New Laws In Iraq

[Annie]

Iraq Announces Emergency Powers Law

16 minutes ago

Excerpts:

By SAMEER N. YACOUB, Associated Press Writer

BAGHDAD, Iraq - The Iraqi government announced a long-anticipated package of security laws Wednesday to help crush insurgents, including a provision allowing interim Prime Minister Iyad Allawi to impose martial law.

....The laws give Allawi the right to impose curfews, to conduct search operations and detain individuals with weapons, once he receives unanimous approval from the Cabinet. It also gives him the right to assign governors, including military leaders, to be in charge of specific areas.

...Justice Minister Malik Dohan al-Hassan said the premier would need to get warrants from an Iraqi court for each step and said martial law could only be declared for 60 days or for the duration of the specific violence, whichever was shorter.


"We realize this law might restrict some liberties, but there are a number of guarantees," al-Hassan said. "We have tried to guarantee justice and also to guarantee human rights."


The law was needed to combat the insurgents who are "preventing government employees from attending their jobs, preventing foreign workers from entering the country to help rebuild Iraq (news - web sites) and in general trying to derail general elections," he said.

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[dilloduck]

So far the new govt looks like it's doing exactly what it needs to and making the protection of it's citizens a TOP PRIORITY.