Footnote to the preceding

In a development not widely covered in the US, at least insofar as I was aware, it was reported back on May 10 that

[t]he National Assembly [of Iraq] has formed a 55-member committee to draft the new constitution. The body includes 28 members from the United Iraqi Alliance, 15 from the Kurdistan Alliance, eight from the Iraqi List, and four members of other blocs... The committee is supposed to finish the drafting work within three months, and the document will go to referendum in the autumn.

That report, from al-Adala, the daily newspaper issued by the Supreme Council of the Islamic Revolution in Iraq doesn't mention, for lack of necessity, what would be obvious to every Iraqi: The committee of 55 people includes at least 36 Shiites, 28 of those from religious parties.

Apparently aware of the implications both practical and political of freezing out of Sunnis, two weeks later,

Sheikh Humam Hamoodi, who heads the committee charged with writing a new constitution for Iraq, ... said Sunni groups which have not taken part in the political process so far will be invited to play a role in drafting the document, regardless of whether they are liberal or secular,

according to the independent Iraqi daily Addustour.

Echoing that, a week later

Adnan al-Dulaimi, the head of the Sunni Endowment, ... urged Sunnis to participate in the drafting of the constitution. He also said there would be a conference calling on Sunni groups to participate in writing the permanent constitution.

That from Baghdad, the daily of the Iraqi National Accord.

Three things emerge here: One, the Sunnis are still deeply suspicious of the government and of any participation in it, perhaps for fear of lending an aura of legitimacy to what many of them feel is an illegitimate government. Two, some are aware of the dangers presented by a constitutional committee consisting of at least 2/3 Shiites in total and a majority of Shiites from religious parties. And third, the combination of those two may be leading Iraq to a self-fulfilling prophecy.

This is not a good thing.

(All the links are to the Iraqi Press Monitor of the Institute for War & Peace Reporting.)