Iraqi Provincial Elections Postponed in Anbar

As protests continue in Iraq’s western province of Anbar, local authorities have decided to postpone provincial elections scheduled for April 20, writes Ali Abel Sadah.
Protesters chant anti-government slogans during a demonstration calling for Iraqi Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki's resignation in Falluja, a main city in the western desert province of Anbar, 50 km (30 miles) west of Baghdad December 21, 2012. Sunni leaders in Iraq accused Shi'ite Prime Minister Maliki of a crackdown on Friday after troops detained a Sunni minister's bodyguards, setting off protests in one province and threatening to reignite a political crisis. Several thousand demonstrators took to the str
Protesters chant anti-government slogans during a demonstration calling for Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki's resignation in Fallujah, a main city in the western desert province of Anbar, 50 km (30 miles) west of Baghdad, Dec. 21, 2012. - REUTERS
Ali Abel Sadah
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Provincial elections scheduled for April 20 will not be held on time in Anbar province. It seems that the Sunni protests are casting a shadow over the process of democratic power transition in the unstable city.

On March 11, the provincial council — the legislative authority of the province — decided to postpone the elections and referred the decision to the Iraqi Election Commission on March 12 for ratification.

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