Sana'a (dpa) – Thousands of protesters gathered in the Yemeni capital Sana'a on Tuesday to rally against a draft proposal approved by the unity government that would grant President Ali Abdullah Saleh and his outgoing government immunity. “The whole world should know, the revolution continues and we will not bow,” shouted protesters gathered in Change Square, where anti-government activists have been camping for almost a year. The interim government on Sunday approved a plan to grant Saleh immunity, angering protesters who want Saleh and members of his government to be tried for their role in the death of hundreds of people during a crackdown on anti-government demonstrations. The proposed law must be adopted by parliament, which is dominated by Saleh's ruling General People's Congress party. No date has been set for a vote. Under a Gulf-brokered deal signed in November, Saleh is to remain titular president until February 21, when a new president will be elected. The transitional unity government was formed in December between the General People's Congress and the opposition Joint Meeting Parties (JMP). Some members of the opposition remain suspicious of Saleh's intention to relinquish power. Opposition lawmaker Mohammed al-Hazmi says he expects the General People's Congress (GPC) to vote against the immunity law because it would effectively strip Saleh of his powers. “After realizing that the opposition had agreed to grant immunity to president Saleh, they (the GPC) stood against it, unhappy that power will be pulled from under their feet,” al-Hazmi told dpa. Local media reported last week that Saleh would not travel to the United States to seek medical treatment and would instead remain in Yemen to oversee the presidential election. This raised suspicions that he was working to ensure that his relatives and supporters remain in power. BM ShortURL: http://goo.gl/5xR2D Tags: Immunity, Protest, Saleh Section: Latest News, Yemen
