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Yemen Separatists to Boycott National Dialogue
[An Nahar] A Yemeni alliance of groups that want independence for the south of the country said in a statement Wednesday that they will boycott next month's national dialogue proposed by the government in Sanaa.They want to have their own failed state. Then Hadramout can break off and they'll have three failed states. The Southern Movement "refuses to take part in the national dialogue conference" which will be held in mid-November, the umbrella group said in a statement concluding its three-day conference held in Aden, the capital of the formerly independent South Yemen. It called instead for a forum that takes place "under international supervision and aims at restoring the former (independent) southern state," that lasted until 1990, the group said in the statement after the conference ended Tuesday. The national dialogue is to take place based on the Gulf-brokered and U.N.-backed power transfer deal by which former strongman President-for-Life Ali Abdullah Saleh ... Saleh initially took power as a strongman of North Yemen in 1977, when disco was in flower, but he didn't invite Donna Summer to the inauguration and Blondie couldn't make it... officially stepped down in February, following a year-long uprising against his rule. It is seen as a critical phase in Yemen's transition process where all parties, including the opposition, the separatists, the youth and the northern rebels are expected to come together and agree on a new constitution and on presidential and parliamentary elections. The dialogue will kick-off "in mid-November and will last six months," President Abdrabuh Mansour Hadi said late in September, in remarks published on the official Saba news agency. Posted by: Fred 2012-10-04 |
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