Ali Abdullah Saleh

"LandepNews"

Ali Abdullah Saleh

Yemeni Parliament on Saturday passed a law granting president Ali Abdullah Saleh immunity from prosecution for the killings during the revolts last year. The move is intended to make it easier for the president to step down and leave. The law, which was voted by most of the lawmakers, did offer the presidential clique partial immunity also. The previous draft of the law had offered the associates of the president full immunity, but amendments were made to cover only the “politically motivated” crimes committed while conducting official business, not the “terrorist acts.”

The immunity is supposed to cover all 33 years of political leadership of Ali Abdullah Saleh and is not to be cancelled or appealed against. It is addressed to those “who worked for the president in security, military or civil capacity in connection with politically-motivated acts.”

The vote passed in the parliament is part of an agreement brokered in November, based on a deal proposed by the Gulf countries, which allowed president Saleh to leave into exile along with the people in his clique and to enjoy protection against any kind of prosecution against them.

The proposition was rejected by the people in the streets, who demanded that the president be held accountable for the killing of hundreds of people during the uprising in 2011.

The president himself was reluctant to the plan, which he rejected three times before demanding for written insurances from the Europeans and the United States that the agreement would be respected.

He agreed only when he had confirmation that the plan would be executed accordingly. In October, the United Nations issued a resolution against Yemeni repression, demanding the president to go. The people in Yemen were afraid that the UN resolution did not include the clause of the Gulf countries.

On Saturday, the parliament also supported the candidacy of the Vice-President Abd-Rabbu Mansour Hadi for the presidential election next month.

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