BAGHDAD, Iraq—Excerpts from the Iraqi draft constitution:
The republic of Iraq is an independent sovereign state. Its ruling system is republican, parliamentary, democratic and federal.
Islam is the official state religion and is a basic source of legislation. No law may be legislated if it contradicts the fixed beliefs and rulings of Islam.
This constitution guarantees the Islamic identity of the majority of the Iraqi people and guarantees the full religious rights for all individuals in the freedom of doctrine and religious practice.
The sacred places and mausoleums (religious shrines) in Iraq have a religious and cultural identity, and the state emphasizes and safeguards their inviolability and guarantees the performance of rites freely in them.
No law may be legislated if it contradicts the principles of democracy.
Any entity or program that adopts racism, terrorism, infidelism or sectarian exclusion or encourages, paves the way for, glorifies, publicizes or justifies such beliefs is prohibited, especially the Saddamite Baath Party in Iraq under any label whatsoever. This cannot be part of the multi-party political system in Iraq, and this is to be regulated by law.
All Iraqis are equal before the law without any discrimination because of gender, race, ethnicity, origin, color, religion, sect, belief or opinion, economic or social status.
A percentage of seats no less than 25 percent are to be set aside for women's participation in the national assembly.
Oil and gas belong to all Iraqi people in all regions and provinces. The federal government will administer oil and gas produced from existing fields with the governments of the region and the producing provinces. Revenues will be distributed throughout the country in proportion to population.
The federal system in the republic of Iraq consists of the capital, regions, decentralized provinces and local administrations.
One or more provinces have the right to form a region through referendum, which can be requested in one of two ways: a request from one-third of the members of every council of the provisional councils that wish to form a region or a request from one-tenth of the voters in the provinces that want to form the region.
_Translated by Knight Ridder Baghdad staff
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(c) 2005, Knight Ridder/Tribune Information Services.
Iraq
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