Doha: The Cabinet, in its meeting held yesterday, approved a draft law regulating the press, publications, publishing, media activities and arts, and referred it to the Shura Council. Prime Minister and Interior Minister, H E Sheikh Abdullah bin Nasser bin Khalifa Al Thani, chaired Cabinet’s regular meeting that was held at the Amiri Diwan.
Following the meeting, Minister of Justice and Acting Minister of State for Cabinet Affairs, H E Dr. Issa bin Saad Al Jafali Al Nuaimi said that the Cabinet reviewed topics on its meeting’s agenda.
At the beginning of the meeting, the Cabinet condemned the Israeli aggression on the Gaza Strip which has continued since yesterday morning and left a number of martyrs and injuries.
The Cabinet called for urgent and decisive international intervention to stop this aggression and provide protection to the Palestinian people, blaming Israel for the serious repercussions that could result from its occupation of the Palestinian territories and terrorizing innocent citizens.
The Cabinet affirmed that Israel’s repeated practices and violations of international law and resolutions of international legitimacy will only escalate tensions in the region and hinder efforts to resume the peace process which cannot be achieved without enabling the Palestinian people to exercise their legitimate rights, first and foremost the right to establish an independent state on the borders of 1967 with East Jerusalem as its capital.
The approved draft law, that aims to regulate press, publications, publishing, media activities and arts, has been prepared to replace Law No. 8 of 1979 on Publications and Publishing, and Decree Law No. 16 of 1993 regulating advertising, public relations, and artistic production and works. It comes within the context of updating legislations, keeping pace with the technical and technological development in the field of the press, publications, media activities and the arts, and supporting freedom of opinion and expression and freedom of the press and media in the State of Qatar.
The Cabinet also approved a draft law amending some provisions of Law No. 9 of 1987 on Control and Regulation of Control and Regulation of Narcotic Drugs and Dangerous Psychotropic Substances and Regulating their Trade and Use, and referred it to the Shura Council.
It also gave approval for a draft law amending some laws related to the Ministry of Public Health. The weekly meeting approved the draft decision of the Council of Ministers to issue the Charter of Integrity of Public Officials.
The preparation of the draft decision seeks to achieve the highest indicators of transparency and integrity in the State and to further protect public money. The charter aims to promote the codes of conduct and the ethics of the public service among public officials in the country. The Cabinet reviewed Qatar national strategy in the field of artificial intelligence and decided that the Ministry of Transport and Communications will take the necessary measures to implement the strategy and its recommendations in coordination with the concerned authorities.
The Cabinet also approved a draft memorandum of understanding for cooperation in the field of supervisory work between the Audit Bureau of the State of Qatar and the National Audit Bureau of the Republic of The Sudan. It also approved a draft twinning agreement between Doha Municipality in the State of Qatar and Mogadishu Municipality in the Federal Republic of Somalia.
