Lawmakers Protest Arafat’s Inaction

The Palestinian legislature voted to suspend business for a week in protest against Palestinian Authority President Yasser Arafat’s failure to sign most of the legislation it has passed since 1996. If Arafat doesn’t sign the measures into law by Dec. 30, the legislature will vote on a motion of no-confidence in his government, lawmaker Marwan Barghouti said. Such a vote would be a first since the 88-member council was elected in January 1996, and it is not clear whether it would have any effect on Arafat’s rule. The lawmakers have complained that Arafat has ignored their work, including the Basic Law, which delineates relations between the legislature, the judiciary and the executive branch. In all, Arafat has yet to sign 37 pieces of legislation, lawmakers said.