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The top United Nations envoy for Iraq and a member of the newly established Iraqi Governing Council both called on Tuesday for a speedy end to the United States military occupation and the full restoration of the country's sovereignty.
"There will need to be a clear timetable, laid out as soon as possible, for the earliest possible restoration of sovereignty," said UN special representative Sergio Vieira de Mello while briefing the UN Security Council on the situation in Iraq.
The head of a three-person delegation of the Governing Council, Adnan Pachachi, told the council that the body's primary goal was to shorten the duration of the interim administration, the US-run Coalition Provisional Authority (CPA), in order to adopt a constitution and have free elections open to all.
As Pachachi was about to speak, two people in the public gallery got up and started to protest against the US occupation and the Governing Council. They were immediately escorted out of the chamber by UN security and were later identified as members of "Occupation Watch," a San Francisco-based non-governmental organization.
Pachachi, a former Iraqi foreign minister who had been in exile under the rule of Saddam Hussein, said Iraqis saw his participation in the Security Council session as recognition of Iraq's sovereignty.
A draft constitution to establish a federal system would be examined by a congress representing all political and religious groups, and the United Nations, given its experience, could help draw up laws and legislation for the election, he added.
Among the pressing issues facing the Governing Council, Pachachi noted, were the appointment of representatives to international organizations, including the UN, as well as rebuilding the economy, reforming the educational system and providing the basic needs of all citizens -- in all of which the UN would have an important role to play.
It also intended to establish special tribunals to bring members of the former regime to trial for crimes against the Iraqi people and humanitarian crimes, he added.
The Iraqi council, handpicked by the occupying authority on July 13, has the authority to appoint interim diplomats abroad, approve budgets and propose policies, but the occupying provisional authority has a final say on its decisions.
The other two members of the Iraqi delegation were Ahmed Chalabi, head of the Iraqi National Congress, and Akila al-Hashemi, a former diplomat of the Saddam government.
(Xinhua News Agency July 23, 2003)
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