A Third of Lawmakers in Iraq Skip Session

Those present chastise their absent colleagues. Among the public, resentment grows over what some see as greed amid the bloodshed.

BAGHDAD — Iraqi lawmakers returned to work Tuesday, some traveling from the Kurdish north, others from the Sunni Arab west or the Shiite south.

About one-third didn't show up.

"No more orphans, no more widows," Mahmoud Mashadani, speaker of parliament and a Sunni Arab, declared in his opening statement, in front of rows of empty chairs.

During the brief session, legislators passed a one-month extension of a state of emergency amid the nation's unrelenting violence.

"The elected leaders of Iraq are certain that terrorists and murderers will not succeed, no matter how arrogant and insolent they are," Mashadani said.

But the grand rhetoric rang hollow to many Iraqis, who in December proudly held up purple ink-stained fingers after risking their lives to vote. Some feel betrayed by their elected leaders and express little confidence in the government's ability to secure the country or improve basic services.

Read the rest at the LA Times