Shura Council

مجلس الشورى

Majlis ash-Shūrā
Emblem of Yemen
Type
Type
History
Founded20 February 2001
Leadership
Speaker
Ahmed Obaid Bin Dagher
(Aden government)
Muhammad Hussein al-Aidarous (Sanaa government)
Seats111
Elections
Direct appointment by the president

The Shura Council or Consultative Council (Arabic: مجلس الشورى, romanized: Majlis ash-Shūrā) is the upper house of the parliament of Yemen,[1] with the lower house being the House of Representatives.[2] Unlike the House it does not take on a legislative role,[3] instead primarily being charged with an advisory role to the president. Per the constitution it has 111 members who are appointed by the president.[2][4][lower-alpha 1] There currently exist two Shura Councils as a result of the civil war, one in Sanaa aligned with the Houthis, and one aligned with the Presidential Leadership Council in Aden.

History

The Shura Council was established on 20 February 2001 by amendments to the constitution.[7] Following the amendments, then-president Ali Abdullah Saleh appointed 111 members to the new council on 28 April 2001.[8] As a result of the civil war, two bodies use the name of the Shura Council: One is based in Sanaa[9] under Houthi control,[10] with the other aligned with the Presidential Leadership Council, based in Aden.[11][12] Some proposals have come forward to make changes to it: in 2015 it was proposed to expand the membership of the council,[13] while in the same year it was also proposed during talks with the UN that the Shura Council be replaced with a transitional upper house which would consist more of underrepresented groups.[14]

Role

The constitution outlines a number of duties for the Shura Council, primarily consisting of consultative roles to the president,[15] though also including a role in the presidential election process: presidential nominees are vetted for qualifications by, and confirmed in joint sessions of the Council and the House of Representatives.[1][16] The constitution also creates a number of qualifications for candidates to the Council, and provides for the method of selection thereto:

The Consultative Council shall consist of (111) members to be directly appointed by the President of the Republic. Members of the Council shall not be drawn from the House of Representatives or from local councils. [...] Council members shall have to attain the age of forty and shall be required to take the oath of office in the presence of the President of the Republic.[4]

The Council also meets with the House to vote on budgets and treaties, among other purposes as outlined by the President.[7]

Leadership

The leader of the council is known as the Speaker. Currently this role is fulfilled in the Aden-based council by Ahmed Obaid bin Dagher,[17] who was appointed in 2021 along with two deputies, Abdullah Muhammad Abu Al-Ghaith and Taha Abdullah Jaafar Aman. This decision was criticized, however, by the Southern Transitional Council, as undermining the Riyadh Agreement.[12] The speaker of the Sanaa council is Muhammad Hussein al-Aidarous.[18]

See also

Notes

  1. ↑ Currently the powers of the president are exercised by the Presidential Leadership Council in areas under their control,[5] and by the Supreme Political Council in areas under Houthi control.[6]

References

  1. 1 2 Article 125 of the Constitution of Yemen (1990 rev. 2015)
  2. 1 2 "Yemen (12/07)". State.gov. United States: Bureau of Near Eastern Affairs. Archived from the original on 1 October 2022. Retrieved 1 October 2022.
  3. ↑ Whittaker, Brian. "Yemen's Consultative Council, 1997". Al-Bab.com. Archived from the original on 1 October 2022. Retrieved 1 October 2022.
  4. 1 2 Article 126 of the Constitution of Yemen (1990 rev. 2015)
  5. ↑ Tolba, Ahmed; Ghobari, Mohamed (7 April 2022). "Yemen president cedes powers to council as Saudi Arabia pushes to end war". Reuters. Archived from the original on 1 May 2022. Retrieved 18 October 2022.
  6. ↑ Jaber, Ali (29 July 2016). "Yemen: Ansar Allah signs agreement with Saleh's party creating supreme political council". Middle East Confidential. Archived from the original on 18 October 2022. Retrieved 18 October 2022.
  7. 1 2 "Constitutional history of Yemen". ConstitutionNet. Archived from the original on 1 October 2022. Retrieved 1 October 2022.
  8. ↑ "Yemen's Consultative Council, 2001". al-bab.com. Archived from the original on 22 October 2022. Retrieved 22 October 2022.
  9. ↑ "Shura council condemns UN decision designating Ansar Allah on list of violators of children's rights". Sanaa, Yemen: Yemen Press Agency. 19 June 2021. Archived from the original on 17 October 2022. Retrieved 17 October 2022.
  10. ↑ Kabalan, Marwan (21 November 2018). "Why Saudi Arabia's foreign policy is failing". Al-Jazeera. Archived from the original on 17 October 2022. Retrieved 17 October 2022. Yet, it was the Houthis' takeover of the Yemeni capital Sanaa in September 2014, that shook Saudi Arabia to the core.
  11. ↑ "Yemen MPs in Aden Ahead of Voting in Presidential Council, Govt". Asharq Al-Awsat. 18 April 2022. Archived from the original on 17 October 2022. Retrieved 17 October 2022.
  12. 1 2 Rabea, Ali (17 January 2021). "Yemen's Hadi Appoints New Head of Shura Council, Attorney General, Cabinet Secretary". Asharq Al-Awsat. Archived from the original on 1 October 2022. Retrieved 1 October 2022.
  13. ↑ "Yemen to amend draft constitution; expand Shura Council". Anadolu Agency. 21 January 2015. Archived from the original on 1 October 2022. Retrieved 1 October 2022.
  14. ↑ "Yemen feuding parties agree on transitional council". Al Jazeera. 20 February 2015. Archived from the original on 8 August 2020. Retrieved 1 October 2022.
  15. ↑ "Yemen". Freedom House. Archived from the original on 22 May 2019. Retrieved 1 October 2022.
  16. ↑ Article 108 of the Constitution of Yemen (1990 rev. 2015)
  17. ↑ "Speaker of Shura Council meets with Swedish envoy to Yemen". Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Expatriates. Yemen. 2 April 2022. Archived from the original on 1 October 2022. Retrieved 1 October 2022.
  18. ↑ "The Speaker of the Shura Council congratulates the Leader of the Revolution and the President of the Political Council on the October 14 Revolution". Shura Council of Yemen (in Arabic). 13 October 2022. Archived from the original on 14 October 2022. Retrieved 14 October 2022.
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