U.S. amb. does not pressure parliament to approve election law – MPs

BAGHDAD / IraqiNews.com: Lawmakers from different political blocs said that the presence of the U.S. ambassador in the meetings of the parliament’s chairmanship does not represent any pressure to approve the election law. “The U.S. ambassador has not attended any parliamentary session and has not exercised any pressure on lawmakers on the Kirkuk cause,” MP from al-Fadhila party, Jaber Habieb Jaber, told IraqiNews.com news agency. “There are some diplomats trying to convince the legislators, but there is no pressure on them. We are still in the 9th round and we have not yet achieved anything regarding the law,” he explained. The UN envoy, the U.S. ambassador, and other figures attends the meetings of the parliament’s chairmanship with the heads of the political blocs to discuss the election law. Regarding the Kirkuk case, the Habieb said “differences still exist and there are some proposals from the UN, but still without agreement.” Throughout the past week, the Iraqi Parliament has failed to pass the elections bill due to differences over the status of the oil-rich city of Kirkuk in the law on parliamentary elections, scheduled to be held on January 16, 2010. The Kurds, who form the majority of the population in Kirkuk, have long demanded that the province be incorporated in their autonomous region in the north despite the opposition of its Arab and Turkmen communities. The political deadlock threatens the poll as the electoral law is supposed to be in place 90 days before voting takes place. Constitutionally, the election must be held by January 31. For his part, MP from the Kurdistan Alliance (KA), Abdulbari Zebari, said “I believe that the diplomatic efforts exerted by the embassies in Iraq, including the U.S. embassy, are consultative and aim to exchange viewpoints, and I do not think that decision needs pressures.” “The decision lays in the parliament’s hands and meetings with the U.S. ambassador may be an attempt to reach an agreement among all political blocs,” he explained. Regarding Kirkuk, he said “there is no problem on Kirkuk. It should be a problem on the constitution and I believe that proposals on Kirkuk have been refused by the federal court before the Kurdistan Alliance,” Zebari said. “Any foreign interference without an Iraqi official request is considered an insult to the parliament,” Hamid Majid Moussa, from the Communist party, told IraqiNews.com news agency. The Kurdistan Alliance (KA) on Tuesday threatened to use the presidential veto against any proposal to put off the election in Kirkuk province. “We will walk out of the parliamentary session if a proposal to extend the life of the current parliament is put forward,” a KA lawmaker, Mohsin Saadoon, told IraqiNews.com news agency. SH (I)/SR 2