Sanaa - Khalid Haroji
Yemeni President Ali Abdullah Saleh and members of his government from prosecution
The judicial immunity law protecting Yemeni President Ali Abdullah Saleh and members of his government from prosecution for crimes committed throughout the years of his rule, is to be discussed
by the Parliament, by the end of this week or early next week, according to Parliamentary sources.
Informed sources has told Arabs today, “Saleh and leaders of the General People's Congress party has lobbied Acting President, Abd Rabo Mansour Hadi, to delay running for presidency in the presidential elections, scheduled for February 21, according to the political settlement aiming at the transfer of political power in Yemen, under the Gulf Initiative signed in Riyadh last November.”
Saleh and leaders of his party, are demanding the adoption of judicial immunity law, prior to Hadi submitting the request of running for the presidency for the transition period of two years and three months, provided by the initiative as a consensus candidate of all parties.
According to the sources, Saleh and the Congress leaders fear the opposition’s withdrawal of the law, if Hadi's candidacy was approved first. They pointed out that there is considerable disagreement between Congress and the Joint Meeting Parties (JMP), about the presidential elections. The Congress party requires declaring Hadi as the president, by a joint meeting of the Assembly of Representatives and the Shura Council. The part justifies this request by the fact that there is no competition to hold the elections for, and at the same time, to save the expenses that will be spent on the elections which results are unresolved in advance.
JMP refuses this request for the alleged reason of being committed literally to provisions of the Gulf Initiative, in spite of the logicality of the proposal made by the General People's Congress. Opposition fears that this demand is a trap aimed at overturning the initiative agreement, or at least establishing a base, used in the future to change some of the other terms.
On the other hand, the United States has refused to allow President Ali Abdullah Saleh, to seek treatment there as the president of Yemen. Political and Diplomatic sources in Sanaa, has stated that Washington finally agreed to let Saleh in for humanitarian purposes, by granting him a visa of A1 class. Media sources had pointed out that Washington required him to sign a pledge not to interfere in the affairs of Yemeni government, before traveling, and to return directly to Abu Dhabi where he previously announced his intention to live with his relatives.
Akhbar Elyoum newspaper has stated that Saleh has not decided yet on his therapeutic trip to America. The newspaper quoted Yemeni, Gulf and political diplomatic sources that he had arranged for the flight path to the United States, indicating that a Saudi plane will take him from Sanaa to Ethiopia, where he is likely to stay for several hours, and leave later on the same Saudi plane to the U.S.