索馬里新議會開始舉行第一次會議

Somalia's new parliament begins its work Monday, as the country moves closer to completing a complex plan to establish a stable, permanent government.

A selection committee has named about 220 lawmakers for the 275-seat body, but officials say that is enough for the parliament to convene.

The lawmakers are expected to vote for a new Somali president within the coming days.

Monday is the deadline for the election of a speaker of parliament and a president under a United Nations-backed roadmap to end the country's 8-year transitional government.

U.N. officials and international partners issued a joint statement Sunday, saying Somalia has an "unprecedented opportunity for greater peace and stability."索馬里新議會星期一開始會期，與此同時，索馬里開始接近於完成建立一個穩定持久政府的複雜方案。

索馬里議會應由275名議員組成，一個委員會已經任命了大約220名議員。不過有關官員說，現有議員已可行使議會召開會議。

預計，索馬里議員們將在未來幾天內選出一位新總統。

按照聯合國支持的結束索馬里八年過渡政權的方案，星期一是選出議會議長和總統的最後期限。

聯合國官員和國際合作者星期天發表聯合聲明說，現在是索馬里進一步實現和平與穩定的一個前所未有的機會。