Hakam Balawi
Encyclopedia
Hakam Umar As‘ad Balawi is a Palestinian
politician and has been a member of the Palestinian National Authority
cabinet and the Palestinian Legislative Council
. He was born in the town of Bal'a
, near Tulkarm
in British Mandate Palestine.
Balawi became the Deputy Head of the Central Information Committee of Fatah from 1968-78. His political career began when he was assigned as the Palestine Liberation Organization
's ambassador to Libya
from 1973-75. After, serving as ambassador he became a staunch Fatah
activist and then served as an ambassador of the PLO to Tunisia
between 1983-94.
Yasser Arafat
assigned Balawi the cabinet post of Interior Minister of the Palestinian National Authority
in November 2003. Currently he is a member of the Palestinian National Council
and the Secretary of the Union of Palestinian Writers and Journalists. During Arafat's presidency of the PNA and his chairmanship of the PLO, Balawi was said to be a "loyalist".
Balawi has also engaged in writing several plays and novels. He is married with four children.
Palestinian people
The Palestinian people, also referred to as Palestinians or Palestinian Arabs , are an Arabic-speaking people with origins in Palestine. Despite various wars and exoduses, roughly one third of the world's Palestinian population continues to reside in the area encompassing the West Bank, the Gaza...
politician and has been a member of the Palestinian National Authority
Palestinian National Authority
The Palestinian Authority is the administrative organization established to govern parts of the West Bank and Gaza Strip...
cabinet and the Palestinian Legislative Council
Palestinian Legislative Council
The Palestinian Legislative Council, the legislature of the Palestinian Authority, is a unicameral body with 132 members, elected from 16 electoral districts in the West Bank and Gaza...
. He was born in the town of Bal'a
Bal'a
Bal'a is a Palestinian town in the Tulkarm Governorate, located approximately nine kilometers northeast of Tulkarm in the northern West Bank and three kilometers away from the highway connecting Tulkarm with Nablus....
, near Tulkarm
Tulkarm
Tulkarem or Tulkarm is a Palestinian city in the northern Samarian mountain range in the Tulkarm Governorate in the extreme northwestern West Bank adjacent to the Netanya and Haifa districts to the west, the Nablus and Jenin Districts to the east...
in British Mandate Palestine.
Balawi became the Deputy Head of the Central Information Committee of Fatah from 1968-78. His political career began when he was assigned as the Palestine Liberation Organization
Palestine Liberation Organization
The Palestine Liberation Organization is a political and paramilitary organization which was created in 1964. It is recognized as the "sole legitimate representative of the Palestinian people" by the United Nations and over 100 states with which it holds diplomatic relations, and has enjoyed...
's ambassador to Libya
Libya
Libya is an African country in the Maghreb region of North Africa bordered by the Mediterranean Sea to the north, Egypt to the east, Sudan to the southeast, Chad and Niger to the south, and Algeria and Tunisia to the west....
from 1973-75. After, serving as ambassador he became a staunch Fatah
Fatah
Fataḥ is a major Palestinian political party and the largest faction of the Palestine Liberation Organization , a multi-party confederation. In Palestinian politics it is on the left-wing of the spectrum; it is mainly nationalist, although not predominantly socialist. Its official goals are found...
activist and then served as an ambassador of the PLO to Tunisia
Tunisia
Tunisia , officially the Tunisian RepublicThe long name of Tunisia in other languages used in the country is: , is the northernmost country in Africa. It is a Maghreb country and is bordered by Algeria to the west, Libya to the southeast, and the Mediterranean Sea to the north and east. Its area...
between 1983-94.
Yasser Arafat
Yasser Arafat
Mohammed Yasser Abdel Rahman Abdel Raouf Arafat al-Qudwa al-Husseini , popularly known as Yasser Arafat or by his kunya Abu Ammar , was a Palestinian leader and a Laureate of the Nobel Prize. He was Chairman of the Palestine Liberation Organization , President of the Palestinian National Authority...
assigned Balawi the cabinet post of Interior Minister of the Palestinian National Authority
Interior Minister of the Palestinian National Authority
The Interior Ministry of the Palestinian National Authority is the branch of the Palestinian National Authority cabinet in charge of the security and statistics of the Palestinian people. The Palestinian Central Bureau of Statistics is a sub-branch of the Interior Ministry that has the...
in November 2003. Currently he is a member of the Palestinian National Council
Palestinian National Council
The Palestinian National Council is the legislative body of the Palestine Liberation Organization and elects its Executive Committee, which assumes leadership of the organization between its sessions. The Council normally meets every two years. Resolutions are passed by a simple majority with a...
and the Secretary of the Union of Palestinian Writers and Journalists. During Arafat's presidency of the PNA and his chairmanship of the PLO, Balawi was said to be a "loyalist".
Balawi has also engaged in writing several plays and novels. He is married with four children.