Yemeni president's initiatives receive welcome

Source: Xinhua,10/02/2011

Sanaa-The initiatives by Yemeni President Ali Abdullah Saleh to step down when his term expires received welcome from some other countries, although the opposition had not responded yet, Prime Minister Ali Mohammed Mujawar said Wednesday, as cited by Xinhua.


"There was tremendous welcome from Britain to the initiatives of President Saleh. It is a concession that the president made for the sake of Yemen," Mujawar said after talks between Saleh and visiting British Foreign Secretary William Hague.
"But unfortunately, the opposition coalition has not responded to us till now," Mujawar said.

The opposition parties said they were considering how to respond to the initiatives, which include Saleh's pledge not to hand over power to his son, and would announce their decision within days.

Saleh, who has been in power for more than 30 years, announced earlier this month not to stay in office or pass power to his son when his term expires in 2013. He also promised to freeze proposed constitutional amendments that could allow him to stay as president for life.


U.S. President Barack Obama urged Saleh to deliver on his pledge of reforms with "concrete actions" in a phone call last week, according to the White House.
The opposition, demanding Saleh's ouster, drew an estimated 20, 000 anti-regime protesters on the streets of the capital of Sanaa last Thursday.


The march, dubbed a "day of rage," was the largest one since the waves of protests began three weeks ago inspired by the demonstrations in Tunisia and Egypt.