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Yemenis Celebrate Election of President Hadi After Forcing Dictator Saleh Out

Yemen's president-elect Hadi takes oath at parliament

SANAA, Feb. 25, 2012 (Xinhua) --

President-elect Abd-Rabbu Mansour Hadi on Saturday took the constitutional oath before the parliament to become Yemen's new president, after a landmark vote this week initiated in a Gulf-brokered power transfer deal.

Upon he took the oath, Hadi gave his first speech as the new president of Yemen. "The power in Yemen is backed now by popular legitimacy, which cannot be questioned," Hadi said while addressing the lawmakers.

"The Yemeni people were no longer ready to accept any half- solutions... Yemen now needs actions to build its state of law and order," Hadi said.

Hadi, the sole candidate of the early election that took place on Feb. 21, won 6.6 million votes from more than 10 million registered voters, according to Yemen's Supermen Committee for Elections and Referendum.

The 66-year-old new president will take office next Monday and head a two-year transitional government tasked with amending the constitution and holding parliamentary elections.

Hadi pledged to carry out reforms during his transitional term and is set to launch a national dialogue with all political factions in Yemen after he takes office, as well as to combat resurgent al-Qaida off-shoot.

The early presidential election came as part of a negotiated settlement initiated by neighboring oil-rich Gulf Cooperation Council countries with the aim of ending one-year-old massive protests against outgoing president Ali Abdullah Saleh.

Meanwhile, Saleh returned to Sanaa early Saturday after he finished medical treatment in the United States, his General People's Congress (GPC) party said in a statement on its official website.

The leader of GPC has arrived at the Sanaa International Airport on Saturday morning and he will return to his private residence rather than the presidential palace, the GPC said.

"I returned to take part in the inauguration ceremony of Hadi as the new Yemeni president," the GPC website quoted Saleh as saying upon his arrival.

"The developments in our homeland came within the framework of the peaceful exchange of power under a satisfied deal brokered by our brothers in the Gulf Cooperation Council countries, as a complete solution to get Yemen out of a deadly crisis that afflicted the nation for one year long," Saleh said.

The deal, which was initiated following one-year massive protests against Saleh's 33-year rule, was signed by Saleh in November 2011 in the Saudi capital of Riyadh in return for full immunity from prosecution, a move that saw him hand over power to his deputy, Hadi, the only consensus candidate in Tuesday's presidential election.

Saleh, an ally to the United States in its war against the Yemen-based al-Qaida wing, arrived in New York late last month for treatment of wounds sustained in a bomb attack on his presidential palace in June 2011, but he vowed to return home for the inauguration of Yemen's new president.

Supporters of the GPC celebrated the successful presidential polls on Friday in Sanaa and several other cities, while the opposition coalition and the GPC party also congratulated Hadi for winning the polls.

The election, which was boycotted by northern Houthi-led Shiite rebels and southern separatist group, saw violence on Tuesday that led to the death of seven people.

Yemen's new president faces mounting challenges ahead

SANAA, Feb. 25, 2012 (Xinhua) --

Following more than a year of domestic political turmoil, Yemenis elected their new president Friday night with stunning votes of 99.8 percent in his favor.

Though garnering high support in the election, the new president,Abd-Rabbu Mansour Hadi, is faced with tremendous challenges ahead as armed conflicts and terrorism still haunt his country.

OPPOSITION THREATENS SECURITY, ECONOMY

As the poorest nation in the Arab world, Yemen has long been troubled by radicalism from the Houthi Shiite rebels in the north, pro-separatism Southern Movement in the south, and a resurgent regional al-Qaida network in southern and eastern provinces.

The domestic unrest for the past year weakened the Yemeni government's control over the remote areas, offering those groups a breathing space to further expand their influence in the southern and northern regions.

Those radicals not only target government institutions, but also join tribal forces to attack oil and power transmission facilities, leading to frequent disruptions of oil and power supply.

Since the domestic unrest began last year, the capital city of Sanaa has suffered a blackout for over 15 hours every day, and for many southern provinces, daily electricity supply was less than four hours, which have pushed Yemen to the brink of economic collapse.

Meanwhile, the government ironically has to pay those tribal forces for protection to safeguard its oil pipes and electric transmission facilities.

ELECTION MARRED BY VIOLENCE

Tuesday's election met the boycott from the southern separatists, northern rebels and al-Qaida. Over 20 polling stations were forced to shut down due to their interruptions. Some ballot boxes were looted in southern provinces, causing delays of result collection.

In a televised address last Sunday, Hadi said tackling the economic crisis would be his first priority and he would work to bring changes and a better future for his nation.

But analysts pointed out that top priority for the new president should be to safeguard the unity of his country. They said Hadi should launch reconciliatory dialogues with his opposition to avoid a civil war, which would plunge the already bad economy into a hopeless situation.

IMPLEMENTATION OF GCC PEACE PLAN INCOMPLETE

The Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) brokered a deal to end the Yemen crisis last April, proposing a "national unity" government evenly divided between the opposition and the ruling party of the outgoing President Ali Abdullah Saleh, and a presidential election within 90 days, during which Saleh would still be the honorary president and enjoy immunity after resignation.

The deal had encountered strong resistance from Saleh, who pulled back three times from signing it, leading to fierce confrontation between his government and the opposition.

Saleh finally signed the deal on Nov. 23, 2011 and left Yemen for the United States for medical treatment in January 2012.

His departure, however, did not end his influence over the country where most of its important military and intelligence resources are still under the control of Saleh's family.

Earlier this month, a removal of Saleh's photo provoked his supporters into storming a newspaper and forced the paper to write an apology.

Though the GCC plan had received acceptance from different political factions, its implementation was rather incomplete.

The GCC plan brought nothing other than a temporary cease-fire, and its reform progress was retarded, said Fuad al-Salahi, a professor of political sociology at Sanaa University.

"The committee, formed to remove security disorders and reunite the armed forces, has failed to accomplish its job and the power-sharing government has failed to restore and improve basic services," the professor said. "Hence, the new government has a lot to do to convince people, mainly the protesters, that political compromises will succeed in Yemen."

Though groups such as al-Qaida and the Shiite Houthis were already curbed during the Saleh era, there are political forces using these groups to create chaos and hinder political solutions in the country, al-Salahi added.

The GCC deal remains to be the roadmap to lift Yemen out of the current plight, but persistent protests and old strategies of some parties are affecting the implementation of the deal, said Najeeb Ghalab, a political science professor at Sanaa University.

He pointed out that the situation would be improved if the presidential elections went smoothly.

Abdul Ghani al-Maweri, a political analyst and writer, said if the new government fails to tide over the transitional period successfully, Yemen will see increasing chaos and violence.

"I can't predict how the future of Yemen will be, but there are clear signs at the moment that should make the government to impose the rule of law and restore the power of the public offices," he said.

Editor: Yamei Wang