Abbas says elections are a constitutional requirement

Oct 24, 2009, 11:00 GMT

Ramallah - Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas Saturday defended his decision to hold national elections on January 24 saying it was a constitutional requirement.

Abbas issued a decree on Friday night declaring presidential and legislative elections in January to be held in the West Bank, East Jerusalem and the Gaza Strip.

The mandate of the present legislative council, dominated by the Islamist movement Hamas, which is strongly opposed to holding election in January, ends its four-year term on January 24.

'Today we have a legal requirement,' said Abbas, addressing the opening session of the Palestine Liberation Organization's Central Council held in Ramallah.

'We have a constitution and it says we have to announce it today,' he said. 'We are going to enforce this constitutional requirement.'

The Palestinian basic law says the president should call for national elections three months before the obligatory election date.

Abbas said that even though he has called for election in January provoking Hamas' wrath, he was continuing with national reconciliation efforts spearheaded by Egypt.

An Egyptian reconciliation paper calls for election on June 28 instead of January. Abbas' Fatah movement has already accepted the Egyptian paper while Hamas has not yet given its final response even though it is hesitant to accept it.

Abbas accused Hamas of not wanting elections, saying that when Hamas won the previous elections it wanted it for one time and was not ready to give up its control over the Gaza Strip.

Hamas says it does not believe new elections are going to be honest and fears that Abbas was trying to cancel its role by holding new elections before the rival parties reconcile their differences.

'We will continue with reconciliation, the political process and negotiations as per what we have committed ourselves to and we will continue to move forward,' said Abbas. 'We take matter very seriously. These are not tactical moves nor are we maneuvering when we issued this (elections) decree.'

Abbas reiterated his position that he will not resume negotiations with Israel before it stops all settlement activities in all the Palestinian territories, including East Jerusalem.