By Bobby Rajabi
Impunity Watch Reporter, Middle East

BAGHDAD, Iraq – On November 22 the Iraqi parliament amended an election law that governs the general elections scheduled for January 2010. An earlier version of the law was previously vetoed by Iraq’s Sunni vice president, Tariq al-Hashemi. The amended law, however, fails to address the concerns of Vice President Hashemi.

Hashemi claims that the version of the law passed on November 8 failed to give sufficient voice to Iraqis living abroad. Many of those living abroad are Sunnis. The amendment passed by the Iraqi parliament on November 22 called for Iraqis living abroad to have their vote counted toward their home province. The law also increased the number of member of parliaments elected by the Kurdish region of Iraq.

The changes made differ from Hashemi’s request. The Iraqi vice president request that the new law create seats allocated for voters outside of Iraq. It is expected that Hashemi will veto the law again and send it back to the parliament. Analysts say that even if a law is eventually approved, it now appears unlikely that it will happen in time for elections to be held by the end of January, as required by the Iraqi constitution.

Sunni government officials do not agree with the amendments plan to add seats to the Kurdish-run province. Osama al-Nujefi, a Sunni parliamentarian, said that the amendment would have the effect of stealing seats from Northern provinces where Sunni’s have a strong presence and giving them to the Kurds. According to Nujeifi, the taking of seats would be done in “an illegitimate way.”

A veto by Hashemi would serve as a second veto of the law. Under Iraqi law, if a second veto is used, Iraqi parliamentarians can overturn it with a sixty percent majority vote in the two hundred seventy five seat assembly. An alliance of Shi’ite and Kurdish members would pass threshold with thirty votes to spare.

The United States has linked the pace of troop withdrawal from Iraq to the elections planned for January a hopes to take a more active role in ensuring that they take place on time. Christopher Hill, the US Ambassador to Iraq, has warned against “slippage” in staging the country’s election. US Secretary of State Hilary Clinton said that the US will present “a number of ideas” with the goal of ending the stalemate.

For information, please see:

AFP – US Warns Against Iraq Election ‘Slippage’ – 24 November 2009

AP – Iraq Election Law Faces Second Veto – 24 November 2009

Al Jazeera – Iraqi MPs Amend Election Law – 23 November 2009

BBC – Iraq Parliament Passes Amended Election Law – 23 November 2009