Yemeni political parties agree to resume consultations on Monday

The UN Secretary General Advisor on Yemen Affairs, Jamal Bin Omar, has announced an agreement of the Yemeni political parties to resume consultations Monday to reach a political solution for the present Yemeni crisis, Saba news reported.
“As you know, the UN is still committed since 2011 to exert its good offices to help Yemenis bridge the gap in order to finalize the transitional peaceful political process and renewed its commitments during the latest developments,” Bin Omar said in a statement to Saba Sunday night.
Moreover, he added that “I am glad to announce that following consultations with the political actors and direct contacts with Mr. Abdul-Malik al-Houthi, the parties have agreed to resume talks in order to reach a political solution to take Yemen out of this crisis,” noting that “this comes within the efforts we exert to facilitate dialogue in a bid to finalize the transitional period as outlined by the Gulf Initiative’s implementation mechanism, outcomes of the National Dialogue Conference and the Peace and National Partnership Agreement.”
The session will be resumed Monday February 9, Bin Omar said.
He stressed the importance of the political leadership to work in a consensus spirit to overcome the political stalemate to ensure the completion of the democratic transformation which Yemenis started in 2011.
At the conclusion of his statement, Bin Omar urged all parties to shoulder responsibility and commit to dialogue as the sole way to find out a peaceful and consensual solution.
But observers still believe no solution will be reached especially after the Houthi group has released a constitutional declaration to regulate the transitional period.
Under the declaration, the Yemeni group dissolved Yemen’s parliament and announced the formation of a transitional “presidential council” which will act as a government for an interim period of two years.
The constitutional declaration further said that a "transitional national council of 551 members," which will replace the parliament, will be set up to elect the five-member “presidential council.”
The Houthi group had agreed to resume the dialogue amid regional and international pressure due to its constitutional declaration, which is seen as a coup against the political process.
Representatives of the group also visited a number of embassies to assure world countries about the declaration, but their response was disappointing.
Political factions are also against actions by the group in southern governorates, believing that would lead to a split from Sanaa.
The factions insist the Houthi group must cancel the constitutional declaration.
The Houthis, who now control the official news agency, have recently affirmed on Saba's website that Abdu Rabbo Mansour Hadi affirmed his full determination regarding his resignation from the presidency of the Republic according to a request he submitted to the Parliament on January 22.
During a meeting at his residence with a number of national personalities, leaders of the parties and political components and social dignitaries, Hadi re-emphasized that the resignation he submitted to the Parliament was final and there is no way to withdraw it based on his satisfaction that the difficult political situations cannot be dealt with in a normal way and according to the constitutional and legal determinants, Saba said.
He called on all political, social and cultural actors to show full solidarity and rise above disputes for the supreme interest of the nation, and take the reliable procedures which promote harmony and consensus in order to solve the crisis and meet aspirations of the Yemeni people to protect the country’s security, stability and unity.
The General People’s Congress, however, remains optimistic about the dialogue.
Yemen's "Yemen Today" newspaper said that the Houthis started separate talks Sunday with effective political powers, including the GPC and the Joint Gathering Bloc, to discuss reservations on the constitutional declaration with the aim of finding a way out ahead of the dialogue session.
This step by the Houthis comes amid domestic and foreign moves to render the Houthi ruling system a failure.
An independent newspaper, "Al Sharae", quoted an official source taking part in the dialogue that the Houthis insist any talks should be based on their constitutional declaration.
The other factions say the talks should resume from where they stopped before the declaration was released.
On Thursday, UN Secretary General Advisor on Yemen Affairs Jamal Bin Omar met with the Iranian ambassador in Sanaa to discuss the Yemeni crisis.
The ambassador posted Bin Omar on Tehran's views regarding the Yemeni conflict.
The Houthis released the constitutional declaration as the Iranian ambassador was in Saudi Arabia to share Tehran's views with officials in Riyadh.
Source: MENA