The Center of Legal and Judicial Studies (CLJS) at the Ministry of Justice organised a conference entitled 'Shura Council and the democratic process in Qatar', which reviewed the democratic transformation in the country in light of the provisions of the State's Permanent Constitution, and the important step that culminated in this process in fulfilment of the vision of His Highness the Amir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad al-Thani, which was announced in his speech at the opening of the 49th Ordinary Session of Shura Council in 2020. The Amir had set last October 2 for holding the first legislative elections to choose the members of the elected Shura Council.
The speakers at the conference praised the legal and legislative procedures that accompanied the first democratic electoral process to select two-thirds of the members of the Shura Council through free and direct elections, and stressed their importance to strengthening the traditions of the Council and developing the legislative process with a broader participation of citizens, after the success of the first electoral experience of the Shura Council in the country.
HE the Minister of Justice Masoud bin Mohamed al-Ameri said that the conference constitutes a legal reading and a procedural follow-up to a historical event in Qatar and the region, thanks to the wise vision and firm conviction of His Highness the Amir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad al-Thani, to develop the State's legislative mechanisms and consolidate its legal system by expanding the scope of popular participation in a way that reflects the vision of His Highness, embodies the provisions and values of the Qatari Constitution, and achieves the goals of Qatar National Vision 2030.
HE the Minister said: "We are all aware, and as the Amir emphasised in the opening session of the elected Shura Council, the importance of this historical moment in which we witness the completion of the institutions stipulated in the constitution by establishing the elected legislative authority along with the executive and judicial authorities, which enshrines the values and principles of the rule of law and institutions, and upholds the rule of law, which Qatar's wise leadership is keen to establish."
For his part, the Head of Legal Affairs in the Shura Council, Mohamed Khaled al-Sada, reviewed the establishment of the Council, its organs and committees, and the rights and duties of its members, since the Council was established in 1972. The Professor of Public Law at the College of Law at Qatar University, Dr Hassan Abdel Rahim al-Sayed, reviewed the competences of the Shura Council under the provisions of the Constitution, and the laws regulating the work of the Council, which stipulate that the Council assumes the authority of legislation, approving the State's general budget, and exercising oversight over the executive authority as set out in the Constitution.
In her speech at the conference, Acting Director of the Center for Legal and Judicial Studies at the Ministry of Justice Nada Jassim al-Abduljabbar said that the importance of choosing the topic of the symposium is due to the successful completion of the Shura Council elections process, and the start of its first session, in order to exercise its competencies towards achieving more democracy and strengthening the principle of citizenship.
She explained that the conference sheds light on the development of the Shura Council since its establishment to date, as well as addressing the provisions of the current Council law and the democratic process in the State in order to activate the functions of the centre and in line with the developmental and legislative development witnessed by the country in various fields.
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