01-31-2005, 04:54 PM
<!--QuoteBegin-->QUOTE<!--QuoteEBegin--><b>For democracy </b>
The Pioneer Edit Desk
The people of Iraq have displayed remarkable courage and resolution in turning up in large numbers to vote in the elections on Sunday ignoring threats to their lives. The seriousness of the latter was clearly underlined by the suicide bombings and mortar fire that killed over 44 persons, including nine attackers, while the polling continued.
Though poor in many Sunni-dominated areas, the turnout was remarkably high in the so-called "triangle of death", a Sunni-majority region south of Baghdad and the city of Falluja to its west. Even if the claim of a nearly 60 per cent voter turnout, with 90 per cent or more in the Shia areas, by Iraq's Election Commission is over-optimistic, there can be no doubt that the figure was impressively high, which clearly indicates that the overwhelming majority of the country's population wants not terrorism and violence but peace, democracy and restoration of normal conditions. Of course, they cannot be so naive as to expect that the elections would automatically lead to these overnight, but they are certainly not wrong if they believe that they have initiated a process that has a fair chance of doing so.
They certainly have given a strong mandate and credibility to the 275-member Transitional National Assembly (TNA) and the 18 provincial legislatures and the Kurdistan National Assembly, that are to be formed on the basis of the elections.
One now hopes that the new Government will promptly get down to the task of drafting a new constitution for Iraq, which is scheduled to be completed by August 15. The process will not be easy given the religious, ethnic and other claims that have to be harmonised within constitution's confines. Nevertheless, the very fact that a government could be cobbled together after the elections, and pressure now generated by the people's mandate for a democracy, holds out the hope that the TNA's labours will be fruitful, that elections to approve the new constitution will be held, as scheduled, on October 15, and that, approval received, Iraq will move towards new national elections on December 15, and the assumption of office by a fully constitutional Government on December 31.
For all this to actually happen, and to be meaningful in terms of peace, democracy and Iraq's reconstruction, it will be necessary to crush terrorism with a mailed fist. This in turn would require the presence of United States' troops in Iraq until the job is done.
Both Washington and the new Government that assumes office after Sunday's elections, should realise this. While there can be no doubt that American troops have to leave Iraq once the situation has stabilised, demands for their immediate withdrawal, whether made by a section of Democrats in the US or by members of the TNA, will be equally irresponsible. For quite some time at least, Iraq's Government will lack both the manpower and firepower needed to crush terrorism. A hasty American withdrawal will only help terrorists <!--QuoteEnd--><!--QuoteEEnd-->
The Pioneer Edit Desk
The people of Iraq have displayed remarkable courage and resolution in turning up in large numbers to vote in the elections on Sunday ignoring threats to their lives. The seriousness of the latter was clearly underlined by the suicide bombings and mortar fire that killed over 44 persons, including nine attackers, while the polling continued.
Though poor in many Sunni-dominated areas, the turnout was remarkably high in the so-called "triangle of death", a Sunni-majority region south of Baghdad and the city of Falluja to its west. Even if the claim of a nearly 60 per cent voter turnout, with 90 per cent or more in the Shia areas, by Iraq's Election Commission is over-optimistic, there can be no doubt that the figure was impressively high, which clearly indicates that the overwhelming majority of the country's population wants not terrorism and violence but peace, democracy and restoration of normal conditions. Of course, they cannot be so naive as to expect that the elections would automatically lead to these overnight, but they are certainly not wrong if they believe that they have initiated a process that has a fair chance of doing so.
They certainly have given a strong mandate and credibility to the 275-member Transitional National Assembly (TNA) and the 18 provincial legislatures and the Kurdistan National Assembly, that are to be formed on the basis of the elections.
One now hopes that the new Government will promptly get down to the task of drafting a new constitution for Iraq, which is scheduled to be completed by August 15. The process will not be easy given the religious, ethnic and other claims that have to be harmonised within constitution's confines. Nevertheless, the very fact that a government could be cobbled together after the elections, and pressure now generated by the people's mandate for a democracy, holds out the hope that the TNA's labours will be fruitful, that elections to approve the new constitution will be held, as scheduled, on October 15, and that, approval received, Iraq will move towards new national elections on December 15, and the assumption of office by a fully constitutional Government on December 31.
For all this to actually happen, and to be meaningful in terms of peace, democracy and Iraq's reconstruction, it will be necessary to crush terrorism with a mailed fist. This in turn would require the presence of United States' troops in Iraq until the job is done.
Both Washington and the new Government that assumes office after Sunday's elections, should realise this. While there can be no doubt that American troops have to leave Iraq once the situation has stabilised, demands for their immediate withdrawal, whether made by a section of Democrats in the US or by members of the TNA, will be equally irresponsible. For quite some time at least, Iraq's Government will lack both the manpower and firepower needed to crush terrorism. A hasty American withdrawal will only help terrorists <!--QuoteEnd--><!--QuoteEEnd-->