in Iraq. 
Unfortunately, the entire world pays no attention, just to 
those who raise empty slogans (of Jihad), liberating Iraq 
from the occupation, and demanding the Iraqi people fight 
(the occupation) even if this fight results in the Iraqi 
people destroying their country. 
 
"But at the same time we find the Palestinians, the Golan 
Heights, and the Shebaa Farms representing land under 
occupation--there are many military and security bases and 
foreigners occupying their land, so why don't they liberate 
their land first and attack these bases instead of coming to 
Iraq? Actually, Iraqi people comprehend their own issues, 
and no one has the right to turn our home into a place for 
terrorism, crime and corruption. 
 
"They were supposed to lend assistance and support to Iraq, 
to help it in its time of need, but unfortunately they 
prefer silence and to passively watch Iraqis who are facing 
terrorism, chaos, crime and destruction. In spite of that we 
hear them rant and label the terrorism against Iraqis as 
`resistance to the occupation' and failing to (respectfully) 
label our dead as `martyrs.' We hear their sounds that 
advocate different kinds of terrorism, but we find their 
silence when it comes to Iraqi blood that is shed daily. 
What kind of a puzzle is this? What kind of world is this? 
The only thing that we can say is: silent regimes and 
passive watchers." 
 
KHALILZAD