Al-Sahwa [Archives:2006/916/Press Review]
26 Jan.2006
Main headlines
– International reports: Rima elections were not free and decent
– The government decision concerning Head of Judiciary Council, deception for the international community
– Deputy American ambassador: Arab regimes are slow in implementing their laws and talk much
– More than ninety teachers demonstrate in protest to abolishing their jobs
Columnist Zaid Ash-Shami discusses in his article the work and tasks of the Elections Supreme Commission in Yemen, saying we have entrusted the Commission with managing elections and it is supposed to be impartial. Nevertheless it is customary that the commission is composed of representatives of political parties where the majority is for the ruling party. The commission has thus tended to be leaning to the ruling party and shows bias in favor of that party's choices and interest.
Before any operation of registration of electors and during formation of committees, there happens a dispute among the parties and the commission on distribution of parties shares in the committees. All parties show a theoretical agreement on transparency and decency, but practically all that is not done. Nowadays the dispute happens anew. The General People's Congress wants to dominate the lion's share whereas the opposition parties demand for equilibrium. Regretfully the elections supreme commission adopts the visions the GPC chooses.
As the political arena has developed into two main aspects: the authority represented by the ruling party and the opposition composing parties of the Joint Meeting Parties. This does not mean there are no others but they are mostly with this or that side. The suggestion is that the GPC takes a share of one third in the commission and the opposition parties altogether in the JMP get the second third. The remainder third of representation could be given to people in judiciary, university students, unemployed graduates or any social segment to be agreed on.
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