In a plan to change the political equilibriumThe ruling party leads efforts to force Sheikh Abdullah to leave the Parliament [Archives:2005/850/Front Page]
Mohammed bin Sallam
The parliament voted last Saturday11th June on the act which limits the term of office for its supreme body for two years instead of six .Out of the(301) of its members (202) voted in favor of the decision (4) abstained.
A number of Parliament members expressed their anger for the vote, thinking that they are being targeted by this vote. On top of these is Sheikh Abdullah Al- Ahmar the speaker of the Parliament and Ja'afar Ba-saleh, member of the supreme body who now sit in their homes and boycott the parliament sessions.
Reports, circulated following the vote among the members saying that “a number of the Islah party members considered the decision as targeting Sheikh Abdullah -the speaker of the parliament, and could lead to political unrest .
Recourses in the General People Congress said that, 'If Sheikh Abdaullah desires to run the elections for the Supreme body, he will be a general People's Congress candidate .It is rumored that Sheikh Abdullah won't run the supreme body vote. It is attributed to him that he won't weigh himself twice .It is expected that he would prefer sitting in for the time being .
Vote on the membership of the supreme body of the council will take place on the next session , following a presidential decree. If the presidential decree is not issued within thirty days, the decision will take effect pursuant to the constitution.
It is indicated that the contest will be warm, as the decision of this act soared the relations between the People's Congress and the Islah
Party
Sources say that Sheikh Abdullah had asked the council to re -debate on the act of limiting the Supreme Body term of office .Only (13)members of the Islah party who represent the tribal wing have voted in favor , whereas the other members (33) who represent The Muslim brotherhood wing didn't sign the reconsideration of the decision .It is an indication of a split in the Islah party
Press resources said last week “The leadership of The People General Congress has come to a conviction that; for the intended financial reforms to be endorsed, there should be a national agreement between all effective social powers, political forces, and all the parties.
The source disclosed that , there were secret negotiations with the Islah party to form a coalition government The two parties have primarily agreed on the government with certain conditions for their participation.
Of these conditions, the Islah has demanded seventeen thousand posts for mosque preachers and (scientific institutes ) graduates , that were cancelled several years ago in the effort of unification of education . Islah also asked to be given a free cultural and ideological hand in the Governorates of Hajja and Sa'ada and to furnish facilities of the construction of religious schools besides their party activity together with mosques ' forums and charity societies. The People General Congress considered this to be unacceptable. It is considered to be among the extortion policy that he Islah party adopts.
There is also a connection between the expected convenience of the fifth conference of the socialist party which will be in June , however there are reports that it would be postponed to mid July. Sources expect the formation of a coalition government from the Islah , People Congress and the Socialist party. In the light of the formation of new coalition , The prime minister could be a socialist , owing to foreign pressure
The Mithaq newspaper said in its last Thursday issue :
“Leaders in the Socialist and Islah parties had met and reached a semi deal in which the Islah pledged to settle the matter of the fidelity “fatwa” that was issued by the Islah clerics , on top of them Sheikh al -Zandani In that “fatwa” they considered the socialist party an infidel . Another “fatwa” that was issued by Abdul-Wahab Aldailamy, during the 1994 war, described the war as a war against Atheists and Marxists. He also allowed the civilians to be killed if the fiddles made them as human shields .
It is the same legal opinion (Fatwa ) that Al-Zarqawi used in Iraq to kill innocent civilians. It was said that the two parties came to a semi agreement that the Islah Party will apologize for the socialist party on those “fatwas ” a thing that the party refuses and demands its cancellation, because of the harm they have suffered due to it, the last being the assassination of Jarallah Omar, The vice Chairman of their party . His assassin said during his trial that he has depended on a previous “fatwa” saying that socialists are Atheists and they should be killed .
The source said that , the deal has not yet been finalized ,because the Islah side refused pressing their sheikhs al-Zandani and al- Dailami to cancel these “fatwa”. The Islah said that ,it is a private affair of these two sheikhs .It also added that al -Zandani said in one of his press interviews that these “fatwas” became a matter of the past. The Islah side considered this to be enough, and there is no need to issue a new “fatwa”. The Sheikhs are no longer abiding by it, and they are ready to attend the general fifth conference of the socialist party if they are invited.
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