Is it political development or elite rotation? [Archives:2006/928/Opinion]
By: Prof Abdulaziz Al-Tarb
Analysts still cast their eyes on Yemen following results of the ruling party's conference as it is preparing for the local and presidential elections. Yemen is currently experiencing an unprecedented state of political activity after introduction of new changes to structure of the General People's Congress' general administration and general secretariat as well as a assumption of the post of assistant secretary general, under an apparent step up by some opposition trends and their programs for comprehensive reform.
In order to be able to explore dimensions of the latest changes in Yemen, we ought to study the following points:
First, the state has experienced sharp alterations since the transfer from the autocratic era- the state of Yemen Arab Republic and People's Democratic Republic of Yemen- to the unionist republican era after declaration of the Yemeni unity in May 1990 and has become the Republic of Yemen. Those developments were associated with changes. Some of them were superficial and the other some shooting deep into the society, specifically related to changing systems and laws dating to the state of division of the two parts of the country. Therefore, the talk about the Yemeni political system gives us indicators calling for the necessity of considering the post 1994 secessionist war period or to retreat to the era of pre-unity. That has affected considerable amount of change in the national minds and conscience due to what suffering the masses had experienced from the pre-unity regimes.
Second, since declaration of the unity and the political pluralism, the religious trends have played an effective and influential role in the political life and until the American 11 September events. The religion has remained active party inside and outside the political system, especially in the southern governorates, particularly that religion practices huge impact on the Yemeni mentality. It constitutes a collection of values and draws up frontiers of juristic reasoning in the society and regulates the relationship between the past and present in a manner that sometimes it may confiscate the future.
Third, throughout various epochs of history nature of the Yemeni people indicates to a special type of patriotic temperament. They are people preferring imperfect stability to sudden changes or alterations coming without prearrangement that may need a long time. They are self-restraint people and patient by nature and with inborn flexibility. That is why many rulers here used this concept for eternalizing situations and for continuation of regimes of governance without mentionable change. Yemen uprises at times of oppression and keeps calm in times of prosperity. The people entertain rare kind of social cleverness and consider the tribe and carrying weapon as breathing space for their woes, pains and problems.
Fourth, for many years the partisan system has been suffering from isolation from the political street to an extent that made some imagine that political parties are not Yemeni merchandise. Those adopting this view say the Yemeni political arties have failed after the 1994 war. That failure, as they claim, is thee despite the people suffering from unemployment, inflation, high prices, absence of security and stability, which through complicated confrontations ramifications of these at until now existing. The main of those ramifications is trial of the press and its closure.
Fifth, we must not think what happens in Yemen in isolation from the general context of regional and international developments. Repercussions of the call for reform fins obvious reflection on the civil society establishments and organizations. They further extend to the official political arena, at a time the freedom of press has reached an unprecedented degree in the history of the region. In addition, there is the general feeling in the necessity of change. I can presume hat the confidence the General People's Congress had acquired in its latest conference was a mandate from the ruling party's bases that demand for change and call for purging the society from political, economic and social corruption before the local, presidential elections and the parliamentary elections in 2009, if the party wanted to realize results keeping it in power and forming the government of unity.
The complex of fear began to diminish and the national shyness does no longer exist and unless structural changes happen and open the gates before a different pursuit and required political orientation, the arena would witness unexpected results.
Sixth, dealing a blow to the political and administrative corruption represents an important issue or the Yemeni citizen. He has become hearing much and seeing little in the reality of implementation. He has been feeling interrelationship between wealth and authority, between religion add politics and between the tribe and affiliation. For this reason he is looking forwards to disengagement between those elements. The Yemeni citizen also realizes that the Yemeni future is dependent on the riddance of the existing problems and the challenges, along with invoking the absent visions for the creation of modern Yemen and through it the state of law and order.
Seventh, the bunch of legislations necessary for reform needs a general climate pushing it forward. The wisdom is not in the lifeless texts, but what governs all the matter is the nature of the citizen's receiving of the reformative steps, his interaction with them and his response to them. It is particularly so that Yemen is in dire need of institutional construction and requires good amount of transparency in the political life so that to be a support for the regime.
That is a general vision of the current political development I Yemen that will prepare a healthy peaceful transfer of power. They are matters I do not perceive as far from the citizen's interest. All see what happens around us here and there.
Prof. Abdulaziz Al-Tarb is an economist and a professor in Political Science and an expert in administrative development. He is the head of a number of professional associations, such as the Arab Group for Investment and Development
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[archive-e:928-v:14-y:2006-d:2006-03-13-p:opinion]
