U.N. must see Iraqi election for what it was

There were, as it turns out, no hanging chads in Iraq's recent referendum on Saddam Hussein's presidency. He won 100 percent of the vote, officials said, in an election in which every eligible voter cast a ballot.

In an effort to demonstrate to the world that Iraqis love their leader and are in no mood for a regime change, as suggested by the Bush administration, a huge show was put on that was a sham to any objective observer -- even to those who support Hussein and his misguided dictatorship.

The Iraqi election, instead of offering proof of Saddam Hussein's legitimacy, is further evidence that the world is threatened by a despot. It is all but impossible to understand why Iraq would go through such an elaborate show and expect the world to take it seriously.

Even as the election charade ended, there were strong indications of an undercurrent of opposition in Iraq. But opposition in such a regime is much different than a member of one political party taking exception to another party's ideas. In Iraq, opposition is a matter of life and death.

If the U.N. Security Council puts any credence in this so-called election, its motives will become just as suspect as those of Saddam Hussein's henchmen.