BAGHDAD, Iraq—Iraq's National Assembly members will begin crafting the nation's new constitution Sunday with a crucial first decision: naming of the chairman of the constitutional committee.
The choice may indicate whether the final document will have a secular or Islamist cast to it, and whether the constitution will be a unifying force or a divisive one.
Drafting of the constitution is the single most important job for the transitional government that just took power in Baghdad, and could hold the key to whether Iraq can hold together as a single nation. Following adoption of the constitution, Iraq is to hold fresh elections at the end of the year.
The two thorniest issues are likely to be how influential will be the role of Islam and how much autonomy to grant the Kurdish minority, roughly 20 percent of the population that lives mainly in northern Iraq. Also key will be finding a way to bring the Sunni minority meaningfully into the discussions so they will buy into the final document.