Approximately five hundred Christians, and dozens of Muslims as well, held a rally last night in Karrada, a district of Baghdad, to ask that art. 50 be reinstated in the electoral law of the Provincial Councils, which gives 13 seats to the Iraqi minorities in six provinces. "Many people wanted to peacefully show how opposed they are to the repeal of this article states to SIR the patriarchal vicar of Baghdad, mgr. Shlemon Warduni, who promoted the initiative . We want to see our rights fully respected. Article 50 is the smallest right for us, but they want to take even the smallest rights away from us". The meeting was attended by Chaldeans, Syro-Catholics and leaders of the Assyrian, Melkite-Orthodox and Greek-Orthodox Churches, as well as some political leaders, such as Abdallah Al Naufali, director of the government office for the affairs of non-Muslims, and the Shiite Wael Abdul Latif of the political coalition Iraqi National List. According to the patriarchal vicar, Parliament’s decision to repeal art. 50 has been hasty, and now it is the Christians and the other minorities who take the consequences. Unfortunately, in the world no one is speaking up to condemn such deeds which deny the fundamental rights of political presence and participation".” ” ” “
