Al-Jasser: work is underway to restructure and develop aviation infrastructure    Diriyah to host third IMFC Deputies meeting under Saudi chairmanship    15,135 decisions taken to penalize Saudis and expats for violations    Saudi-European Parliamentary Friendship Committee discusses cooperation during Strasbourg visit    Saudi stock market loses half a trillion riyals, with Aramco's losses amounting to SR340 billion Tariff turmoil rattles Gulf markets    KAU to host Digital Communication Conference in Jeddah from April 29 to May 1    TGA: Riyadh tops with 45% of 290 million orders delivered in 2024    Aja and Salma mountains draw nature lovers to Hail's rugged landscapes    US revokes all visas for South Sudanese nationals over deportation dispute    Death toll from Myanmar earthquake rises to 3,471    Macron to hold Gaza summit with Egypt and Jordan in Cairo    Benzema rescues Al Ittihad with stoppage-time equalizer in thrilling Jeddah Derby    Al Qadsiah and Al Ettifaq share spoils in tense Eastern Derby stalemate    Moussa Diaby praises Al Ittihad's resilience after Jeddah Derby draw "When you can't win, you take a point"    Saudi assistant referee Iman Al Madani joins AFC elite list for 2025    Riyadh Art Week launches with over 50 galleries showcasing global artistic dialogue    Turki Al-Sheikh announces five new Saudi film projects to be produced in Riyadh    Saudi Ministry of Education to showcase innovations at 2025 Geneva International Exhibition    Ed Sheeran weaves Persian music into new song, Azizam    Veteran Bollywood actor Manoj Kumar dies at 87    Screen time in bed linked to insomnia, study finds    Bollywood actress vindicated over boyfriend's death after media hounding    Grand Mufti rules against posting prayers and preaching in mosques on social media    King Salman prays for peace and stability for Palestinians in Ramadan message King reaffirms Saudi Arabia's commitment to serving the Two Holy Mosques and pilgrims    Exotic Taif Roses Simulation Performed at Taif Rose Festival    Asian shares mixed Tuesday    Weather Forecast for Tuesday    Saudi Tourism Authority Participates in Arabian Travel Market Exhibition in Dubai    Minister of Industry Announces 50 Investment Opportunities Worth over SAR 96 Billion in Machinery, Equipment Sector    HRH Crown Prince Offers Condolences to Crown Prince of Kuwait on Death of Sheikh Fawaz Salman Abdullah Al-Ali Al-Malek Al-Sabah    HRH Crown Prince Congratulates Santiago Peña on Winning Presidential Election in Paraguay    SDAIA Launches 1st Phase of 'Elevate Program' to Train 1,000 Women on Data, AI    41 Saudi Citizens and 171 Others from Brotherly and Friendly Countries Arrive in Saudi Arabia from Sudan    Saudi Arabia Hosts 1st Meeting of Arab Authorities Controlling Medicines    General Directorate of Narcotics Control Foils Attempt to Smuggle over 5 Million Amphetamine Pills    NAVI Javelins Crowned as Champions of Women's Counter-Strike: Global Offensive (CS:GO) Competitions    Saudi Karate Team Wins Four Medals in World Youth League Championship    Third Edition of FIFA Forward Program Kicks off in Riyadh    Evacuated from Sudan, 187 Nationals from Several Countries Arrive in Jeddah    SPA Documents Thajjud Prayer at Prophet's Mosque in Madinah    SFDA Recommends to Test Blood Sugar at Home Two or Three Hours after Meals    SFDA Offers Various Recommendations for Safe Food Frying    SFDA Provides Five Tips for Using Home Blood Pressure Monitor    SFDA: Instant Soup Contains Large Amounts of Salt    Mawani: New shipping service to connect Jubail Commercial Port to 11 global ports    Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques Delivers Speech to Pilgrims, Citizens, Residents and Muslims around the World    Sheikh Al-Issa in Arafah's Sermon: Allaah Blessed You by Making It Easy for You to Carry out This Obligation. Thus, Ensure Following the Guidance of Your Prophet    Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques addresses citizens and all Muslims on the occasion of the Holy month of Ramadan    







Thank you for reporting!
This image will be automatically disabled when it gets reported by several people.



Congressman questions Constitutional Commission's regional divide
Published in The Saudi Gazette on 29 - 11 - 2012


Michel Cousins
Libya Herald

TRIPOLI — The plan to elect or appoint the 60-member Constitutional Commission on a regional basis is being re-assessed by the General National Congress (GNC) according to Khaled Ammar Al-Mashri, the Justice and Construction party (J&C) congressman from Zawia.
Speaking at a meeting in Tripoli Tuesday of the Yalla Shabab (“Young people, Let's get going!”) organization, he said that the issue of having the 60 members from different regions was being discussed by GNC members.
“We need to guarantee people's rights”, he said, indicating that the unequal divide on the commission in terms of population could be seen as unfair.
Ever since it was mooted by the NTC, the plan has always been for the commission to have 60 members, 20 each from Libya's three historic provinces: Cyrenaica, Fezzan and Tripolitania.
It is deliberate re-echo of the 1951 Constitutional Assembly which drew up Libya's first constitution. It had 60 members, drawn equally from the three provinces.
The only change to the commission's make-up came just before the GNC elections in July, when the NTC decided that members should be elected rather than appointed. The move was a deliberate attempt to placate Cyrenaica federalists who were threatening to disrupt to polls. There was no change to the 20-20-20 split.
It is unclear whether yesterday Mashri was speaking about the split on a personal basis, for his party or for a wider section of congress members.
“Officially nothing has changed on this”, said Congressman Salah Jouda, suggesting that Mashiri may have been speaking for a small group of congress members. “I've heard nothing about it.”
“It's not correct”, agreed Benghazi Congressman Ahmed Langhi. There had been no formal discussion about the regional split, he said. Nor could there be. It would go against everything that people in the east and south of the country wanted, he said. They would oppose any change on the 20-20-20 split.
At present, the debate both inside and outside the GNC is whether the commission should be elected or appointed. There is strong support within the GNC for the latter. “We're still looking at how the commission would operate”, said Mashri. “We're look at the positive and the negative sides both of electing and appointing the committee.”
However, a poll suggests that four-fifths of Libyans want the body elected.
The Yalla Shabab conference and workshop was aimed at getting Libya's youth involved in the devising the constitution. The movement — fast emerging as one of the main youth organizations in Libya — is running a campaign entitled Take Care of Your Constitution to explain what the constitutional process is and to ensure that it includes the rights of young people.
On Sunday evening, representatives from the group met with some congress members. However, although these were invited to address the press conference, only two turned up. Significantly both were J&C members: Mashri and Mansur Al-Hassadi from Derna. It was seen by Yalla members as a sign that the party wants to reach out to young Libyans — a group they largely failed to connect with during the elections.
Members of Yalla Shabab expressed disappointment that other congress members who had been invited, including the NFA congresswoman from Misrata Hana Al-Orfi, did not turn up. “We're upset they did not come”, said Yalla's Anma Elsallak.
In his speech, Hassidi said that Libya's youth was “more important than oil”. They were the “energy of Libya” because they could “think out of the box”. Older people last year, he said, had advised against joining the revolution. Nonetheless, young people did so. They were the “core of the revolution” and had to be involved in the devising the new constitution.
Asked by the Libya Heraldhow the GNC would ensure the involvement of young people in drawing up the constitution, Mashri said that the idea being canvassed at the moment, if the commission were appointed, was to include a number of 25 to 30-year-olds in its membership.


Clic here to read the story from its source.