Yemen's next president says only dialogue can solve conflict

SANAA // Yemen's next president, due to be chosen in elections today, has pledged to southern separatists and northern rebels that he will address their concerns, as fears mounted yesterday over election boycotts and escalating vote-related violence. The separatist Southern Movement and the northern Shiite rebels are boycotting today's vote. Attacks on polling stations and clashes between troops and anti-election protesters in the south have raised fears that voting could be marred by violence. After almost a year of protests demanding an end to the rule of Ali Abdullah Saleh , Yemenis will today elect the vice president, Abdrabu Mansur Hadi, standing unopposed, as an interim president. In a televised speech on Sunday, Mr Hadi said that "dialogue and only dialogue" could resolve these long-standing conflicts. More than 12 million Yemenis are eligible to vote in what amounts to a simple confirmation of an agreement brokered by Gulf countries that provides for Mr Saleh to transfer power to Mr Hadi in exchange for immunity from prosecution for crimes that may have been committed during his 33 years in power. Security forces are prepared for violence. The interior ministry urged people not to carry guns today. Southern separatists have called for a day of "civil disobedience" to disrupt the voting. The Shiite Houthi rebels in the north have also called for a boycott of the ballot. The Interior Ministry said more than 103,000 security officers and soldiers have been deployed to provide security. More than 89,000 commissioners will supervise the voting. "We have dispatched emergency forces to those areas where we expect some disruption, but we hope we will not use those forces," Abdulqader Qahtan, the interior minister, said yesterday in Sanaa. He said he expected some disruptions, but mostly minor incidents. Some election-related violence has been reported. Troops and armed separatists exchanged fire yesterday in Aden, a stronghold of the Southern Movement. The clash came hours after gunmen blew up a voting station in the city. Security officials and residents said the gunmen fired a rocket-propelled grenade at the polling station then fled. No one was hurt. In Attaq city in the southern province of Shabwa, security forces clashed yesterday with armed separatists who stormed the main office of the election commission, said security officials and residents. They said security forces forced the gunmen out using tear gas. In pre-emptive measures, security forces have arrested armed hardliners and thwarted some attacks, the interior minister said. Mr Saleh is in the United States for medical treatment. But in a written speech released yesterday, he urged Yemenis to vote today. He called on opposing groups to forget past disagreements and work together to rebuild the country. Mr Saleh hit out at his opponents and thanked his party members and the security forces, which he said had thwarted coup attempts. Under the power-transfer deal, Mr Hadi will oversee a two-year transition in which a new constitution will be drafted and the armed forces restructured. The agreement also requires talks with feuding factions to forge national unity. In his speech on Sunday, Mr Hadi said that his hand was extended to all political forces, without exception. He also emphasised the importance of engaging all factions to address the economic and political crises Yemen faces. He pledged to address the grievances of southerners and the northern Houthi rebels. Mr Hadi, who comes from thesouth, said that vital divisions inside the military must end. He vowed to destroy Al Qaeda and carry out "comprehensive reforms". Mr Hadi also called for urgent foreign aid to help revive the shattered economy. Resolving the "economic problem is our top priority, but our current circumstances and the consequences of the recent [political] crisis has forced us to ask for help", he said. He proposed an emergency fund to help the government overcome the economic crisis. The year of violence has led to shortages in power, water, food and fuel, prompting international aid organisations to launch urgent calls for assistance to stave off mass hunger, particularly among women and children. Election rallies by the parties in the unity government, established in December, continued yesterday in several cities. The biggest was in Sanaa and was attended by tens of thousands of people backing Mr Hadi. Some of the protesters demanded the prosecution of Mr Saleh. "The people want to prosecute the butcher," the anti-Saleh protesters shouted during the rally. * With additional reporting by Agence France-Presse Follow The National on & Mohammed Al Qadhi on

Yemen's next president says only dialogue can solve conflict

Abdrabu Mansur Hadi vows to address concerns of separatist south and northern rebels as fears rise over violence and election boycotts.