* Shura Council Speaker praises contents of the Amir's speech at new session inauguration
HE the Speaker of the Shura Council Hassan bin Abdullah al-Ghanim praised His Highness the Amir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad al-Thani's speech at the opening of the second ordinary session of the first legislative term corresponding to the 51st annual session of the Council. In his speech on the opening of the new session, HE the Shura Council Speaker welcomed His Highness in the Council, extending deepest thanks and appreciation for patronising the opening of the session, which marks the start of a new process of achievement and giving, according to the vision of His Highness, adhering to wise directives, looking forward to joining the loyal sons and daughters of Qatar in the development process.
HE al-Ghanim added that he followed with great interest the contents of His Highness's lofty speech, which reviewed all the events and developments that Qatar witnessed during the past year and this year, discussed all internal and external developments and the many achievements, and highlighted the major event that Qatar hosts in November -- the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022. He pointed out that His Highness's speech also highlighted the important milestones and general plans for Qatar's domestic and foreign policy.
HE al-Ghanim summarised the achievements of the Shura Council in the last session, saying that the Council held 35 public sessions over eight months, during which it dealt with study, discussion, and research, many important draft laws, and requests for general discussion. He added that the Council discussed decree laws and several proposals, explaining that all of them witnessed extensive and fruitful study and discussions, and the Council's committees held nearly a hundred meetings throughout the session.
In the field of parliamentary diplomacy, HE the Speaker reviewed the effective participation of the Council, in person or remotely, in many regional and international parliamentary conferences and its meetings with several heads of state, officials, and parliamentary delegations. He added that this enabled the Council to strengthen parliamentary relations with many brotherly and friendly parliaments, in addition to hosting regional parliamentary meetings in co-ordination and co-operation with the United Nations Office of Counter-Terrorism, as part of the activities of the Doha-based UN Office on Parliamentary Engagement in Preventing and Countering Terrorism.
Regarding efforts to activate the role of the Shura Council in the regional and international parliamentary organisations, HE al-Ghanim highlighted the important positions that the council has held in the Inter-Parliamentary Union (IPU), the Arab Parliament, the presidency of the Global Organisation of Parliamentarians Against Corruption (GOPAC) and the Association of Secretaries-General of Arab Parliaments. In regard to the Gulf Parliamentary issue, he noted that Qatar will host the 17th meeting of Heads of Shura, Representatives, National Assembly, and Parliament Councils of the Co-operation Council for the Arab States of the Gulf (GCC) states. Thanks to the support of the Amir, the co-operation of the esteemed government, and the contribution of loyal citizens, all these achievements have been accomplished, he added.
In his speech, HE the Speaker addressed the violations of sanctities and repeated attacks against the Palestinians that the Arab world is witnessing, stressing that this reflects Israelis' disbelief in the necessity of peace and their will to destabilise the region. The Shura Council believes in the repeated affirmation of the Amir, that the absence of peace goes on until the Palestinian people obtain their right to establish their independent state, with East Jerusalem as its capital, on the borders of June 4, 1967. He welcomed the signing by the Palestinian factions of the Algeria Declaration of National Reconciliation emanating from the reunification conference to achieve Palestinian national unity, expressing his hope that this declaration will contribute to achieving Palestinian national unity and referred to the conflicts and instability that several Arab countries are witnessing, calling on the peoples of those countries to resort to dialogue and peace, given that it is the only way that leads to ending conflicts, achieving transitional justice, and achieving stability.
He also expressed his hope that the brotherly peoples of Yemen, Sudan, Libya, Tunisia, Syria, Iraq, and Lebanon will reach agreements that bring them together and achieve their will to build the future of the coming generations in their countries. HE al-Ghanim noted that he looks forward to the council's effective role in its new session to achieve the aspirations of the Qatari people, commending the efforts made by the members of the council towards the advancement of Qatar.
He called on all to carry out their duties and fulfill them to the fullest, re-emphasizing loyalty to the Amir as the leader of the glorious development and renaissance, and the determination to increase efforts so that Qatar can prosper. He concluded his speech by pledging to the Amir and the Qatari people that the council will carry on its approach and implement the lofty directives that were mentioned in the speech of the Amir, and to co-operate with the esteemed government to reach the common goals and achieve the higher interest of Qatar, particularly the objectives of Qatar National Vision 2030, pointing out the current ongoing preparations to launch the third Qatar National Strategy 2023-2027 to implement the vision.
HE al-Ghanim also stressed the council's commitment to the 2022 National Day slogan 'Our Unity Source of Our Strength.'
