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61 per cent vote in referendum

Atul Aneja

Six civilians injured in attack on polling stations; three Iraqi soldiers die in blast

MANAMA: More than 61 per cent of Iraqis who were registered to vote in Saturday's constitutional referendum cast their ballots, Electoral Commission sources said in Baghdad on Saturday. Voters thronged polling stations throughout the day amid tight security and a virtual ban on vehicular traffic. An estimated 15.5 million voted on the charter, according to the sources.

Even though a large section of the country's Sunni community opposed the draft Constitution, significant numbers from the community voted on the charter, according to reports. The community can reject the Constitution if it musters a two-thirds majority against it in any three provinces of Iraq. Sunnis are in majority in four provinces.

Sistani call

Leading Sunni leader Saleh al Mutlaq was quoted as saying that Sunnis should reject the draft Constitution as it would lead to the country's partition. On the contrary, the majority Shias and Kurds are hoping to have the Constitution approved. Iraq's top Shia spiritual leader Grand Ayatollah Ali Sistani on Friday asked voters to participate and declared voting a religious duty.

Three Iraqi soldiers were killed when a roadside bomb went off north of Baghdad. Guerillas targeted an Iraqi military convoy near the Iranian border east of Baqouba. Six civilians were injured when polling stations in Baghdad were attacked. A four-day public holiday has been declared and Government offices and schools have been closed. Iraq's borders have been closed to non-essential traffic.

The Election Commission declared that it had set up 6,000 polling stations across the country, including the troubled Anbar province.

AFP reports:

Celebratory gunfire broke out in several Baghdad neighbourhoods after polls closed.

``I think the majority (of all Iraqis) will vote yes,'' President Jalal Talabani had said after casting his ballot inside Baghdad's heavily-protected Green Zone.

In the country's second national vote since Saddam Hussein was toppled by U.S.-led invasion forces in April 2003, Iraqis were asked a single question: ``Do you approve the draft Constitution of Iraq?''

However, under a deal hammered out on Wednesday, voters decided on what is effectively a partial Constitution since political leaders agreed that further revisions could be considered after new elections in December, in a bid to bring disaffected Sunnis on board. ``Today we are in transition, we are about to attain political stability built on a constitutional foundation,'' Prime Minister Ibrahim Jaafari said.

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