Al-Islah
Encyclopedia
The Yemeni Congregation for Reform, frequently called Islah or Al-Islah, , is the main opposition party
in Yemen
. At the last legislative elections
, 27 April 2003, the party won 22.6 % of the popular vote and 46 out of 301 seats.
, led by Mohammed Qahtan. The second is the tribal confederacy which was led by top tribal chief Sheikh Abdullah al-Ahmar
until his death in 2007 at which time he was succeeded by his son Sadeq. (Hamid al-Ahmar
is Sadeq's younger brother and is active in politics.) The third is the mainstream Salafists
in Yemen, led by the country’s most prominent Sunni religious scholar, Abdul Majeed al-Zindani."
In the 2003 parliamentary election
, Al-Islah won 46 seats. , 13 of Al-Islah's parliament members are women, including human rights activist and Nobel laureate Tawakel Karman
, who created the activist group Women Journalists Without Chains in 2005 and became the first Yemeni and Arab woman to win the Nobel Peace Prize
in 2011.
of the Houthis
, should instead keep well out of the war because Yemenis must not help Yemen’s pro-Western government, which deserves to be overthrown.
Al-Islah is agitating, at the moment, against a draft amendment to the constitution of Yemen
that could allow the president to run for life. The party is also involved in organising demonstrations for the ongoing 2011 Yemeni protests.
removed her niqāb
(face veil) at a human rights conference in 2004 and since then has called for "other women and female activists to take theirs off".
Political party
A political party is a political organization that typically seeks to influence government policy, usually by nominating their own candidates and trying to seat them in political office. Parties participate in electoral campaigns, educational outreach or protest actions...
in Yemen
Yemen
The Republic of Yemen , commonly known as Yemen , is a country located in the Middle East, occupying the southwestern to southern end of the Arabian Peninsula. It is bordered by Saudi Arabia to the north, the Red Sea to the west, and Oman to the east....
. At the last legislative elections
Elections in Yemen
Yemen elects on national level a head of state and a legislature. The president is elected for a seven year term by the people. The Assembly of Representatives of Yemen has 301 members, elected for a six year term in single-seat constituencies.Yemen is usually considered a dominant-party state...
, 27 April 2003, the party won 22.6 % of the popular vote and 46 out of 301 seats.
Foundation
The party was created in September 13, 1990 in Sana'a, Yemen, by Yemeni members of the Muslim Brotherhood.General structure, leadership
Al-Islah has been described as consisting of "three components. The first is the political faction, Yemen’s Muslim BrotherhoodMuslim Brotherhood
The Society of the Muslim Brothers is the world's oldest and one of the largest Islamist parties, and is the largest political opposition organization in many Arab states. It was founded in 1928 in Egypt by the Islamic scholar and schoolteacher Hassan al-Banna and by the late 1940s had an...
, led by Mohammed Qahtan. The second is the tribal confederacy which was led by top tribal chief Sheikh Abdullah al-Ahmar
Abdullah ibn Husayn al-Ahmar
Sheikh Abdullah bin Husayn bin Nasser al-Ahmar was a politician and tribe leader of Yemen. He was speaker of the Assembly of Representatives of Yemen from 1993 to 2007 and also was the Sheikh of the Hashid tribal federation and the Al-Islah tribal confederacy.He inherited the position of Sheikh...
until his death in 2007 at which time he was succeeded by his son Sadeq. (Hamid al-Ahmar
Hamid al-Ahmar
Hamid al-Ahmar is a Yemeni multibillionaire businessman and politician. He is the general secretary of the Preparatory Committee of the National Dialogue for the JMP and a member of opposition party Yemeni Congregation for Reform, commonly known as Islah.He is a son of Abdullah ibn Husayn...
is Sadeq's younger brother and is active in politics.) The third is the mainstream Salafists
Salafi
A Salafi come from Sunni Islam is a follower of an Islamic movement, Salafiyyah, that is supposed to take the Salaf who lived during the patristic period of early Islam as model examples...
in Yemen, led by the country’s most prominent Sunni religious scholar, Abdul Majeed al-Zindani."
In the 2003 parliamentary election
Yemeni parliamentary election, 2003
Parliamentary elections were held in Yemen on 27 April, 2003. Originally scheduled for 2001, they were won by President Ali Abdullah Saleh's General People's Congress, who took 58% of the vote...
, Al-Islah won 46 seats. , 13 of Al-Islah's parliament members are women, including human rights activist and Nobel laureate Tawakel Karman
Tawakel Karman
Tawakel Karman became the international public face of the 2011 Yemeni uprising that is part of the Arab Spring uprisings...
, who created the activist group Women Journalists Without Chains in 2005 and became the first Yemeni and Arab woman to win the Nobel Peace Prize
Nobel Peace Prize
The Nobel Peace Prize is one of the five Nobel Prizes bequeathed by the Swedish industrialist and inventor Alfred Nobel.-Background:According to Nobel's will, the Peace Prize shall be awarded to the person who...
in 2011.
National
Al-Islah party says that those thinking of fighting for the Yemeni government against the Sa'dah insurgencySa'dah insurgency
The Shia Insurgency in Yemen, also known as the Houthi rebellion, Sa'dah War or Sa'dah conflict is a civil war in Northern Yemen. It began in June 2004 when dissident cleric Hussein Badreddin al-Houthi, head of the Shia Zaidiyyah sect, launched an uprising against the Yemeni government...
of the Houthis
Houthis
The Houthis Houthis) are a Zaidi Shia insurgent group operating in Yemen. They have also been referred to as a "powerful clan," and by the title Ash-Shabab al-Muminin or Youthful Believers). The group takes its name from Hussein Badreddin al-Houthi, their former commander, who was reportedly...
, should instead keep well out of the war because Yemenis must not help Yemen’s pro-Western government, which deserves to be overthrown.
Al-Islah is agitating, at the moment, against a draft amendment to the constitution of Yemen
Constitution of Yemen
The Constitution of Yemen was ratified by popular referendum on May 16, 1991. It defines the republic as an independent and sovereign Arab and Islamic country and establishes sharia, or Islamic law, as the basis of all laws...
that could allow the president to run for life. The party is also involved in organising demonstrations for the ongoing 2011 Yemeni protests.
Personal rights
Senior member of Al-Islah Tawakel KarmanTawakel Karman
Tawakel Karman became the international public face of the 2011 Yemeni uprising that is part of the Arab Spring uprisings...
removed her niqāb
Niqab
A niqab is a cloth which covers the face, worn by some Muslim women as a part of sartorial hijāb...
(face veil) at a human rights conference in 2004 and since then has called for "other women and female activists to take theirs off".