GCC's 30-day plan for Saleh to go

The new GCC proposal calls for President Ali Abdullah Saleh to step down withing 30 days and a three-month transition that would end with a presidential election.

SANA'A // The secretary general of the GCC yesterday presented a plan to Yemen's president, Ali Abdullah Saleh, calling for him to leave office within 30 days to put an end the country's crippling protests.

Dr Abdul Lateef bin Rashid al Zayani was in Sana'a to meet the president and opposition leaders in the GCC's latest effort to contain the months-long crisis that has resulted in the deaths of at least 130 people.

The new GCC proposal calls for a three-month transition that would end with a presidential election, a Yemeni official said yesterday.

Mr Saleh's spokesman, Ahmed al Sufi, said the president was dealing "positively" with the new proposal.

Opposition leaders released a statement yesterday rejecting the plan, saying they wanted the long-time president to leave immediately and unconditionally.

The GCC plan would see Mr Saleh step down within a month and hand over powers to his vice president, the official said on condition of anonymity. A new unity government would be formed and headed by an opposition figure appointed by Mr Saleh, the source added.

According to the plan, 50 per cent of the government would be comprised of members of the current ruling party. Forty per cent would come from the opposition coalition, and 10 per cent from unaffiliated political groups. The unity government would be tasked with organising presidential elections within two months of Mr Saleh's resignation.

Dr al Zayani's visit came after a week of meetings between the GCC and delegates from Yemen's opposition and the government over a previous initiative, which both camps claim to have understood differently. The first GCC initiative, presented earlier this month, proposed that presidential powers be transferred to the vice president until an election. This plan was also rejected by the opposition for being too lenient on Mr Saleh.