Al-Sahwa [Archives:2005/851/Press Review]

Main headlines:

– Back to square one: political parties reject the supreme election's committee's recommendations

– American allegations against Yemen: trafficking human beings

– Cement prices increase while the parliaments approves custom tasks

– YSP continue to struggle to revive the essence of the Yemeni unity

Politics:

Supposed to oppose!

“Democracy, peaceful transformation of authority, and the relation between the ruling party and the state's establishments are vague issues governed by the inherited control of the past systems, and the governors today have still not been able to change their perceptions of ruling even if they are wearing the clothes of democracy today

This was a phrase of Mr. Zaid al-Mushiki's column in the back page of last weeks issue. The column was titled “The best of authority and opposition” he states that it is not logical to cancel opposition because it does not go inline with the state's directions, in fact that is why it is called opposition: it is suppose to oppose! He also commented on the common assembly initiative and the opposition coming together politically. And stressed that it is not patriotic to demand the elimination of opposition because all can serve the country in their own way.

American Judiciary

Another article of the newspaper also in the last page by Mr. Ali Abdullah al-Wasi'e comments briefly on the irony of the judiciary system in USA. The author says that the system is known to be independent and quite fair especially that many incidents in the past proved how the system did not distinguish between a president or a poor man in front of the law. In the same time the author was sceptical about the attitude the American judiciary system has prejudged any case relating to Islam and Muslim people and gave the case of Shiekh Mohammed al-Mouid.

Interviews:

Mohammed Ahmed Ghalib, member of the political bureau of the YSP to al-Sahwa: “our relation with the Islah party is good and we want to develop the common assembly experience”

Reports:

Dengue fever on the rise: death is taking its toll

An investigative report on the dengue fever in Hudeidah and Shabowa by three journalists: Abdulhakim Hilal, Ahmed Zain and Abdulhafiz al-Hutami. The report talks about the fever and that it began in Hudaida since last December and especially in Zabid town and according to records more than 160 cases were reported. It says that the authorities did not admit to the existence of the epidemic until it was wide spread. According to the newspaper the disease is now spread in Shabwa confirming that there are 600 cases estimated to be there in the governorate as we speak! The report conducted some interviews with infected families where more than 5 people of the family had the disease and they expressed their distress as to the heavy burden this caused. Some healed and some are still suffering. There has been some attempts to control the epidemic and a team was sent to the fields to provide required tests and medications.

The flying shoe!

It seems that the media scene in Yemen is turning inside out. The journalists after demanding the resignation of the minister of information have been apualed with the extent the state goes to defame journalsists and take measures against them. Apparently the action taken by Ms. Rahsida al-Qaili who threw a shoe on al-Bilad's chief editor was turned against the achievements of the journalists in the past and that it was made in par with what the newspaper (al-Bilad) had published earlier in defamation of two of the prominent journalists in Yemen. Mr. Abdulhakim Hilal, author of the piece said that 12 NGOs have issued supportive press statements and that the campaign against the defamation of journalists is going on.

Giving the benefit of the doubt

Al-Khadhir Salim bin Hulais, in his article on giving the religious preachers the benefit of the doubt calls on the public not to be persuade by the politics and the media and what they hear about religious preachers. He says that this category has played a vital role throughout history in the development of nations and they are the guiding eyes of the nation to tell it where to it and they are the conscious of the nation to remind it of the good things. Of course generalisation can not be made and therefore we must not prejudge and we must give space for the truth to be seen and heard.
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