The supposed Iraqi constitution is being written in English, then translated to Arabic? What in the world? No wonder no one seems to know where it stands. Even the First Vacationer seems a bit lost:
Q Sorry about that. Does the administration’s goal — I’ll ask you about the Iraqi constitution. You said you’re confident that it will honor the rights of women.
THE PRESIDENT: Yes.
Q If it’s rooted in Islam, as it seems it will be, is that still — is there still the possibility of honoring the rights of women?
THE PRESIDENT: I talked to Condi, and there is not — as I understand it, the way the constitution is written is that women have got rights, inherent rights recognized in the constitution, and that the constitution talks about not “the religion,” but “a religion.” Twenty-five percent of the assembly is going to be women, which is a — is embedded in the constitution.
At least Condi knows what’s in it; perhaps she’s doing the translating.
An alleged draft has been fed to the press. One doesn’t have to read far before the questions begin to pile up:
Article Two
The political system is republican, parliamentary, democratic and federal.
1. Islam is a main source for legislation.
– a. No law may contradict Islamic standards.
– b. No law may contradict democratic standards.
– c. No law may contradict the essential rights and freedoms mentioned in this constitution.
2. This constitution guarantees the Islamic identity of the Iraqi people and guarantees all religious rights; all persons are free within their ideology and the practice of their ideological practices.
I don’t know much about Islam, but I’d be very surprised if 1 (a) and (b) square with each other. First off, what are “democratic standards”? Even in this country, where we presumably have a tradition of striving toward such standards, is there a strong consensus that those would match “Christian standards”? You’d get a vastly different view on this depending on who you ask. Who decides? Are there clerics on the courts?
For now such questions will apparently wait, as the news media seems fixed on the federalism issue.