Al-Hashemi vetoes election lawNovember 18, 2009 - 10:35:03
BAGHDAD / Aswat al-Iraq: Iraqi Vice President Tareq al-Hashemi announced on Wednesday that he had vetoed the new election law, throwing the January vote and a planned U.S. troop drawdown into question.
Tareq al-Hashemi said he objected to Article I of the law approved by parliament because it did not give a voice to Iraqis abroad, many of whom are Sunni Muslims who fled the country during sectarian fighting after the US-led invasion in 2003.
“On November 15, I sent a letter to parliament asking for the law to be amended. Parliament said I could veto the contested first article of the law, which is what I have done today,” al-Hashemi said.
“My objection is not to the whole law, but it is about being fair to the people displaced outside of Iraq.”
Parliament must now reopen debate on the proposed law passed earlier this morning, meaning that there could be a delay to the election.
The country’s presidential council, comprising Jalal Talabani, the president, and two vice-presidents, had already demanded a greater say in the election for minorities and nationals living abroad.
