The Shura Council held its weekly meeting Monday at Tamim Bin Hamad Hall under the chairmanship of its Speaker HE Hassan bin Abdullah Al-Ghanem. At the outset of the meeting, Acting Assistant Secretary-General for Legislative Affairs, Sessions and Committees 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 members regarding benefiting from retirees in the labour market.
Within this framework, HE the Speaker indicated the importance of this issue, as it touches on an important segment of society, which has contributed significantly to the labour 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 labour market with the appropriate expertise and energies.
He 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. He said that the proposals submitted by the previous council were taken into account and implemented on the ground, as His Highness 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, the members of the Council stressed the interest that the wise leadership attaches to the human element as one of the pillars of development which is stipulated in the country's constitution, and embodied in the Qatar National Vision 2030. They pointed out the need to create an appropriate and supportive environment to benefit from retirees in the labour 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 stressed the need to localise 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 labour 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. 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.
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. 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 standardise 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 specialise 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 organise the work of the Council.
The Shura Council condemned, in the strongest terms, the violations committed by the Israeli authorities against the Palestinian people, reiterating 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.
The Shura Council in session
