The key points raised in the al-Jazeera article were:
“In what the American President George W. Bush claims to be another milestone on Iraq’s road to democracy, Iraqi headed to polling stations today to give a ‘yes’ or ‘no’ to the proposed draft constitution, expected to further divide the country into three mini-states.”/>
On this issue, the Globe stated:/>
“And the process of drafting the constitution has exacerbated rifts in Iraqi society. Some Iraqis fear it goes too far to enshrine Islam as the basis of government; some say it doesn't go far enough. Others worry that the charter could increase ethnic strife; many Sunnis believe it treats them unfairly and fear its provisions for federalism will allow the creation of oil-rich Shi'ite and Kurdish ministates that leave Sunni areas isolated.”
Al-Jazeera: “There's no clarity about what the referendum means to the Iraqis, but it is for sure not a step forward in establishing democracy in the country as President Bush maintains.”
The Globe: “The White House has presented the referendum as a major chance to defuse the insurgency by drawing Sunnis into politics. But a US diplomat, speaking anonymously under embassy policy, said yesterday that the constitution vote alone will probably have little effect on the insurgency.”
For those interested, here is a Video Link for an anti-Constitution piece that al-Jazeera is advertising at the end of articles on this subject.
