SANA'A: An amendment by Yemen's parliament to the electoral law sparked an opposition sit-in on Sunday and claims that the ruling party has violated a 2009 accord providing for dialogue on political reforms. The amendment, which was originally proposed along with various other political reforms in 2009, was passed on Saturday by a parliament heavily dominated by members and allies of Yemeni President Ali Abdullah Saleh's General People's Congress (GPC). It stipulated that the high electoral commission be composed of judges rather than delegates from parties represented in parliament as has been the case until now. The opposition said that by passing the amendment unilaterally, Saleh's allies had “put an end to the national dialogue” and had rejected “the desire of the majority of the population for serious reforms.” The mandate of the current parliament was extended by two years to April 2011 following a February 2009 agreement between the GPC and opposition parties to allow dialogue on political reforms. – Agence France
