http://www.arabnews.com/?page=4§ion=0&article=65165&d=10&m=6&y=2005
Friday, 10, June, 2005 (03, Jumada al-Ula, 1426)
Qatari Women Get Equal Rights
Deutsche Presse-Agentur
DUBAI, 10 June 2005 - Qatar took its first step toward greater democracy
yesterday, officially adopting a constitution that grants women equal rights
and paves the way for the emirate's first parliamentary elections.
Under the new constitution, the first since Qatar gained independence
from Britain in 1971, power effectively remains with the emir, Sheikh Hamad ibn
Khalifa Al Thani, but citizens get a greater say in how the country is run.
Qatar says that the new charter draws on various sources, including Shariah.
The constitution "states that Shariah is one of the fundamental sources
of the legislation, which means it is not the only one, according to Jamal
Yahya, an Egyptian expert who helped formulate the charter.
"Qatar is an independent and sovereign Arab country," the constitution
states, adding that "Its religion is Islam and Shariah is the main source of
legislation. Its regime is democratic and its official language is Arabic."
The charter sanctions the establishment of a 45-member legislature, with
30 members directly elected by the people and 15 appointed by the emir. It also
reforms the judicial system by scrapping separate religious and civil courts,
and gives men and women equal rights under the law.
As a next step, officials in Qatar have started setting up committees to
prepare an elections law and mark out electoral districts and constituencies
throughout the nation.
Although no date has been set for national parliamentary elections,
Qatar's Foreign Minister Sheikh Hamad ibn Jabir Al Thani has hinted they could
take place in the first half of next year.
"Getting a constitution in place at this time brings to Qatar ingredients
of a working democracy to be based on freedom of speech, the rule of law, and
equality among all citizens of the nation regardless of race, color, origin, or
sex," according to Sayyed Jad, a member of Qatar's Human Rights Committee.
"Qatari women will enjoy all the political rights accorded to Qatari men,
which distinguishes Qatar from a number of other states in the Arab world that
do not grant women those rights," he said.
Qatar has a total population of about 800,000, out of which only 200,000
are citizens. The rest are expatriate workers.
The country is among the richest in the world, with proven reserves of
natural gas exceeding 14 trillion cubic meters, more than 5 percent of the
world total and third largest reserve in the world.
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Lebih Baik, in Commonality & Shared Destiny. www.ppi-india.org
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