Following is the preamble to the Iraq constitution. To read the full text, as translated from the Arabic by the Associated Press, go here. Millions of copies have been printed by the United Nations and are being distributed throughout Iraq. A total of $25.4 million has been provided by the European Union, Canada, Denmark, Britain and the United States to support constitutional activities, including printing and distribution.
In the name of God, the Compassionate, the Merciful
“Verily we have honored the children of Adam” (Quran 17:70)
We the sons of Mesopotamia, land of the prophets, resting place of the holy imams, the leaders of civilization and the creators of the alphabet, the cradle of arithmetic: on our land, the first law put in place by mankind was written; in our nation, the most noble era of justice in the politics of nations was laid down; on our soil, the followers of the prophet and the saints prayed, the philosophers and the scientists theorized and the writers and poets created.
Recognizing God’s right upon us; obeying the call of our nation and our citizens; responding to the call of our religious and national leaders and the insistence of our great religious authorities and our leaders and our reformers, we went by the millions for the first time in our history to the ballot box, men and women, young and old, on Jan. 30, 2005, remembering the pains of the despotic band’s sectarian oppression of the majority; inspired by the suffering of Iraq’s martyrs — Sunni and Shiite, Arab, Kurd and Turkomen, and the remaining brethren in all communities — inspired by the injustice against the holy cities in the popular uprising and against the marshes and other places; recalling the agonies of the national oppression in the massacres of Halabja, Barzan, Anfal and against the Faili Kurds; inspired by the tragedies of the Turkomen in Bashir and the suffering of the people of the western region, whom the terrorists and their allies sought to take hostage and prevent from participating in the elections and the establishment of a society of peace and brotherhood and cooperation so we can create a new Iraq, Iraq of the future, without sectarianism, racial strife, regionalism, discrimination or isolation.
Terrorism and “takfir” (declaring someone an infidel) did not divert us from moving forward to build a nation of law. Sectarianism and racism did not stop us from marching together to strengthen our national unity, set ways to peacefully transfer power, adopt a manner to fairly distribute wealth and give equal opportunity to all.We the people of Iraq, newly arisen from our disasters and looking with confidence to the future through a democratic, federal, republican system, are determined — men and women, old and young — to respect the rule of law, reject the policy of aggression, pay attention to women and their rights, the elderly and their cares, the children and their affairs, spread the culture of diversity and defuse terrorism.
We are the people of Iraq, who in all our forms and groupings undertake to establish our union freely and by choice, to learn yesterday’s lessons for tomorrow, and to write down this permanent constitution from the high values and ideals of the heavenly messages and the developments of science and human civilization, and to adhere to this constitution, which shall preserve for Iraq its free union of people, land and sovereignty.
All Things Considered, October 22, 2005 · Final results are still awaited a week after Iraqis voted in a referendum on the constitution. Most observers assume the document was approved. The preamble to the constitution contains language that is often stirring. Sinan Antoon, an Iraqi-born poet and filmmaker living in New York, discusses the preamble with Debbie Elliott.
http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=4970260
Why does the preamble to the new “Iraqi” constitution sound like it was written by George W. Bush’s speechwriters rather than by serious constitutional lawyers? Just compare the propaganda in this Iraqi “occupation constitution” preamble with the full preamble of the United States written WITHOUT foreign military occupation…
“We the people of the United States, in order to form a more perfect union, establish justice, insure domestic tranquility, provide for the common defense, promote the general welfare, and secure the blessings of liberty to ourselves and our posterity, do ordain and establish this Constitution for the United States of America.”
“All Things Considered”, October 22, 2005 ·
“Final results are still awaited a week after Iraqis voted in a referendum on the constitution. Most observers assume the document was approved. The preamble to the constitution contains language that is often stirring. Sinan Antoon, an Iraqi-born poet and filmmaker living in New York, discusses the preamble with Debbie Elliott.”
http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=4970260
Why does the preamble to the new “Iraqi” constitution sound like it was written by George W. Bush’s speechwriters rather than by serious constitutional lawyers? Just compare the propaganda in this Iraqi “occupation constitution” preamble with the full preamble to the Constitution of the United States written WITHOUT foreign military occupation…
“We the people of the United States, in order to form a more perfect union, establish justice, insure domestic tranquility, provide for the common defense, promote the general welfare, and secure the blessings of liberty to ourselves and our posterity, do ordain and establish this Constitution for the United States of America.”
[http://www.law.cornell.edu/constitution/constitution.preamble.html]
Why the great difference? Could a powerful, ongoing, self-serving foreign military occupation be a factor here? Just wondering.
Frankly, the new “Iraqi” constitution reads like a colonial constitution written to assure the tenents that the new landlord won’t be changing the old order too much– as long as the required rent is paid on time.