Sistani: UN must not Legitimate Interim Constitution

Reuters reports that Grand Ayatollah Sistani sent a letter to Lakhdar Brahimi, special envoy of UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan, demanding that the United Nations not endorse the interim constitution signed in early March by the Interim Governing Council.

These are the Sistani quotes in the article:

"The (Shi'ite) religious establishment fears the occupation authorities will work to include this law in a new U.N. resolution to give it international legitimacy . . . We warn that any such step will not be acceptable to the majority of Iraqis and will have dangerous consequences . . . This builds a basis for sectarianism. Consensus would not be reached unless there is pressure from a foreign power, or a deadlock would be reached that destabilizes the country and could lead to break-up . . ."

That a calm and cautious figure like Sistani is talking about the potential of the interim constitution's approval of loose federalism to destabilize or even break up Iraq alarms me no end.