The Shura Council State of Qatar

The Shura Council held its regular weekly meeting on Monday at Tamim bin Hamad Hall under the chairmanship of HE Speaker of the Shura Council Hassan bin Abdullah Al Ghanim.

At the outset of the meeting, Acting Assistant Secretary-General for Legislative Affairs, Sessions and Committees in the Shura Council Yasser Saud Al Musallam, read the agenda of the session, and the minutes of the previous session were approved.

During the session, the Council reviewed the request for general discussion submitted by a number of Their Excellencies members regarding benefiting from retirees in the labor market.

Within this framework, HE Speaker of the Shura Council indicated the importance of this issue, as it touches on an important segment of society, which has contributed significantly to the labor market and still has the energy to contribute to development efforts, affirming that this energy, if combined with the accumulated experience, will undoubtedly constitute an important resource to supply the labor market with the appropriate expertise and energies.

His Excellency noted that the previous council, headed by HE Ahmad bin Abdullah bin Zaid Al Mahmoud, had discussed the same issue from various aspects, and submitted a proposal to the esteemed government.

His Excellency indicated that the proposals submitted by the previous council were taken into account and implemented on the ground, as HH the Amir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al-Thani issued the social security and military retirement laws last year, noting that the request for the current general discussion seeks to follow up developments in this file, and to improve the reality of retirees according to developments in order to achieve their aspirations and hopes.

For their parts, Their Excellencies members of the Council stressed the interest that the wise leadership attaches to the human element as one of the pillars of development. as what is stipulated in the country's constitution, and what is embodied in the Qatar National Vision 2030 within the first pillar related to human development.

They pointed out the need to create an appropriate and supportive environment to benefit from retirees in the labor market, given that they are an important human element that has contributed significantly to the development process and many of them are still energetic, and thus they are ready to give and contribute effectively to supporting the national development process.

They noted the necessity of benefiting from the accumulated experiences of the retirees, who worked in various and varied jobs and professions, which made them competencies and acquired knowledge that can be benefited from, reminding of the consequences of losing those capabilities and neglecting the role of retirees, which affects them psychologically and morally.

The members of the Shura Council stressed the need to localize expertise and benefit from the potential of retirees, noting the necessity of avoiding the use of external expertise if there is national expertise capable of carrying out the duties required to contribute to the labor market.

To achieve this, they pointed out the need to count the numbers of retirees, classify their experiences and the areas in which they can contribute, and work to establish a database that includes all the information necessary to benefit from these experiences.

Their Excellencies the members indicated that this would support the national economy, achieve self-sufficiency in several jobs and advisory positions, achieve the maximum benefit from the qualified national cadre for the benefit of the country, and contribute to motivating and encouraging the retiree to play his role towards his country and society.

And after discussions characterized by concern for the interest of retirees and striving to benefit from them in the labor market, the Council decided to refer the request for general discussion to the Financial and Economic Affairs Committee to study it and submit a report thereon to it. 

During the session, the Shura Council approved a draft law promulgating the Judicial Authority Law, and a draft law promulgating the Public Prosecution Law, in their amended versions, after having reviewed the report of the council's Legal and Legislative Affairs Committee in their regard, and discussed the provisions of the two draft laws by Their Excellencies members of the council.

The aforementioned two draft laws are among the important laws that aim to strengthen the judicial system in the country. The Judicial Authority draft law included several articles, among the most prominent provisions of which was the formation of a body in the Court of Cassation, called the 'General Assembly of the Court', to adjudicate conflicts of jurisdiction and to endorse and standardize judicial principles.

The draft also permitted the holding of trials and other judicial procedures by electronic means, in accordance with the controls set by the council, and without prejudice to the guarantees of the trial, in addition to the permissibility of a judge to specialize in one or more types of claims and cases after the lapse of at least three years from having been appointed in the position, and the establishment of a secretariat in the Supreme Judicial Council to organize the work of the Council.

In regard to the draft issuing the Public Prosecution Law, the most prominent provisions in it included the introduction of the rank of the senior assistant prosecutor, while the rank of the first assistant prosecutor was created at the beginning of the career ladder of the public prosecution.

The draft also included reducing the inter-appointment periods that include promotion to higher ranks in the Public Prosecution, with the aim of motivating Qatari cadres to be promoted to higher ranks in close periods.

The draft law also included expanding appointments to public prosecution jobs from other groups operating in the country, as the draft law authorized the appointment of officers in the military authorities, who hold a university degree in law, Sharia and law, or its equivalent from recognized universities. It has also permitted the appointment of lawyers in those positions.

As the session continued, the Shura Council condemned, in the strongest terms, the violations committed by the Israeli authorities against the Palestinian people, the most recent of these violations and crimes was its commission of a new massacre in the city of Nablus, which led to the death of 11 Palestinians and the injury of dozens, stressing that these brutal crimes against unarmed civilians are a result of the international community's negligence in dealing with them.

The Shura Council stressed that complacency and indolence with the practices of the occupying entity undermine peace efforts in Palestine, reiterating the State of Qatar's official and popular position in supporting the Palestinian people until they regain their legitimate rights and establish their independent, fully sovereign state on the basis of the 1967 borders, with East Jerusalem as its capital. On the other hand, HE Speaker of the Shura Council Hassan bin Abdullah Al Ghanim briefed Their Excellencies members of the council on the council delegation's participation in the 34th conference of the Arab Inter-Parliamentary Union (AIPU), which was held Saturday in Baghdad, Iraq, under the theme of Arab support for the promotion of Iraq's stability and sovereignty.

In this regard, His Excellency indicated that the call for the conference came to take a stance alongside Iraq, strengthen its position and support its stability and sovereignty, as well as discuss issues in the Arab world.

The conference also touched on the repeated crimes that the occupied lands in sisterly Palestine are subjected to at the hands of the occupation authorities, His Excellency added, indicating that he expressed Qatar's condemnation of the occupying entity's efforts to create a new reality to expand the occupation and perpetuate ethnic cleansing and settlement.

His Excellency pointed out that he renewed - before the conference, Qatar's firm popular and official stance on the justice of the Palestinian cause, and the right of the Palestinian people to establish their independent state on the borders of June 4, 1967, with East Jerusalem as its capital.

HE Speaker of Shura Council also said that its closing statement, the conference endorsed the request of the State of Qatar, represented by the Shura Council, to include the issue of criminalizing defamation of religions on the agenda of the 146th General Assembly of the Inter-Parliamentary Union.

In its closing statement, the conference agreed on the State of Qatar's proposal, represented by the Shura Council, to include the issue of criminalizing contempt of religion on the agenda of the 146th General Assembly of the Inter-Parliamentary Union, under the item on criminalizing contempt for religions, violating places of worship and sanctities, and spreading hatred among peoples, in addition to calling to promote the values of coexistence, tolerance, international peace and security, His Excellency added.