Iraq president insists constitution will be done on time News
Iraq president insists constitution will be done on time

[JURIST] Echoing earlier predictions [JURIST report], Iraqi President Jalal Talabani told a gathering of Shiite clerics Thursday that Iraq's new constitution "will be done on schedule". The constitutional commission [official website, English version] charged with drafting the charter needs to finish by August 15 in order for the pact to be submitted to a referendum in October. Although disputes over Sunni involvement in the process have slowed the committee, both President Bush [JURIST report] and US Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld [JURIST report] have opposed any delay or change in the August 15 deadline. AP has more.