President Al-Zubaidi delivers an important speech at the opening of the activities of the consultative meeting of the southern political components (the full speech)

SMA NEWS – ADEN THE CAPITAL
President Aidarous Qassem Al-Zubaidi, President of the Southern Transitional Council (STC), and Vice-Chairman of the Presidential Leadership Council (PLC), delivered a speech on the inauguration of the consultative meeting of the southern political components, which launched on Thursday morning in the capital, Aden.

Hereunder is the full speech:

In the Name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful. All praise is for Allah, Lord of the Worlds. May the praise of Allah and His peace be on Prophet Muhammad [PBUH], his family, and Companions.

O free, unrelenting, struggling ladies and gentlemen of all the southern spectrum: With immense pride,we extend our sincerest greetings, and you inaugurating this blessed southern consultative meeting from the heart of the immortal capital of the South, the beloved Aden, a new period of struggle, and put another brick in the way of strengthening the cohesiveness and the unity of the southern ranks, and affirming the approach of dialogue as a civilized means to resolve issues and end political differences, and embody the approach of reconciliation, tolerance, and southern solidarity, which constituted the solid foundation for launching the march of the peaceful Southern Movement Revolution, and failing bets based on tearing our people apart and dispersing their fighting forces, as an entrance to weaken our major cause, and preoccupy our people in sidelining conflicts, from its ultimate goal and aim of restoring and building its independent federal state on the borders of the two countries before May 1990.

O free Ladies and Gentle men:

The convening of your meeting coincides with the sixth anniversary of the historic Aden Declaration on May 4, 2017, it is a clear embodiment, strong confirmation and projection of our commitment to what was expressed by the southern popular and sterling will on that historic day of a broad rally all around the project to restore the state, in which I have been shouldered a major responsibility to lead and represent the people of the South, and you authorized me to establish a political entity to manage the affairs of the South, on the basis of the South for all and by all its people, which was achieved by announcing the establishment of the Southern Transitional Council on May 11, 2017 as a cumulative effort of the uncompromisingly struggles of our southern people with its peaceful and militant paths, which were charted by the peaceful southern movement and Southern Resistance since its establishment, the STC has constituted a political representative for the cause of the people of the South within a few years, it was able to move it to advanced stages that strengthened the presence of the South and its national cause at various levels, and it became impossible to bypass or circumvent its cause.

O free ladies and gentlemen:

History will definitely preserve a privileged position for you in its brightest pages, and future generations will believe that you were at the level of historical responsibility and that you were worthy of the trust of your people. Indeed, you have proven that you are among the steadfast fighters in the covenant who lead historical moments with courage and wisdom, putting the interests of their country and their people above all personal interest and consideration.

Today, our uncompromising people are facing an important historical turning point and an exceptional event to start a new and different phase that will make them more capable and stronger in encountering challenges and more determined and steadfast in their unrelenting struggle to reach their lofty goals and aspirations, for which they have been sacrificing the pure blood of thousands of the best heroes of the South.

All present:

This blessed rally, which includes these brown faces who wrote with their pure blood and sweat the history of three decades of unrelenting struggle in the arenas and fronts of sacrifice, confronting the forces of invasion, domination, and plunder, would not have come together had it not been for the sincere and incessant efforts made by all with no exception.

And we seize the chance to tip the cap for the great efforts made by the two Southern National Dialogue teams both at home and abroad, who engaged in long and intensive meetings and discussions with the various southern national components that melted the ice and achieved consensus on most issues and topics to reach common ground from which to start and to work according to the common denominators of all.

We applaud and commend the unknown soldiers from the political leaders and military commanders, researchers, sheikhs, social figures, businessmen, media professionals, writers, and civil society organizations who contributed and performed great roles to strengthen the southern national lining up.

We, too, greet the unknown soldiers from the political and military leaders, researchers, sheikhs, social figures, businessmen, media professionals, opinion writers, and civil society organizations who contributed self-efforts and played major roles in order to strengthen the southern national coherence.

O Free Strugglers, Comrades of the Long Struggling Journey:

What we are witnessing today confirms the trustworthiness and seriousness of the orientations of the STC since its establishment, as it pursued dialogue and affirmed its commitment and adherence to it, as well as its true intention to share all southern forces and components defending the rights of our people and protecting their fulfilled gains.

Today, we reiterate our call for pursuing dialogue with all with no sidelining, and it is a firm position that we believe in and will never change. We are all confident that everyone is up to the level of responsibility.

Respected attendees:

Over the past five years, the STC has made strenuous efforts and broad movements at various levels and fields, in which it has achieved settlements and established a solid institutional structure to fulfill the goals of our people, manage their affairs, protect their gains, and fulfill their aspirations.

Reiteratedly, we affirm our approach to working on developing and modernizing the organizational and institutional structure of the STC and involving all in the national action. We have worked during the past months, in coincidence with the dialogue efforts, to restructure and expand the STC’s bodies and update its documents, with the aim of developing work mechanisms, enjoining non-member forces, and benefiting from various effective and well-qualified competencies of the South.

Present official brothers:

Indeed, the stage is critical, full of crucial events and variables, in the light of which the map of the future will be drawn, and it requires us to be as responsible as it is and at the level of its challenges, vigilant to any attempt to dissipate efforts and waste energies on marginal disparities.

Verily, the confidence and hopes are great and broad that this meeting will conclude its deliberations with positive outcomes and that it will be a firm starting point that strongly supports the struggles of our people, strengthening its status and presence, and protecting its national cause from any targeting or confusion intended to undermine the aspirations of our people and its national gains.

Ladies and gentlemen:

There is no doubt that you are following up on the developments of the political process and the endeavors of the international community to end the war and start a comprehensive settlement process. In this respect, we reaffirm our firm position in support of the efforts of the official brothers in the Arab coalition led by the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates, as well as the endeavors of the international community led by the United Nations, aimed at ending war and bringing peace, recalling the centrality and importance of the cause of the people of the South as a basis for a solution and a key to sustainable peace, and underscoring at the same time that our people will not allow any political, economic, or military arrangements that affect the essence of their cause and national interests.

O struggling southern people:
We are fully aware of your suffering as a result of the repercussions of the war, the economic crisis, and the disruption of revenue institutions, which have exacerbated the humanitarian situation, and we affirm that your needs are among the top priorities, and we will always pay them our full attention. As the issues of addressing the economic situation, improving living conditions, and providing basic services in the governorates of the liberated South were at the forefront of our conditions to enter the partnership process emerging from the Riyadh Agreement and consultations, we are currently working within the framework of the PLC and the power-sharing government and in cooperation with several brotherly and friendly countries, at the forefront of which are the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates, to improve the deteriorating economic situation and alleviate the consequences of the crisis on the humanitarian situation.

O Valiant Heroes of the Southern Armed Forces

You are the great defenders of the South and its impenetrable fence; we owe you the security and stability that have been achieved in the various governorates of the South when you are defending the homeland on the fronts of honour, heroism, and redemption. We promise you that you will surely remain the focus of our attention and care, and we will do our best to develop your abilities and skills, organize your efforts, and secure your needs.

Last but not least, paying tribute and praying for mercy to the blessed martyrs who gave their lives to see the South free, we reiterate the affirmative pledge that we will definitely remain sincere and steadfast to the principles for which they have sacrificed their lives, and we will never ever deviate from the path of triumph.

Finally, we reiterate our greetings and congratulations to you for holding this meeting, hoping that it will produce the expected outcomes that rise to the level of the aspirations of our people and keep pace with the challenges of the present and the requirements of the future.

Peace, mercy, and the blessings of Allah be upon you, and I wish you all the best.