Draft Iraqi constitution elevates role of Islam

Rollback for women's rights?
Most worrying for women's groups has been the section on civil rights, which some believe would significantly roll back women's rights under a 1959 civil law enacted by a secular regime.

In the copy obtained by the AP on Monday, Article 19 of the second chapter says "the followers of any religion or sect are free to choose their civil status according to their religious or sectarian beliefs."

Shiite Muslim leaders have pushed for a stronger role for Islam in civil law but women's groups argue that could base legal interpretations on stricter religious lines that are less favorable to women.

Committee members said they had taken account of women's concerns but were not planning to make changes, since the National Assembly will have final say on the wording.

Committee member Khudayer al-Khuzai said Muslims would be free to choose which Islamic sect they want to be judged by under the proposed civil law.

“We will not force anyone to adopt any sect at all. People are free to choose the sect they see as better or more legitimate. This is implemented in marriage, inheritance and all civil rights,” he said.

Not all Shiite laws are disadvantageous for women. Many Sunni Muslims who have only daughters prefer to follow Shiite religious law when it comes to inheritance, since daughters inherit everything their parents leave. Under Sunni rules, daughters have to share their inheritance with uncles, aunts and grandparents.

‘No place for militias’
While not specifically addressing militias, the draft chapter would permit Iraqis to form only political parties and would ban individuals from possessing weapons.

“There is no place for militias,” said al-Khuzai, a Shiite. “We have even made it clear for non-governmental organizations that they should not have any secret or military activities.”

Earlier Monday, Khalilzad spoke against militias — a clear signal to groups in Iraq's dominant Shiite Arab and Kurdish communities that have maintained armed groups.

“Regarding the militias, of course, our position is clear,” he said. “We don't want to do anything that creates longer term problems for Iraq in terms of the problem of warlordism or the problem of building an infrastructure for a future civil war.”

In other areas, the chapter obtained by AP would make the judiciary independent, require public trials, ban torture and require a judicial order to detain anyone. Child labor, which flourished in the 1990s after the United Nations imposed sanctions on Iraq, would be banned.

Al-Qaida's attacks on those and other diplomats appear aimed at isolating Iraq's government from its neighbors as the leadership tries to make progress in political efforts and reach a consensus on the constitution.

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