Iraqis wait to hear US troop verdict
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Love or hate politics, people across Iraq will be tuning into television sets or radios to find out whether their Parliament will vote yes or no for a security agreement with the United States on the future of US forces.
For many it is the first time to watch such a vote take place. There were no public airings of decision-making in Saddam Hussein’s time, and, since the invasion, few people have paid attention to the fledgling politicians who replaced him.
Others, less interested in the outcome, simply enjoy the entertainment value of watching grown men and women bashing desks in the Parliamentary chamber inside Baghdad’s Green Zone and shouting each other down.
In the northern city of Mosul, still a hub of insurgent activity, lawyer Saad Othman watched three days of televised debate in Parliament that ended on Saturday.
“I am very interested in what is happening in my country, especially such a big issue as the status of forces agreement with the United States,” he said.
The deal, if approved, will set out a timetable for US troops to leave Iraq by the end of 2011. If it is not passed, US forces will no longer have authority to operate in the country beyond the end of December and may have to return home faster.
Nouri al-Maliki, the Prime Minister, and his Cabinet voted for the pact by a vast majority 10 days ago, but it has triggered furious discussions in Parliament, with some politicians wary of extending the right for US troops to stay on their soil.
Mr Othman, 44, said the agreement was a key topic of conversation among his friends and family.
“I want it to be passed because it is a good chance to transform Iraq’s image,” he said, adding that he would be watching the vote, which is due to happen today.
At the other end of Iraq, Hazim Ali will be showing the Parliamentary session on a television set in the coffee shop that he runs in Basra.
admin @ November 26, 2008