Iraqi Parliament Approves Final 6 Cabinet Posts
http://enews.voanews.com/t?ctl=D5D05E:2F72C9DBut one minister declines to accept his post, leaving Cabinet with a
vacancy
Iraqi member of the parliament Ibrahim Bahr al-Uloum, center, salutes
his colleagues after he was appointed the new oil minister during the
National Assembly meeting Iraq's parliament approved what was to be
the final six ministers for the country's first democratically-elected
government in the post-Saddam era. But one minister has declined to
accept his post, leaving the Cabinet with a vacancy.
Approval of the final six ministers was to complete the long-awaited
Cabinet, more than three months after historic multiparty elections.
But the man slated to be human rights minister, a member of Iraq's
Sunni minority, Hashem al-Shibli, said he was chosen for "sectarian"
reasons and would not serve.
Four of the six Cabinet members approved are Sunni, including the man
chosen by Prime Minister Ibrahim al-Jaafari to head Iraq's Defense
Ministry, Saadoun al-Dulaimi. The vital Oil Ministry went to a Shi'ite
ally of Mr. al-Jaafari, .
The prime minister expressed optimism that the formation of a diverse,
multi-ethnic Cabinet will soothe deep divisions in the country.
Mr. Al-Jaafari said, "By endorsing the candidates, the National
Assembly has achieved Iraq's unity. We have given more time for
consultation and taken into consideration opinions and viewpoints of
all Iraqi politicians for establishing a government with full
portfolios comprehending all Iraqi spectra."
Violence has claimed some 300 lives in Iraq in the 10 days since the
prime minister first announced his government selections. Sunday,
gunmen killed an Iraqi transportation official in Baghdad. Elsewhere,
U.S. military officials say coalition forces killed six insurgents and
captured dozens more near Iraq's border with Syria. The U.S. military
in Iraq also says coalition forces have captured a top aide to
al-Qaida-linked terrorist Abu Musab al-Zarqawi.
In the United States, Michigan Democratic Senator Carl Levin said
Iraq's new government will have to work hard to achieve and maintain
unity. Mr. Levin spoke on ABC's This Week program.
"Disaffected Sunnis, who are now in the minority, are very worried
about the Shia majority and what will be in the [future Iraqi]
constitution, and whether that constitution will protect minority
rights," he said. "And then you have the Shia who are in the majority
and have been elected to run the assembly, and they want the power of
a majority. I think there are some fundamental clashes politically.
And that is just as big a challenge as the security situation is."
Appearing on CBS' Face the Nation program, the Republican chairman of
the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, Richard Lugar, said Iraq's
security situation will likely remain a serious challenge.
"The insurgents, who are apparently old Saddam types [loyalists], who
really look for a military coup - for the overthrow of this fledgling
government, are numerous enough to kill a lot of Iraqis," said Senator
Lugar. "I think it is a terribly serious predicament."
Mr. Lugar emphasized the importance of training and equipping Iraqi
security forces to combat the insurgency and eventually take over for
coalition forces deployed in the country.