Treason or civic-minded?

Iraqis were divided yesterday by their president’s threat to resign rather than accept a pro-Iran coalition’s candidate for premier, with some saying it was unconstitutional but others praising his civic-mindedness.

Barham Saleh has resisted recent attempts by a pro-Iran coalition to put forward nominees for prime minister that included a resigned minister and a controversial governor.

On Thursday, Saleh said he was “ready to resign” rather than accept a candidate already rejected by the protest movement that brought down the previous government.

Some 460 people have been killed and 25,000 injured since the unprecedented demonstrations broke out in October demanding deep reform that shows no sign of abating.

In Baghdad’s Tahrir Square -- the epicentre of the protest movement -- a banner was unfurled overnight alongside portraits of rejected candidates for the premiership with their faces crossed out in red.

“Thank you Barham for siding with the demands of the people and rejecting the candidates of corrupt parties. We are with you,” it read.

But not all protesters shared this view.

“This resignation will lead to chaos and give the political parties even more control over the country,” said Ali Mohamed, a protesting teacher in Babylon province south of the capital.

Further south in the protest encampment in Diwaniyah, Mohamed Mehdi said he hoped Saleh’s resignation would be accepted.

In the halls of power, reactions to Saleh’s gambit were equally divided. The pro-Iran bloc that claims to be the largest in parliament -- and should therefore be entitled to nominate the premier -- called on lawmakers to “take legal action against the president for violating the constitution”.

The deadlock is pitting the pro-Iran camp against determined protesters, who have shut down schools and public buildings across the south.

The civil disobedience will continue, protesters say, until they obtain what they have been demanding since October 1.

Protesters want a total overhaul of a patronage system that distributes posts according to sect and are calling for the resignation of a political elite that has remained unchanged for 16 years.