New Palestinian cabinet approved by legislators

A new Palestinian cabinet with a significant injection of younger figures from outside frontline politics was finally approved by parliamentarians after President Mahmoud Abbas had intervened to halt a three-day political crisis.

Several politicians hailed yesterday's decision as heralding a new era for the Palestinian Authority, long criticised by the Palestinian public for being inefficient and tainted by corruption. Mr Abbas said: "They are young and professional, and I think they are capable of carrying out their jobs. We have chosen them very carefully."

The Palestinian Legislative Council voted by 54 to 12 to back a new list of ministers after three days of infighting which weakened the position of Ahmad Qureia, the Palestinian Prime Minister, and - for now - strengthened that of Mr Abbas.

Although Mr Abbas's intervention saved his Prime Minister in the short term there was speculation that Mr Qureia could lose his post in July in the wake of a crisis which began when PLC members demonstrated a new independence by revolting against his proposals. Opponents argued that his planned cabinet contained too many Arafat-era ministers.

The dispute, which deepened when Mr Qureia found he also could not secure backing for a dramatically different second list, had threatened to undermine next week's international conference in London to bolster the PA.

Among the most notable appointments was that of Nasser Yousef, the new Interior Minister who as a security chief in the late Nineties played a prominent part in clamping down on the armed factions and subsequently quarrelled openly with Yasser Arafat. He was joined in the new cabinet by Mohammed Dahlan, the new Civil Affairs Minister who has re-emerged as an Abbas ally and is viewed favourably by US policymakers.

Salaam Fayed, the widely respected Finance Minister, retains his post while the previous Justice Minister, Nahed ar-Rayyes, who had attracted criticism at home and abroad, has been replaced. Opinion was nevertheless divided over how far the new cabinet represented a radical break with the past.

Hanan Ashrawi, a PLC member who had been among those most strongly opposed to Mr Qureia's original choices, declared: "It's a turning point in the rationale, the approach and the methodology of forming cabinets, in going beyond political patronage ... and to look for people who can deliver."

The new cabinet is significantly more welcome to Mr Abbas than Mr Qureia's original proposals, but it still reflects a compromise between competing interests in Fatah which, while divided, continues to dominate the PA. The list was approved by Fatah on Wednesday night after Mr Abbas warned them that the world was watching the unfolding crisis.

Nabil Shaath, a long-standing Fatah figure who becomes Deputy Prime Minister, was, with Mr Qureia, exempted from a new "separation of powers" precluding PLC members from ministerial office. He is replaced as Foreign Minister by Nasser al-Kidwa, the UN envoy and Yasser Arafat's nephew. While Saeb Erekat, another Fatah PLC member, leaves the cabinet, he will retain a key negotiating post.

http://news.independent.co.uk/world/middle_east/story.jsp?story=614532

GAZA, 25 February 2005 — The Palestinian Parliament yesterday approved a new-look Cabinet of mostly technocrats. Ratification of the 24-member Cabinet, including 17 newcomers, was widely seen as a victory for President Mahmoud Abbas after days of political crisis ahead of a 25-nation meeting in London next week on Palestinian reform. Members of the Cabinet were later sworn in.

At least seven Arafat loyalists on a Cabinet list first proposed by Prime Minister Ahmed Qorei were replaced by technocrats chosen for their professional skills.

“It is a Cabinet of professionals and I hope it will shoulder its responsibilities,” Qorei said after Parliament voted in the government by a margin of54 -12, with four abstentions.

On Wednesday, Abbas intervened in the dispute between Parliament and his prime minister, and persuaded legislators from his Fatah party to support a Cabinet largely consisting of ministers chosen for their expertise, not political loyalty.

The crisis strengthened Abbas and weakened Qorei, who may not survive as prime minister beyond parliamentary elections in July, after which a new Cabinet would be formed. After Yasser Arafat’s death in November, Abbas and Qorei cooperated during a transition period, but relations have cooled since then.

Israeli Foreign Minister Silvan Shalom praised the appointment of the Cabinet as a “positive step,” but said he would withhold final judgment until the government’s approach to hard-line groups becomes clear.

Virtually all the new ministers are experts in the field they are to oversee, including 10 with doctorates, a medical doctor, a lawyer, several engineers and several with master’s degrees. The technology minister, Sabri Saidam,41 , holds a doctorate in electrical engineering. The new agriculture minister, Walid Abed Rabbo, has a Ph.D. in human resource management from the United States and served in Jordan’s Agriculture Ministry before becoming a consultant in the Palestinian Agriculture Ministry.

Only two of the 24 are women, the same as in the outgoing Cabinet. One of the women is in charge of the women’s affairs ministry, the second has no portfolio.

One familiar face, Saeb Erekat, will no longer be a Cabinet minister but Abbas’ office said he would continue to serve as chief Palestinian negotiator. Several other well-known members of the previous Cabinet will remain in the government.

Foreign Minister Nabil Shaath will become deputy prime minister and information minister and Finance Minister Salam Fayyad, a US favorite for his efforts to make government finances more transparent, will remain in the post.

Nasser Al-Kidwa, the Palestinians’ UN representative and Arafat’s nephew, takes over as foreign minister. Nasser Yousef and Mohammed Dahlan, Abbas loyalists chosen to help him revamp the security services, agreed to join the new government.

— Additional input from agencies

This is terrific news. Another sign that the basic pragmatism and rationality of the Palestinians is finally having a chance to come into play.

@%<