the __earthinc

Iraq might be moving towards a weak three-state federation divided by religion and ethnicity (tag):

BAGHDAD, Iraq (AP) — Iraq’s fractious ethnic and religious parliamentary groups agreed Sunday to open debate on a contentious Shiite-proposed draft legislation that will allow the creation of federal regions in Iraq, politicians said.

The agreement came after a compromise was reached with Sunni Arabs on setting up a parliamentary committee to amend Iraq’s constitution, a key demand by the minority.

The committee will be set up Monday and the federalism bill will be read to the body a day later, Sunni and Shiite politicians said.

The deal opens the way for Iraq’s Shiites, Sunni Arabs and Kurds to move ahead politically and break a two-week political deadlock that threatened to further sour relations between the communities. If left unresolved, the deadlock could have further shaken Iraq’s fragile democracy and led to more sectarian violence.

The federalism bill calls for setting up a system to allow the creation of autonomous regions in the predominantly Shiite south, much like the self-ruling Kurdish region in northern Iraq. Sunni Arabs have said they fear the legislation will split Iraq apart and fuel sectarian bloodshed.

The Kurdish north and Shiite south hold Iraq’s oil fields, while the predominantly Sunni Arab areas are mostly desert.

Somehow, I don’t think the creation of that kind of federation suits the condition Iraq is currently in. I fear the act of craving Iraq into three regions might mean a permanent strike on unitary state of Iraq. While the three-state solution does have its merit, who could guarantee Iraq won’t be another Yugoslavia?