At the outset, it is not sure if the decision by the Yemeni Socialist Party to call its Second Round of the Fourth General Conference "the Al-Baradouni Conference", a matter of coincidental coincidence, or a gesture of optimism of hope to a political organization, which has lost so much over the last decade, since Abdullah Al-Baradouni, the late famous literary genius and intellectual phenomenon, who was blind, was able prove that physical disadvantage should not be an obstacle to greatness. In any case, it should be made clear that Abdullah Al-Baradouni neither was a YSP member, nor was the YSP associated with any of his works. In fact, Al-Baradouni was far too mature to associate himself with any of the political associations in power or underground, before unification, or those that managed to find a niche in the "pluralistic" political arena that evolved after the far right and the far left experimented with a political merger, which was in an effort to save themselves from eventual doom as the New World Order set in, in the last decade of the last Century. For sure, the two parties to the Yemeni unification agreement had different perspectives of what they were getting into, by the unification agreement, but it seemed that the YSP, then at the helms of what was the People's Democratic Republic of Yemen, had no idea that it was signing its death warrant as a political regime, when it signed the unification agreement. It is quite obvious now that the accumulated mistrust of so many years of conflict and intermittent warfare and political culture that did not converge, ideologically and organizationally, were not so easily removed by the signing of the unification agreement and all the hoop-la that followed that fateful day of 22 May 1990.
At the time, the optimism that most Yemenis always keep in the back of their minds and ready to flare out at the slightest gesture of good intents from their leaders, lead them to think that alas, had prevailed and the implication was that Yemen's troubles are over. Unification was thought to be the gateway to prosperity and hope. With the insistence of our Southern Brothers that democracy and political pluralism should crown the unification agreement and should be an integral feature of the Republic of Yemen, the Yemenis throughout the world, and not just in Yemen, considered this to be the turning point in Yemen's history, if not the whole region, and that their country was embarking on a new cultural and political leap to progress. However, as usual their leaders had tickled their hearts again.
Of course, the YSP had begun a noticeable transformation even before the unification agreement. Being left alone after the Soviet Union ceased to be with their umbilical cord cut, they wisely took on a totally new image, shedding off all their former gung-ho leftist rhetoric and radicalism and projecting a totally open regime, that wanted to make up for all the hardships their people have suffered for so many years under their former totalitarian structure. In fact, it would not be far fetched to think that the regime in Sana'a saw in this quick turn around, which the regime in Aden had put on, as a possible threat to their own survival, along with the fact that the time was opportune to get the regime in Aden to end the insensible fragmentation of the country once and for all. Moreover, it would not be an exaggeration to state that it might have been possible for the YSP to succeed, under such a new image, considering that it is fairly easy for them to adapt the state apparatus under their control to the new image, which theoretically would not have been a threat to their hold on power, as they still controlled most of the apparatus of the state and since any new parties that would surface under the new regime that was in the making are bound to come out as offshoots of the YSP itself. The literature of the YSP leadership that was issued at that time seemed to indicate that most of the YSP leaders not only understood what the transformation meant, but also that they welcomed it appreciatively. However, the regime in Sana'a saw their survival as resting on a united Yemen and literally set their hearts and minds to ending this artificial break-up, especially before the transformation in the South had a chance to set in, so the YSP leaders were left with no choice but to accept the unification proposals once their "partners" in Sana'a accepted the YSP insistence on including political pluralism and democracy as part and parcel of the unification agreement, in addition to the elements of the transformation in the South that the YSP had begun to undertake institutionally and legislatively, prior to the unification talks.
For sure unification for both regimes was really a matter of survival, but, for sure, each side felt that with unification, there is still a chance for one to prevail over the other, although the methods visualized by each were nowhere similar. The YSP rightly thought that with democracy and a populist platform there is no chance that they can be washed out of the political arena, but they underexaggerated their "partner's" ability to find its own methods of overcoming its shortcomings in the political democratic progress envisaged, and its ability to make the maximum use of the political assets that it has engrained for itself in the political arena, along with the muscle to back it up. While much of what the YSP brought into the unified state platform did make a lot of political sense, and had the world and, more specifically, the regional scenario remained constant, the YSP might have been able to insure a more lasting presence within the framework of the state of the Republic of Yemen, which they helped to create. However, the Gulf War, shook the entire country like a thunderous earthquake and the miscalculated official policy on the crisis, made the crisis an economic and social nightmare for Yemen, that it has yet to come out of even to this time. Though the Government insists that it's policy is not miscalculated by rather "misunderstood", there is no question that the repercussions of the crisis on Yemen, turned everything in the country inside out with poverty and many other social ills setting in, once the backbone of the economy - one mullion emigrant workers in the Gulf forced to come home - was broken. Accordingly, the Yemeni population was in no mood to be bothered with the politics at home, since more urgent matters, such as finding food and shelter, took on greater prominence. Thus, the YSP was caught in the middle of a struggle for power, it found that it cannot really engage in because the party had forgotten how to enjoy the atmosphere it had insisted so much on; democracy and political pluralism. Moreover, it appeared that the People's General Congress and their allies the Islah had been more successful in mobilizing the popular support that the YSP had hoped to build up over time to make up for any shortages they may have in assets. The YSP could not come up with the creativity that would have been able to shield the party from the more aggressive and seemingly better planned and prepared for onslaughts that progressively increased against the YSP over the transitionary period (1990 - 1994), eventually leading to the fateful war 'civil war of 1994. Moreover the YSP cadre apparently proved their own lack of sincere fealty to their party, as many of the party members became easy prey for the lucrative offers made by their "enemies" to betray their own principles and their own political affiliations and thus by the time the war had come, a large element of the party had sought to exchange their political fortune with satisfying their materialistic hunger, which the YSP leadership was not as "loose" in adapting to accordingly.
The war was an easy finish for the removal of the rest of the physical assets of the YSP out of the way and for demoralizing the Party as an effective political organization. However, all that is history now. Yet, the YSP still clings to notion that unless they become reinstated as a party-regime, with all their assets given back to them. They are helpless and can only cry over spilled milk. If the YSP thinks it can only do anything after getting back "its assets and rights", the observer then would wonder why it could not do anything when it did in fact have its assets and formidable elements of power. To the observer, it seems to be rather a case of poor management and poor understanding of themselves and their opponents, which the Conference is really going to have to deal with head on, if the party is to make any further progress in the near future. Moreover, the YSP must forget about having to rely on its relations with the existing regime at the helms, while it forgets that without a strong grass roots backing, assets are meaningless in any political game, where there are always winners or losers, without necessary having to be associated with rights or wrongs respectively.

Jalal Al-Sharaabi
Yemen Times
As usual and without any preludes, constitutional amendments are approved to mainly satisfy the ruler's whims and desires. It may be unbelievable by any political analysts or even the ordinary citizen to learn that 83 articles of the Yemeni constitution are proposed to be amended in coincidence with that orientation.
Certain behaviors have become of no surprise to many common people who have got used to such decisions. The unity, the constitution, the constitutional referendum, the civil war, separation declaration, economic reform and doses, all have happened without prior logical and clear introductions.
We have to admit that such a parliament is no longer a legislative body carrying out its duties and powers.
Many MPs are, in fact, no more than henchmen voting in favor of the majority they are affiliated with. The others forget and ignore all tall promises and commitments to people's rights when alliances are concluded between their parties and the ruling party.
Extension of parliamentary term and giving more powers to the Consultative council are not the main motivation behind the new amendments as it is claimed. Extension of presidency tenure is the quintessence of the whole drama.
Amending the constitution is not easy a task in democratic countries. It is rather done through clear constitutional frameworks.
They use their own ways to accommodate the constitution according to their interests, said an opposition leader. Opposition parties' mechanisms seem to have seen better days. Their reactions have been confined to statements rejecting what has been happening without trying to analyze what, why it's happened and what results are to be followed.
Constitutional amendments are related in the first place to local political events and the balance of political forces.
The whole plot reflects a desire to move in the reverse course for the sake of the longest term at office, either by making parliament demand extension of presidency term or by a forced public choice.

Ismael Al-Ghabery
Yemen Times
How Publications Care to Meet Readers Needs?
Everyday a large number of local and foreign newspapers and magazines are published which readers eagerly rush upon to read, the question is what to read.
Are there any particular items they would like to read? A particular page or corner (column) or caricature or what.? We will try in the first place to review certain examples of readers to be acquainted with the topics they prefer to read or are interested in reading so that to issue our judgment on the types of reading.
Every morning distribution companies' are seen travelling the streets to deliver copies of their publications to state institutions, bookstalls and bookshops to make them available for readers. Let us see now how readers behave towards these various publications. Some readers buy a good number of various publications. But what are the first pages they read? Perhaps some do not read the front page; on the contrary they prefer reading the back page of the newspaper. Some do read the front page while others give priority, for instance, to sports pages and so on. Selection of items for reading differs from one reader to another according to his/her inclination or taste.

Who is a Reader?
Let us ask ourselves who is a reader? Is he the person who goes through caricatures or who keeps turning page after page fancying the pictures on each page? Naturally every paper tries its best to deal with a variety of subjects. Some allot pages for local news, others feed us with world news, social, art or sports items. We read all these items everyday yet we ask ourselves; can all these materials satisfy a reader? Despite all what these pages offer we cannot deny the tireless efforts of publishers in helping us develop our intelligence.

The Good Reader
We may not be able to define whether a person is a good reader or not. We may see a person buying a large number of newspapers, magazines and books; but we cannot judge whether he will benefit from reading them and how much he will grasp the materials published in them. We can't say that such a person is a good reader if there is no tangible outcome of the knowledge he acquires through reading. The lesson does not lie in continuous reading without any benefit. Little profit is greater than much careless reading. However there are persons who prefer certain pages to others in our local press. Let us take for example sport pages, read by majority of youths as these contain local and foreign athletic events. All sportsmen begin turning to sport pages without reading others owing to importance of sports to them. Some may turn to art pages as a fan of arts does. A small category may follow up society news with photos without seeing that there are important and useful interviews. However another small group may follow up political and world news on front pages sufficing it to reading the bold headlines without going deep in reading analyzes and events. These are the different groups whose methods of buying and reading are varied. If every person reads everything written in papers, he would realize the extent of the advantage he gains.
Journalists' Role
Journalism has its own importance. It is not confined to relaying news or events but its tasks exceed to useful researches and purposeful interviews. A journalist goes here and there, with his camera and tape recorder, hunting objective news items in order to publish them as interesting pages which may satisfy his readers. An adventurous type journalist could be a welcome to some dignitaries or celebrities but a paparazzi type of journalists may find himself thrown out in the street. It is these efforts which make us read literary, ideological, scientific and other topics throughout the days of the week. All in all, we read and read and read; but do we try to grasp and absorb everything to improve our knowledge?
Reading publications and periodicals is culture; but tens of thousands of readers should not mean that we have tens of thousands of intellectuals.