Palestinian Prime Minister Ahmad Qurei agreed on Tuesday to a proposal submitted by a committee represnting five major political factions, requesting the Palestinian Legislative Council to made necessary amendments to election bills in compliance to the Cairo understandings.ÂÂ
The proposal demands that Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas and Chair of the PLC sign a memorandum that commits the PLC to adhere to what was agreed upon in the Cairo talks, and take necessary steps to ensure that 50% of parlimant seats are elected through national lists.
Qurei and the committee agreed also to arrange for a wider meeting to ensure stronger commitment to the Cairo talks’ terms, which all Palestinian factions approved.
Saleh Zeidan, of the political bureau of the Democratic Front for the Liberation of Palestine, (DFLP), described the meeting the Qurei as positive and fruitful, especially that Qurei promised to take action on this issue.
Qurei said that the Palestinian cabinet did not receive the amended law which was approved in the second reading, and was rejected by the Palestinian factions. This law is based on two thirds for the regions and one third for proportional representations.
The main goal of the new law is to minimize the effect of the families on the results of the elections. Giving two thirds to regional quotas enforces ‘tribal elections’, which will allow those who have large families to win no matter if they are qualified or not.
The political factions advocate for proportional representation with the regional quota because they can suggest candidates with less effect from the families.
