National Yemen Issue 29 by National Yemen Newspaper

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The Facts As They Are

A Marginalized Religious Community in Yemen Enjoys a Revival

Media Mythology: “Yemen, Poorest Country in the Arab World”

Civilians Caught in Crossﬁre in al-Habilain

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Bustan al-Husseini, Paradise Lost

Tribes Clash with Houthis in Saada By Abdullah al- Salmi / NY A gun battle occurred between a number of aHouthi elements and gunmen from Al Abdin tribe led by Sheikh Osman Majali Rehan in the southern part of Saada governorate. Hostilities allegedly began on the evening of last Thursday and continued into the afternoon of the next day. Eyewitnesses reported that two of the tribesmen were killed, and more than ﬁve others were injured, two of them severely. The number of casualties in the ranks of the Houthis remains unknown. During the exchange of ﬁre, a number of houses from which the Houthis were shooting were destroyed. The clashes, which involved the use of light weapons, machine guns, and RPGs, reportedly began when one of Al Abdin tribesmen was killed while accompanying a local mediation committee to settle a dispute between the two parties, led by Sheikh Ali Nasser

Qrshah and a number of notables from the Rahban region last Monday. The clashes were the second of their kind in a week. In the middle of last week, an armed man from Al Abdin was killed by a group of Houthi gunmen, as he had strayed into their territory. Two Houthi partisans were killed in the gun battle. The tension between the two parties rose in mid-December of last year, after a member of Al Abdin named Ali Manna ﬁred on Houthi partisans while they were performing their Friday prayers in the mosque. The clash resulted in the death of one of their ranks, and they remained besieged in the mosque till night. Deputy Interior Minister, Mohammad Fadel al-Qawsi, carried out mediation which led to the suspension of the confrontations between the Houthis and the Al Abdin tribes. It reached a truce for four months, but it broke down after only one.

Attorney General Delays Death Penalty for Minor A 24 year old man from Ibb, scheduled for execution on the 12th January, was granted temporary reprieve by the Attorney General until his dental records have been veriﬁed in order to determine his age, the Minister of Justice said Saturday. Muhammed Taher Thabet Samoum escaped the gallows in

November when his executioner was in absentia after falling ill, but as the new date approached, he appealed for clemency, saying he killed his friend by mistake when he was just 13. "I swear by God that the killing happened by mistake when I was with my friend Continued on Page (3)

Southern Movement March Demands Lifting Radfan Siege By Saleh Al-Mansoob / NY A march of the southern movement poured into the streets of al-Dalea city on Monday, according to local sources. Attendance of the march was estimated in the hundreds. They called for lifting the siege imposed by army forces

on Radfan and the militarization of the surrounding cities. During the march, they raised separatist ﬂags and chanted slogans denouncing the ruling regime. They did not face any confrontation with government security forces, according to sources.

Poverty and Poor Education Threaten Yemen’s Antiquities, see p.5

Journalists Convicted on Dubious Terrorism Charges By Mohammed Al-Qiri / NY A criminal court headed by the judge Rudwa al-Namer issued a five year prison sentence against the journalist Abdul Elah Haider Shae’a of al-Jazeerah Net last Wednesday, and two years for the caricature artist Abdul Kareem al-Shami. The prosecution had accused them of forming an armed gang affiliated with al-Qaeda. Shae’a was accused of contacting individuals outside Yemen and facilitating their entry into the country to join al-Qaeda. In addition, he was charged with supplying al-Qaeda information and photos of security sites, official buildings, and foreign embassies, as well as with

providing advice and guidance for the terrorist group. They were also accused of contacting Anwar al-Awlaqi in order to recruit people, among them foreigners, to join al-Qaeda in Arabian Peninsula via the internet. They were also accused of photographing embassies’ and military headquarters in order to supposedly facilitate al-Qaeda attacks. The verdict for Shae’a and al-Shami declared by the judge accused them of providing media support for al-Qaeda elements by disseminating propaganda and helping issue the notorious Sada al-Malahem magazine, the terrorist group’s monthly publication.

Funding Shortfalls Threaten Food Aid In the midst of the United Nations World Food Program announcement this week of its annual operations for the year 2011, the organization claimed a $79.1 million shortfall in its necessary funding, which might lead to the curtailment of emergency and nutritional food aid throughout the country. The WFP launched a two-year initiative, entitled the “Emergency Food Security and Nutrition Support to the Vulnerable Population in Yemen” in response to earlier research by the group which found that that 7.2 million Yemenis are food-insecure. According to the organization, if urgent ﬁnancial support for their activities is not acquired soon, many of its life-saving

operations will need to be cut back. These include the food rations to internally displaced persons in Sa’ada, air shipments of emergency supplies to the war-torn North, and schooling for Somali refugees in the Kharaz Camp in Shabwa. “The new operation launched on the ﬁrst of January includes a very, very robust safety net which assists 1.8 million people,” said Georgia Warner, WFP’s Media and External Relations representative in Yemen. She described the campaign as an exceptional model, since the proposed “safety net” is meant neither as a permanent ﬁxture of food distribution in Yemen, nor simply as an Continued on Page (3)

The judge continued, stating that Shae’a had worked as a media consultant for Anwar al-Awlaqi. The court mandated that Shae’a be held under house arrest for two years, as the

second part of his sentence. Also, it was ordered that he must be under strict surveillance by the security apparatus and Continued on Page (3)

1,030 security force members killed, injured in 2010 A total of 1,030 members of Yemeni security forces were killed or injured in battles against Yemen-based al-Qaida in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP) and southern separatists in 2010, the Interior Ministry announced on Thursday. The ministry specified in a statement on its website that 178 security force members were killed, mostly in combat against AQAP, and 852 others were injured. The Yemeni government's battles against resurgent al-Qaida have been taking place across the country, especially in the southern and eastern provinces, while the clashes against separatist

Southerners were localized in the southern provinces. Besides troubles from al-Qaida and armed southern separatist, Sanaa is also trying to cement a fragile ceasefire deal with Shiite rebels in the north. Since the failed attempt by a Nigerian allegedly trained by AQAP to blow up a U.S. passenger plane bound for Detroit on Christmas Day 2009, Washington and the international community have put heavy pressures on Sana’a to solve its internal conflicts and focus on fighting Yemen-based al-Qaida regional wing. courtesy Xinhua

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Abyan: a New Hot Spot

Tariq al-Fadhli, a major southern movement leader in Abyan, appeared last week in a new style of protest, to reap the benefits of the harvest season -- that is, the upcoming election. Abyan, like some other restive southern governorates, has been seized by protests, clashes, assassinations and attacks on soldiers before the start of any big occasion. Such was the case before the announcement of the Gulf Twenty in Aden and Abyan and now with the constitutional amendments and the upcoming parliamentary elections. The overview of the political situation indicates a market share and a payment dividend for every governmental step toward making progress in the reform agenda. Both government and opposition and the leaders of the Southernist “Hirak” leaders have mislead the citizens into believing that they are actually fighting for their rights – really, only the elites’ bank accounts are the issue. In his rather unfair state-

ments, al-Fadhli appeared as if he was doing whatever was necessary to court the attention of the government. Since his stay in his Zinjibar compound over the course of the last eight months, al-Fadhli gave notice to the government that he and his underlings are planning for a massive protest on February 11th, 2011. But why even burn the American flag? If his main quarrel is with the Yemeni government, why not just target its symbols, and leave Uncle Sam out of it? Clearly, al-Fadhli, like so many people in the country, has become confused and disillusioned. The best strategy the government can adopt against all those like al-Fadhli is to build a community in which citizens feel safe and secure and have the possibility for a better life. Creating more opportunity and reducing prices will make more citizens believe in the state, support unity, and, yes, even back the ruling party. What happened in Tunisia has made some Arab countries reinstate food subsidies, clearly not because they have suddenly become responsible to their citizens, but because they have perceived a real danger to their thrones. Again, Yemen should turn its attention to the need of the community, and not to the need of sheikhs or corrupt bureaucrats.

individuals under the age of 18 contravenes both international and Yemeni law. In 1994 Yemeni law abrogated the death penalty for crimes committed by individuals under 18 years of age. During an interview on Saturday, Minister for Human Rights, Houda Al-Ban claimed, “the Minister of Justice has agreed to delay the execution until the dental records have determined the defendants age. Only after doctors have reviewed the relevant documents can the order be revoked,” she said.

Continued From Page (1) prevented from travelling outside Yemen. In the meantime, Shae’a rejected to appeal the judgment. He described it as unfair and issued by an illegal court. He condemned accusing any journalist of terrorism, which he called an abuse of the law. The case ﬁle still has yet to be formally

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submitted and the precise charges against the men have never been formally publicized. Abdul Elah Shae’a and Abdul Kareem al-Shami were arrested last year by the security forces, yet there whereabouts remained unknown for months – a fact which led the men to call their detention a “kidnapping.”

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The Yemeni Interior Ministry reported that police clashed with three gunmen who tried to kidnap four Czech tourists on Monday in the directorate of al-Haimah, 70 kilometers west of the capital Sana’a. The gunmen ﬂed promptly, leaving their car, which was damaged by gunﬁre discharged by the police forces. In the course of the gunbattle which led to the release of the kidnapped foreigners, two

policemen were wounded, as well as a local bystander, who was a child. The ministry has emphasized that the Czechs survived without being injured. The incident is the second of its kind in the region during the past two years. Local representatives’ mediation in the parliament succeeded in releasing an American tourist and his wife, who were kidnapped by Gunmen in

al-Haimah directorate in late May of last year. According to Abdullah al-Siyaq, one of the notables in the region, the region is safe and it has not witnessed any cases of kidnapping, arguing that the recent incidents were rather an attempt to put pressure on the security authorities to free local detainees from their custody. He reported that a committee of sheikhs and local leaders had asked to be given one last

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chance to persuade the kidnappers to release the American tourists. After that, the region experienced a more substantial deployment of security forces. Al-Siyaq declared that this most recent kidnapping is related to the earlier incident, since the tribe to which the assailants belonged had been promised the release of their members, yet the authorities have yet to do so.

Ruling, Opposition Parties Trade Barbs in Shabwa The ruling General People’s Congress party and the National Alliance parties held a rally at the hall of the local authority building in Shabwa on Monday to shore up support for constitutional amendments and the conduct of the parliamentary elections on time. The chief of the GPC’s branch in Shabwa, Nasser Mohammed Bajilm stated, “the GPC party and the National Alliance parties support holding the election in accordance with the Yemeni people’s will, and they are entitled to their constitutional right.” He added, “the National Dialogue has failed between the

GMP party and the JMP [opposition coalition] because the latter has rejected the continuation of the dialogue. We will hold elections on time and it will not inﬂuence us since we are all with the President and even the people of Shabwa condemn terrorism and stand with the armed forces ﬁghting al-Qaeda.” Dr. Ali Hassan al-Ahmadi, the Governor of Shabwa, delivered a speech in which he apologized that Prime Minister couldn’t attend because of the bad weather conditions that supposedly prevented his plane from landing. He pointed out in his speech that the JMP has the right to oppose or participate in

Teachers’ Syndicate Denounces Investigation of Separatist Slogans The Yemeni teachers syndicate in Lahj denounced the security authorities’ investigation of nearly seventy teachers from Ammar bin Yasser School for boys and Aisha School for girls in Kersh center, Hadaba directorate of Lahj province. The charges were described as "false and malicious," and focused on the writing of separatist slogans in the two schools. A member of the governing body of the union, Jamil Mohammed Salem, commented, “the

ones who have written hostile slogans which targeted Yemen’s unity are from the ruling party. They claim the protection of unity to fabricate charges to those schools.” In a statement on behalf of the teachers’ syndicate, he appealed to respect and value teachers. Also, he called to account the ones who loot the people’s money under the guise of promoting unity and security and further called for the immediate cessation of the ongoing investigations.

the parliamentary elections scheduled for 27 April. “We hope to hold the national dialogue together in order to eliminate crises and rioting in the country. The time has come for Yemen to get rid of al-Houthi, al-Qaeda, unemployment, and inﬂation. Shabwa has achieved development projects estimated at over YR 50,” he reported. The JMP parties in Shabwa condemned the administration of the local authorities and the ruling party in the province. Party sources claimed that GPC ofﬁcials forced students out of schools and compelled local employees to attend the GPC’s rally in Ataq. Reports indicated

that school principals urged students to attend the rally and promised them ten marks on their exams if they attended the gathering. “The GPC party has proven itself inadequate, since it forces people to attend with coercion and intimidation,” said a source of the JMP. The same source attributed to the ruling party the responsibility for the deterioration of standards of living and social services in Shabwa. Although Shabwa governorate supplies the state millions of dollars from oil, gas, and ﬁsheries, only 50 billion has been allocated to Shabwa compared to other provinces.

Criminal Investigator Killed in Shabwa Ataq/ exclusive An armed group attacked the Deputy Director of the criminal investigation department, Ateq Alamry in alMayfa’ah directorate, Shabwah governorate on Monday, local sources reported. The incident also resulted in the death of another soldier, Sabri Salem Baleid, after which the assailants fled to parts unknown. The attack bore all the hallmarks of al-Qaeda, local sources noted. The terrorist organization

is reported to be active in the al-Hawta area in al-Mayfa’ah directorate, after recent clashes with the Yemeni army, even after the army’s announcement that it controlled the area and had cleared it of al-Qaeda elements Also, an attack was carried last Saturday out after midnight by unknown gunmen on the al-Jalfur checkpoint in Ataq which greatly distressed local citizens.

Continued From Page (1) emergency operation, but “an interim measure, which lies somewhere between emergency work and development.” WFP country director, Gian Carlo Cirri was quoted as saying, “this operation is expected to address this peak in high food prices while developmental partners expand existing safety nets.” “The operation includes a pilot cash scheme with a very strong evaluation component which will allow us to determine in what areas cash or food is the most efficient means to address food insecurity and poverty,” The impact of the global financial crisis, poor governance, conflict, unemployment, and arid lands have contributed to the Mohammed Al-Asaadi Editorial Consultant

onset of a food crisis in Yemen of unprecedented proportions. All this coincides with a spike in international and regional food prices, which have sparked unrest from Algeria to Jordan, and which was instrumental in the recent uprising in Tunisia. On developments related to food in Yemen, Ms. Warner noted, “it’s a tricky context to make any sort of predictions. We’ve yet to see the results of what has happened in with Sa’ada, and there are high food prices, elections, the gender discrepancy, and a water shortage, while oil revenues are nearly gone.” “Not just one of these factors is causing food insecurity, they all are,” she noted.

Fuad Al-Qadhi Business Editor

The estimated cost of the two-year operation, projected to cost US$ 77 million, will assist 682,000 children, 88,000 pregnant and lactating women, and over 1.8 million food

insecure Yemenis. The Ministery of Public and International Cooperation endorsed the new operation by signing an agreement to support its ongoing activities.

Shukri Hussein Jihan Anwar Amel Al-Ariqi Aden - Abyan Correspondent Staff Journalist Social Editor

The Facts As They Are

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Police Foil Kidnapping Attempt on Four Czechs Tourists

Continued From Page (1) Ammar al-Jamili playing with an AK-47 machine gun," he said, adding he passed out after hearing the bang of a ﬁred round, only to see his friend lying in blood when he came round. Samoum said the family of the victim had advised him to hand himself in to police and that he would be set free through a "tribal agreement and paying blood money." "Some parties meddled in the case, taking it to a death sentence, although I was only 13" at the time, in May 1999, he has said. Capital sentencing for

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National Yemen A Marginalized Religious Community in Yemen Enjoys a Revival

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COMMUNITY

By James King A sophisticated and increasingly aggressive al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP) has propelled the Republic of Yemen to the top of the Obama administration’s war on terror priority list. Yet amid this news-catching and billion-dollar geopolitical struggle against religious extremism, Yemen is experiencing another important religious phenomenon. Zaydism is a branch of Shi’i Islam distinct from its counterparts in Lebanon, Iraq, Iran or elsewhere. The story of Yemen’s Zaydi community begins in the late 9th century, when the Zaydi scholar Al-Hadi was invited by tribes in Yemen’s northern highlands to resolve their intractable disputes. Accepting Al-Hadi’s governance, these tribesmen ultimately were absorbed into a Zaydi universe, embracing Zaydi political authority, theology and law, in addition to their local tribal customs. In this part of Yemen, temporal power and religious doctrine were united in a uniquely Zaydi form of theocratic rule known as the Imamate. Though never permanent and rarely stable, at its pinnacle the Imamate’s influence extended from present-day Saudi Arabia in the northwest, to the Gulf of Aden in the south, to western Oman in the east. Particularly in Yemen’s northern highlands, history was defined by the activities of Zaydi rulers, judges, scholars and tribesmen. For over a millennium, the Zaydis of Yemen enjoyed an unparalleled history of political rule, intellectual production and pious devotion. This all changed dramatically with the Sept. 26, 1962 Republican Revolution. This decisive moment in Yemen’s modern history unleashed an eight-year civil war in North Yemen—South Yemen remaining under British control until 1967—between “nationalists” supported by Gamal Abdel Nasser’s Egypt who sought a new direction for the country, and “royalists” who continued to back the ruling Imam, supported by Saudi Arabia. Ultimately, it led to the Zaydi Imamate being replaced with a distinctly Republican and nationalist government, complete with modern bureaucratic institutions and a pronounced antagonism toward the former ruling Zaydi tradition. The Revolution inaugurated a volatile era for Zaydi adherents in Yemen, and today this community sits on the fringes of Yemen’s public arenas of culture, religion and politics. For a tradition that once dominated large parts of Yemen, its present-day irrelevance is remarkable. This marginalization has coincided and been reinforced by the “Sunnification” of Yemen. Over the last 40 years, the country has seen the growth of a loose but powerful alliance of political parties and ideological groups that share a commitment to Republic can nationalism and Sunni-based reform. With roots in the Imamate period, this movement has promoted anti-Shi’i attitudes and built a potent wave of

opposition to Zaydi thought and adherence throughout Yemen. Unlike al-Qaeda, these groups operate within the mainstream of the country’s religious, social and political spheres. The most dramatic consequence of this phenomenon is the turning of large numbers of individuals and communities in historically Zaydi regions toward Sunni Islam. These range from what might be called “Zaydis in name only”—nominal Zaydis with minimal commitment to Zaydi Islam’s tenets and history (President Ali Abdullah Saleh being one example)—to aggressive opponents of Zaydi thought and practice. Significantly, this retreat from Zaydism has been part and parcel of the official statebuilding effort in Yemen, as the new Republican government sought to weaken the former ruling group and foster a national religious identity that transcended traditional boundaries and identifications.

‘‘

For a tradition that once dominated large parts of Yemen, its presentday irrelevance is remarkable.

In doing so, it has consistently promoted alternative religious and political visions, while pushing the Zaydi tradition to the periphery of Yemeni society. Whether in schools, media or the political sphere, this process continues today. In fact, the very future of Zaydi Islam in Yemen is in question. The urgency is not lost on the Zaydis themselves, and in response their leaders are advocating for their community and religious tradition in several important ways. The “Huthi conﬂict” is the most prominent example (see “Is Yemen Breaking Apart?” by Patrick Seale, November 2009 Washington Report, p.

31). The Huthis are a group of Zaydi sayyids (descendants of the Prophet Muhammad), supported by a wide range of tribal allies, who have been embroiled in escalating violence with the Yemeni government since 2004. The sixth round is now in the midst of a highly tenuous cease-ﬁre. Although this crisis was sparked in the province of Sa’dah, historical capital of the Zaydi Imamate, the Huthis and their supporters have now formed a quasi-government in several of Yemen’s northern provinces. The conﬂict has severely drained the country’s national economy and produced large numbers of internally displaced people, although it only captured mainstream media attention last winter, when violence spilled into neighboring Saudi Arabia.

A Complex Crisis

Often mischaracterized as a religious struggle between a pro-Sunni regime and Shi’i separatists, this complex crisis cannot be pigeonholed into one of pure sectarian interests. It was stoked—and is maintained—by several interrelated factors, including longstanding historical grievances, tribal loyalties, access to government services and the political legitimacy of the Saleh regime. Furthermore, the Huthis’ stated goals continue to evolve and have ranged from the right to express religious slogans, to application of the Yemeni constitution, to basic self-defense. Viewing the relationship between Zaydis and the Yemeni state through the lens of the Huthi conflict would be a mistake, as the Huthis represent a political-religious movement that emerged in the specific context of Sa’dah and its vicinity. Still, the situation does allude to a much broader struggle since 1962: one over Zaydis’ communal identity and rights in the Republic of Yemen. In many ways, this crisis is characteristic of the challenges confronting the Zaydi community in Yemen today. On the one hand, it has led to intensified repression and further marginalization in both

official and popular spheres. Yet it also reflects a broader pattern of renewed advocacy for Zaydi thought, history and identity. Zaydi adherents point to a “Zaydi revival” since Yemen’s Unification in 1990, emerging in the context of a nationwide loosening of restrictions on diverse ideologies, whether Zaydi, socialist or otherwise. The lion’s share of this advocacy reflects a political quietism. These efforts focus on educational outreach and publishing Zaydi texts, especially as dwindling knowledge of Zaydi Islam has coincided with the rapid spread of anti-Zaydi thought.

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The Huthi conﬂict has only heightened the government’s paranoia of Zaydi activism

For example, at the Imam Zayd bin Ali Cultural Foundation in the Yemeni capital of

Sana’a, thousands of Zaydi manuscripts have been digitized and catalogued in an effort to make these seminal texts accessible to the Yemeni public and beyond. Key Zaydi scholars are also reinterpreting core Zaydi doctrines to reﬂect contemporary realities and sensibilities, and, ultimately, to make their tradition more relevant in Yemen today. One example is the classical Zaydi concept of khuruj, which refers to the imam’s “rising up” in rebellion against an unjust government—a doctrine frequently cited to demonstrate the Zaydi threat. A number of Zaydi scholars now speak of a “constitutional khuruj.” Stressing Zaydism’s unequivocal commitment to political justice, they have transformed the means for undertaking khuruj from physical seizure of power to nonviolent and democratic change. Regardless, entering the realm of Yemeni politics is precarious, especially for Zaydis labeled as “strict,” or those with a more pronounced ideological commitment to their tradition. Politically active Zaydis are forced to walk a treacherous tightrope of criticizing the Saleh regime’s behavior on the one hand and expressing allegiance to the Yemeni state on the other. While that may hardly seem revolutionary (particularly considering the high levels of nationwide opposition), for the Zaydi community accusations of disloyalty or sectarian fanaticism are inevitable. Many Zaydis blame the regime for exploiting an unfair choice: demonstrate your allegiance to the Republic and support this particular regime, including its controversial actions in Sa’dah; or, alternatively, criticize it, meaning your loyalty lies with your community alone or even outside the state. The Huthi conﬂict has only heightened the government’s paranoia of Zaydi activism. Zaydi advocates are breaking down that choice. As loyal Yemenis and committed Zaydis, they assert their individual rights as Yemeni citizens and their collective rights as members of the Zaydi community. Not only do they seek to remind Yemenis of Zaydism’s

decisive role in the country’s history, ancient and modern, they also insist that the contemporary Republic is more than simply an anti-Imamate or anti-Zaydi state. Instead, they are adamant that it must embody the Islamic (including Zaydi) and Republican principles of justice, democracy and development. While they may object to the 1962 Revolution’s ultimate course, epitomized in Zaydism’s present-day marginalization, they defend the transformations it wrought as a progression toward ideals they embrace but that remain unrealized. In doing so, these activists represent the repression of Zaydism as a national issue— rather than a communal one—that reflects the ongoing struggle of all Yemenis to build a country defined by equality, freedom of belief, security and prosperity. Although the Zaydi community’s disenfranchisement has a distinct ideological tenor, this story of conflict, underdevelopment and political manipulation is indeed a national one in Yemen today. Essentially, these Zaydis have placed their community and their country on a parallel trajectory toward democracy and justice. Some even depict the divisive Huthi insurgency, which has cost the Zaydi community dearly in terms of public image and reputation, as an essential part of this larger Yemeni struggle. These Zaydi leaders are advocating for what they believe are Zaydism’s singular solutions to Yemen’s political and social crises. (As one example, they contend that its spread will provide a significant elixir to Yemen’s religious extremism problem.) If successful, they will take the question “is Zaydism disappearing in Yemen today?” and redefine it as “are the ideals of the Revolution disappearing in Yemen today?” Whether through political and human rights advocacy or educational outreach, they are working to ensure that the answer to both questions is “No.” James R. King is an independent analyst, specializing in Zaydism, Yemen and the broader Middle East. This piece appears in the January/February Issue of the Washington Report on Middle East Affairs.

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SOCIAL

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Political Disorder and Wars Increase Unemployment in Yemen

A recent study has shown that the number of unemployed Yemenis increased in 2009 to almost 795 thousand from 731 thousand people in 2006, while the number of working age people had around 12.8 million. The study, prepared by the National Director of the Labor Market Information Analysis Unit in the Ministry of Social Affairs and Labor, Dr. Fadhl Ali Mothanna, showed that the volume of the labor force in Yemen has increased to 4.6 million workers of both sexes in 2009, compared with 3.7 million in 2006. The study pointed out that the rate of the contribution by

the population at work age in economic activity increased in 2009 to 42.2%, compared with 40.1% in 2006. In many traffic circles in the capital Sana’a, hundreds of jobless, immigrant workers who come from different Yemeni regions looking for work sit idly, waiting for jobs. They loiter on curbs, hoping for someone will come and choose a group of them for work. Many of them have complained of not finding work. Naji Shaghbah, an aspiring worker, said, “In previous years we used to come in groups looking for work, which we got quickly enough. We were able to earn a living

through work in the city and return to the village. Now, however, weeks go by without any work and we have increased in number so much.” This scene has become more common with Yemen’s increasing population, and the country is struggling to provide jobs for all those seeking jobs. Around 206 thousand job seekers are expected to enter the labor market, according to the study, while the annual capacity of the private and government economic sectors was no more than 50 thousand people during the period from 2004 to 2006. One of the reasons behind

Poverty and Poor Education Threaten Yemen’s Antiquities

Researcher in antiquities and history and founder of the National Museum, Mr. Ahmed Ali Moharram, believes that poverty, illiteracy and low levels of education are major factors for the despoilment of Yemeni antiquities. In a lecture in the Yemeni Center for Historic Studies and Strategies for the Future, Manarat, on the current status of Yemeni antiquities, he said that the antiquities all over the country are in a critical situation because tools, digging machines, and treasure-seekers have destroyed and stolen what has been kept under the ground for more than three thousand years. “Yemeni antiquities are spread all over Yemen. They are almost in every single square kilometer, and they have been sold in markets for the last forty years. “Over the centuries, past and present, Yemeni antiquities have been ruined, demolished and burned. In the past, destruction

of these antiquities was due to ancient conquests and wars, which are documented in inscriptions, and also by the need for construction materials that include pillars that were very necessary for the building of mosques, which can only be replaced with huge pieces of wood that do not last long. “You can see these pillars in most main mosques of the Old City of Sana’a, including the Grand Mosque. “The need for hewn stones for constructing castles and government buildings and homes has contributed to the destruction of our antiquities. The whole village of Bait al-Ashwal, the village of Zafar, Yarim, Haddat Ghulais and other communities were built with stones from Zafar.” He pointed out that throughout Islamic history there had been a belief in destroying al-Aadyat (“ancient antiquities”). He continued, “during our visit to the archeological sites in

the beginning of the seventies, we saw some youth from neighboring villages hold any antiquity of the ruins of remaining decorated buildings and throwing them to the ground for the purpose of destroying them because, according to them, these antiquities belong to the Aadyat (also meaning “ancient times”).” He said that the antiquities do not only include construction landmarks. “There are pre-historic sites where only a few rocks with certain shapes remain, such as the site in Masna’at Mariah west of Dhamar, the site of Mawza’ah in Khawlan al-Tiyal, and in Shabwah and Lahj and other provinces. These relics have great value for the study of the era they represent but, fortunately, they do not have any material value.” He called on everyone to spread awareness on the necessity to preserve antiquities.

the increase is that there are too many specialized graduates for the number of jobs required in any given area of expertise, the study avers. It went on to indicate that the unemployment rate has decreased to 14.6% by the end of 2009, by almost 2% since 2006, drawing attention to the fact that secondary school and university graduates are more susceptible to unemployment. Unemployment among females has reached a staggering 46%, compared with a supposed 12% among males. The study attributed the high unemployment rate among educated people, particularly high school and university graduates, to the unbalanced expansion of education and training and the weakness of technical sectors in creating work opportunities, while the non-technical sector assumes around 62% of all workers. The findings stressed the necessity of expanding technical and vocational training with a particular focus on provinces and cities, where training is not typically offered. To contain the high unemployment rate and bridge the gap between supply and demand in the labor market, the study recommends updating the curricula in universities and training institutes, increasing the amount of free training programs, and directing students toward applied sciences. Work opportunities have

not increased in Yemen due to the absence of investment and to the increase in security problems that have driven away projects that could have accommodated a growing labor force, according to Mr. Saleh al-Sanabani, Professor of economics at Sana’a University. “The so-called Southern Movement in the south, the Houthis in the north, and Al-Qaeda contribute greatly to the high rate of unemployment and deprive the Yemeni labor force of many work opportunities with their destructive activities,” he said. “They aim to harm the regime, but they really only harm the interests of the country,” al-Sanabani continued. Muadh al-Zabidi, an unemployed computer networks graduate with an excellent academic record, thinks that corruption and the absence of good governance are the factors that have led to the emergence of the Southern Movement and al-Qaeda. “If there had been good governance and no corruption in government, we would not have seen the Houthis or a Southern Movement,” he said. “Unemployment is exacerbated by slow economic growth,” claimed Mustafa Nasr, Chairman of the Studies and Economic Media Center. “Economic growth is further impeded by the inefficiency of those who do have jobs, particularly in the public

sector.” Naser predicts that the year 2011 will be the worst year for employment over the past decade, due to the conflict in the north, unrest in some southern provinces, and the prevailing political tension. “War paralyzes the economy.” “The conflict in Sa’ada has affected the status quo of Yemen’s economy, particularly in Sa’ada and the neighboring areas,” Yousof Al-Naqib, a human rights activist in the Yemeni Organization for Human Rights and Freedoms in Amran, claimed. “The conflict between the Houthis and the government in Sa’ada, Amran and Al-Jawf has affected their economies and Yemen’s economy in general,” according to Saddam Al-Ashmori, National Yemen’s Amran correspondent. “The war in Sa’ada and Amran completely paralyzed the economic activity in the city of Harf Sufyan, many people lost their jobs and businesses, and the situation there did not improve although more than two years have passed since the war stopped,” al-Ashmori said. “Farmers in the Northern provinces used to smuggle their crops to Saudi Arabia where Yemeni agricultural products are banned, but since the sixth war broke out, Saudi Arabia has tightened security on its southern border,” he added.

National Yemen

REPORTS

Sunday, Jan. 23, 2011 Issue 29 www.nationalyemen.com

Media Mythology: Interrogating Journalism’s Many Distortions

“Yemen, Poorest Country in the Arab World” In a multi-part series, National Yemen examines the ways in which international news describes Yemen and its current challenges. Appealing to readers generally unfamiliar with the country, analysis of Yemen is more often then not accompanied with a repetitive series of labels (“Yemen is the poorest

country in the Arab World, “Yemen is the ancestral home of Osama Bin Laden, “Yemen is largely ungoverned”) that provide a hasty and often inaccurate snapshot of its identity. Here, these claims are dissected and the news and political agendas that lie beneath them are explored.

By Noah Browning This remains the most persistent – and most obviously inaccurate – description attributed to Yemen. Just in the last two weeks, the New York Times, the Reuters, and CBS news have indulged in this falsehood. Few can doubt the serious and manifold developmental problems that face Yemen, or ignore its obvious, grinding poverty. So it is important to acknowledge that Yemen is in fact one of the most povertystricken, corrupt, and developmentally-challenged countries not only among the Arab countries, but in the whole world. Not just poverty, but unequal distribution of wealth, poor governance, and lack of foreign investment are the hallmarks of the countries depressed economic landscape. Still, as matter of pure fact – according to most reliable deﬁnitions of what constitutes the “Arab World,” and an array of metrics used to assess poverty – Yemen is not the poorest country in the Arab World. The labels “poor” or “poor-

est” are powerful, and powerfully negative. The discussion of their use here is not meant to engage in the kind of unconstructive and border-line cruel namecalling that the international media engages in. Rather, it is meant to show that calling Yemen the poorest Arab country is not only inaccurate and hence unprofessional and irresponsible. But also, it shows that journalism’s employment of the phrase lazily equates the coverage of terrorism and political crisis, which are the inevitable subject of their reportage, with some fantastical notion of the country’s supposedly unique impoverishment. The Arab World consists of vast array of peoples and countries with historical, linguistic, and ethnic ties. Its membership could be considered a subject of some debate, but surely members of the international media cannot be the arbiters of who is Arab and who is not – especially if these choices serve to rationalize politicized news agendas or vindicate tired clichés.

Gross Domestic Product, adjusted to Purchasing Power Parity (PPP); International Monetary fund, 2010 Rank

Country

Human Development Index 2010, United Nations

GDP (PPP) $Million

Yemen

63,329

Lebanon

59,906

Jordan

34,617

104

Bahrain

29,663

145

Mauritania

6,676

165

Djibouti

2,104

177

Comoros

800

The Arab League, the most formal, established, and mutually-recognizing institution by which the “Arab World” interacts, must serve as the most reliable list of Arab states. And unfortunately for those in the foreign press who would try to caricaturize Yemen, the League of 22 countries spans from Mauretania in the West, to Comoros in the South, and Sudan, Djibouti, and Somalia at its center. Clearly, none of these countries are economic powerhouses, all suffer from acute and seemingly irremediable poverty, and all have varying degrees of social and political strife that the international media occasionally deigns to cover. Still, all of these countries, in most measures of what constitutes “poverty,” are in a far more grave and undeveloped situation than Yemen. The most comprehensive measurement of development, or the lack thereof, is the United Nation’s annual Human Development Index, which transcends measurements of gross domestic

Rank

133

Change compared to old 2009 values for 2007 (1)

136 140

(1)

147 154

product, whether per capita or nominal, to incorporate a range of relevant factors such as literacy, gender equality, child mortality, and others. In all these regards, Yemen, while hardly a paragon of these values, and dangerously near the bottom of the global list, still placed tidily ahead of the less fortunate Arab countries named above. The Christian Science Monitor recently expanded quite extravagantly upon the standard formula by attributing to Yemen “the Arab World’s poorest economy.” Again, this is completely misleading and false. In terms of nominal gross domestic product, Yemen’s economy outstrips Jordan and even oil-laden Bahrain. Without a doubt, Yemen’s massive population compared to these sparsely-inhabited countries makes it so that its citizens receive a drastically smaller piece of national wealth, but the fact of its more lucrative economy stands. Not only this, but rankings of

(1)

Country

Estimate for 2010

0.4

Yemen Mauritania

0.433

Comoros

0.428

Djibouti

0.402

Sudan

0.379

states based on GDP adjusted to the costs of basic goods and services in each country, or “purchasing power parity,” quite surprisingly ﬁnd that Yemen places ahead of more nominally wealthy Arab countries such as Lebanon, Jordan, and Bahrain. This indicates that Yemenis’ depressed incomes are more suited to purchasing certain basic necessities than citizens of these other Arab states. In the same vein, measurements of unequal distribution of wealth puts Yemen above other, traditionally less scrutinized Arab states, such as Morocco, Jordan, and – very notably – Tunisia. Recent scholarship in political science strongly suggests that economic dispossession and social inequality are possible forerunners of civil strife – the darling topic of news on Yemen. Perhaps the subtleties of these phenomena in Yemen, and in these other countries, deserve more frank and honest investigation by the media. It is also interesting to note that besieged Gaza, the occupied

West Bank, and Western Sahara, all of which are under massive military pressure, are also, not coincidentally, desperately poor. While the global and regional order has prevented the people of these territories from realizing the nationhood they seek, their people are widelyacknowledged as Arabs, and their economic dispossession also deserves some recognition by international news outlets. Gaza, for one, has 80% of its people living under the poverty line, compared to Yemen’s 45%. Still, the problems of Yemen and Gaza vary dramatically, and cannot simply be attributed to their comparable levels of poverty. Context, and especially accuracy, in reporting would do better to ascertain the problems of all these places. Curt and patently inaccurate slurs should not be the stuff of news, and do little to broaden understanding and discover solutions – which, after all, are the most sacred responsibilities of journalism.

Tunisia, a Revolution and a Hope By Dr. Murad Alazzany, Sana'a University When the Tunisian street vendor Mohammad Bouazizi burnt himself to death in protest of his dismal prospects, it never crossed in his mind that he would leave behind a public rage and a revolution that would bring a total collapse to one of the most repressive tyrannies the Arab world. Yes, Mohammad did not burn himself to die but to give a newborn freedom and deliverance to a whole country. The loss of his soul and of the other ninety people who followed him in the three weeks of demonstrations was not a waste comparing to the victory they have brought. When the Tunisian protesters took to the streets furiously urging the ouster of their president Ben Ali, everybody thought it would be just like all the other protests which usually lead nowhere. However, the events in Tunisia accelerated unexpectedly and culminated in a most surprising event: the fall of Ben Ali, the president who ruled Tunisia with an iron fist for more than two decades. The angry Protestors forced him to flee the country with no possibility of return. It is indeed a victory for people power over one of the Arab world's most repressive regimes. The Arab streets received the fall and escape of the president with a transfixing jubilance and an overwhelming joy, simply because the fall of Ben Ali marks the first time in recent

memory that widespread protests have overthrown an Arab leader. Besides, the situation the Tunisians revolted against is common to all Arabs. It is the repressive regime which the Arabs share with Tunisians – leaders lack any vision that could possibly justify their long decades in power and puppet governments are incapable of meeting peoples demands. In spite of that, leaders are getting more determined not to bow to any call of reform or relinquishing their grip on power. They refuse to listen to any advice or to tolerate any criticism. This situation could represent for many Arabs a spurring motive to get the scenario in Tunisia repeated in many of their countries. That is why nowadays we see frustrated demonstrators dominating the streets of Cairo, Sana'a, Amman Jordan, and many other capitals in the region. Thus, the change in Tunisia occurred in a moment in which Arabs have become desperate to see any hope of reform to their situation. In Fact, the Tunisians, by the sacriﬁces they made and the heroism they showed, have demolished the image that portray Arabs as a lifeless public and a frozen mass. They contributed greatly in raising the conﬁdence of the Arab Street, veering their attention to a new effective tool of change and

opening for them new horizons towards a brighter future. This is particularly when Arabs in general utterly failed to seek a reform through those legitimate political tools of elections, demonstrations, and civil organizations. They realized that all the tools they had tried did not make their situation better, but only worse. That failure, in the long run made the Arabs view, with much bitterness, their leaders as their fate, which they cannot question or refute, but only accept and bear. Tunisians, however, with their white jasmine revolution, presented a hope and a model for Arabs to follow in resisting the tyranny and dictatorship of their leaders. In a way, their revolution disproves the old slogan by which autocrats implicitly ruled, which held that leaders need not rely on the public’s consent to maintain full sovereignty and to preserve power. Arab leaders have always been committed to this view, relying on the army to perpetuate their power. We just learnt from

the Tunisians, however, that weaponry and artillery cannot stand against the will of the public. Once the people can no longer endure brutality under such incompetent leadership, they will seek means beyond our expectations to revolt against them and force their removal. From another perspective, the Tunisians have taught us that any reform in the Arab world should not be sought from the outside, but from the public themselves. When the public becomes aware of their rights and responsibilities, they will rally together for this goal. Leaders of political parties and many civil right activists have spent decades at the doorsteps of foreign embassies seeking their support in the campaign against their governments and help to get some constitutional rights. They got precious few results which were unworthy of the effort. The leaders of political parties and social activists have mistakenly underestimated the power of the public.

They believed, just like everybody else, that they cannot rely on the public to bring about the change they sought to achieve. The Tunisians, however have proved all of us wrong, sending a message that there is no more effective means as that of the public to strive for a digniﬁed and just life. The Tunisians did not receive support from any western country, but by their own will and determination, they uprooted Ben Ali and his clique. In fact, it was the dictator who was a close ally to Western forces, particularly to the United States and France. They used to offer him their unlimited support and viewed him an important ally in battling terrorism. As such, he cheered them by eradicating Islamic parties, jailing their leaders, and drying up all their ﬁnancial sources. Indeed, the dictatorship of the Tunisian president proved the western commitment to the values of democracy and freedom to be a travesty. Yet, the Tunisians public will be an example for those aspiring for justice and freedom. We all hope that the winds of change in Tunisia will extend west and east to reach the entire Arab world. However, our worry now is about what would be next. The Tunisians' revolution will be victorious only if they soon put an end to all the acts of looting and thievery in their country.

Dr. Murad Alazzany We do not want Tunisia to descend into a gloomy labyrinth that cruelly puts the Tunisians, as well as all the Arabs, between the choice of a repressive dictator or a chaotic country. We will pray for the Tunisians to get out of the insecure situation they are in now and to shortly get their country settled. However, The Tunisians will really be victorious only if a civil government takes over the administration of the country in the very near future. If not, then all their sacriﬁces will be a waste; a favor made for another dictator to suppress them for another two decades, if not forever. Let us just hold our hands tight on our hearts, praying that the dream of the Tunisians will not evaporate before the blood they shed even dries, and that their project will not get buried before their martyrs do. Otherwise, every one of us will be Bouzizi and bottles of diesel will be served freely by governments.

National Yemen

POLITICS

Sunday, Jan. 23, 2011 Issue 29 www.nationalyemen.com

Constitutional Amendments Menace Yemen’s Future By Fakhri Al-Arashi Yemen aspired to be a democracy straight away after the unity of Yemen in 1990, May 22nd. Since that day, the country has veered among different strategies of governance, as sharing presidential power gave way to parliamentary elections, which led to a civil war in the summer of 1994. Winning the civil war has made President Saleh the undisputedly strongest player in the Yemeni political arena. On April 27th, 1993, Yemen managed to have its ﬁrst ever parliamentary election through a multiparty political process. More than 2,271,126 partici-

pants elected 3,166 candidates – 42 of whom were women. The General People’s Congress won the majority and formed a joint government with the Islah party representing the Islamists, as well as the Yemeni communist party. Since the announcement of the upcoming parliamentary elections by the President, the country witnessed a series of political disagreements on the ruling party’s governing style and the signiﬁcant proposed amendments to the elections law. The opposition parties are

rejecting totally the timing of the move, and the general lack of consensus exhibited by the ruling party. The government remains determined to hold the elections on time, unless the visit of the Secretary of State Hillary Clinton has had an effect on the situation – which is highly unlikely.

‘‘

“The changes every seven years weaken the force of the law”

The Yemeni parliament made it its daily mission, through lengthy meetings, to ratify the amendments. Mr. Himyar Abdullah al-Ahmar, deputy chairman of parliament, headed the expanded meeting last week, which was attended by the political parties, civil

society, and media. Al-Ahmar has chaired the session, saying that the constitutional amendments project, which is still in the process of review, is being proposed for the sake of all Yemeni citizens. “The short period of informing people set until February 5th , passing all legal steps for the constitutional amendments program, passing through local authorities, discussing new seats for women, and giving more broad authority to local councils are the major points for discussion,” said al-Ahmar. Dr. Mohammed al-Kabsi, deputy president of Sana’a University, said that the substantial attendance of the meeting is a positive sign, which might indicate a majority acceptance of the constitutional amendments’ points. The head of the farmers’ and engineers’ syndicate, present for the session, commented, “We have witnessed amendments three times in 20 years. The changes every seven years weaken the force of the law; the current system is much better than the amended one, which does not show any type of

democracy.” Qasim al-Taweel, said the process does not conform to societal norms, and that the proposed quota for 44 women in the parliament is a positive one, but he questioned the efficiency of nominating them in the governorates, in which women are traditionally marginalized. Raja’a al-Musabi, an activist, noted the rule which mandates that a member of parliament must know how to write and read, but stated that this was hardly sufficient qualifications for an MP. “For the 44 women

members, I would suggest every candidate should represent a different type of Yemeni woman; one for the handicapped, farmers, housewives, etc.” Abdul Karim Hamid al-Bazili, said that Article 63 will add 44 seats reserved for women, and since they will be widespread resistance to the proposal, they should revise the article. “44 women in such a tribal country will not truly affect women’s participation in society, and besides, no community will be happy to have his candidate a woman.”

Civilians Caught in Crossﬁre in al-Habilain By Abdul-Malek Al-Assar / NY Army forces are still stationed at the entrance of the city of Al-Habilain in Radfan, Lahj governorate for the seventh consecutive day since the army bombarded the city, its nearby mountain and the neighboring villages. Sources in Al-Habilain told National Yemen that the entire city is controlled by armed elements and that they are deployed in it to confront the army forces, which have been stationed at the entrance of the city for days for the purpose of taking the city. The same sources said that hundreds of families have left the city to avoid the army’s strikes, while many families remain because they could not leave. Al-Habilain lives in a state of panic under the artillery strikes that fall upon the city often. The movement in the streets is small during the day, no more than a

few dozen shoppers. At night the lights from the cannons and the sound of bullets that come from the positions of armed groups enter the city at night, as armed elements of the Southern Movement there and attack the army stationed around the city. Thousands of soldiers, provided with armored vehicles and artillery, are deployed in the Jamal region in Radfan, about one kilometer from the city of Al-Habilain, and most of them are young and the army forces them to ﬁght in hot areas. According to local sources in the region, the armed elements are trying to draw the army to the center of the city after they have withdrawn from positions under their control in mountains and hills near Al-Habilain in preparation for guerrilla warfare. The army has imposed a ﬁrm siege on the city of Al-Habilain after the security and army

forces gave the residents notice to evacuate.

‘‘

Al-Habilain city had witnessed a bloody day last Sunday, after the army dispersed a demonstration organized by the southern movement

In a joint statement issued by Ali Salem Al-Beidh and Hasan Ba Awm, major Southern leaders, they praised the “heroic battles” and gave it the name “Day of Fury,” stressing in their statement their determination to continue civil disobedience and resistance of the army. A local source in Radfan said that more than ﬁve members of

Protests, Denunciations of al-Fadhli in South By Shukri Hussein / NY The city of Zinjibar has witnessed a major security build-up on Saturday morning after the separatist demonstrations which took place Friday afternoon in the town and in nearby Ja’ar. Protestors raised southern ﬂags and pictures of the former southern president Ali Salem al-Beidh. The southern movement also criticized the statement of leader Tariq al-Fadhli when he called the “sons of south” to demonstrations and civil disobedience on the coming 11 February. Tariq al-Fadhli also conﬁrmed in his message his widely-publicized falling-out

with the other Southernist leaders, as well as his burning of the American, South Yemeni, and Yemeni flags, along with pictures of the southern presidents Ali Nasser Mohammed and Ali Salem al-Beidh. Separatist demonstrations demanded the release of detainees and refused to respond to the call of al-Fadhli, especially after the high-profile flag- and picture-burning episode. Demonstrations in Zinjibar have totally ceased for more than a year, ever since last February, when al-Fadhli declared that he had reached an agreement with the authorities and thereafter largely remained silent.

one family were injured after a missile had fallen on their house in Malah Al-Qasha’ah in the city of Al-Habilain last Tuesday afternoon, after they went out in a large demonstration in the city of Al-Habilain in response to the call of both Ali Salem Al-Beid and Hasan Ba Awm. There were reports of three soldiers being kidnapped, while the situation has been tense in the besieged city since September 16 of last year. Al-Habilain city had witnessed a bloody day last Sunday, after the army dispersed a demonstration organized by the southern movement on the occasion of the elapsing of one month since the beginning of the military siege imposed on the city, which led to the injury of ten civilians and the killing of a woman. Two soldiers were killed and six other injured in an ambush set up by armed elements in the

Al-Jad’aa region, to the south of al-Habilain last Monday. The killings and assassinations of government forces continues by elements of the armed southern movement. Citizens found a dead body riddled with bullets last Wednesday morning in Radfan that was in the valley near Al-Habilain, belonging to Faisal Yahya Abdul-Karim from Ibb province. He was identiﬁed by his election card that was found on the body. The armed southern movement has denied committing the murders and killings. In a statement, they denounced what they called the series of unknown dead bodies and the killing that occurs to deface the reputation of the “sons of Radfan” and their “great historical struggle,” in addition to defaming the reputation of the southern movement in Radfan. The statement said that the authorities are the only beneﬁcia-

ries from that and it is the only body that can fabricate such stories, according to the sources of the southern movement. For their part, the authorities accused the southern movement of killing northern citizens under the pretext that they work for the state. It also accuses elements in the southern movement of committing such acts. Our sources in the Al-Habilain conﬁrm that armed elements of the southern movement and even al-Qaeda have control over the city and are spread out in it to confront army forces. In light of these events, citizens of Radfan currently residing in Aden issued a statement in which they called on “the sons of Radfan who are in Sana’a and in the other provinces to stand by their families against the military campaign targeting their region.”

National Yemen

FEATURE

Sunday, Jan. 23, 2011 Issue 29 www.nationalyemen.com

Bustan al-Husseini, Paradise Lost By Abdul Malik al-Assar / NY The vast garden, “Bustan al-Husseini,” was one of the most beautiful places in Lahj governorate. It was a place of lovely scenery and manifold trees – many brought from India and Egypt – whose fragrances were sweet and fresh. The enclosure once served a shrine for all sorts of people to spend their days among the beautiful shade of enfolding boughs, and the landscaped there used to inspire and astonish its visitors. The founding of Bustan al-Husseini is credited to Ahmed Fadel al-Kumandan, whose vision was the precursor to what would soon become a landscape which would astonish its viewers. Bustan al-Husseini was once home to all kinds of fruits and vegetables, which were brought by the Prince al-Kumandan from India. He managed insulate the new plants and make them flourish as if they were in the tropics, despite Lahj’s high temperatures in the summer. It was a semi paradise and one of the great historical treasures of the land of Sheba. It was the only resort for the people of the surrounding areas, who came there to rest and eat from its fruit without freely, although taking al-Bustan’s fruit outside with them was strictly forbidden. At the earliest time of its founding, poets and artists used to be inspired when they lay among the branches of its trees, with their famous aromas. The Communist Rule of the South period began after the overthrow of British colonial that had turned Bustan al-Husseini into a den for alcohol and partying, which typically raged from six in the evening until seven in the morning. After that point, the guards of al-Bustan required that intoxicated people were not allowed out until the influence of alcohol had worn off. The events of 1990, the date of Yemen’s unification, gave citizens the opportunity to reclaim their rights to the land adjacent to al-Bustan, which had long been usurped and withheld by the Southern Regime. At that time, gangs closed in on the area and looted large parts of it, which led to the deterioration of the

garden and explains its current sorry state. Bustan Al-Husseini is located north al-Hut, between a small valley on the East, and a rather larger one on the west. Bustan al-Husseini was famous throughout all of Yemen, the Gulf, and the entire Arabian Peninsula. It was known for its jasmine and fragrant Indian plants which were used by the women of Lahj to make all sorts of perfumes and fragrances extracted from their pith.

‘‘ The enclosure once served a shrine for all sorts of people to spend their days among the beautiful shade of enfolding boughs

When al-Kumandan established the farm, first he began to construct a canal in order to get access to springs located were in a nearby small valley, and he tasked three farmers with the job and began working on the construction of the al-Husseini canal until they successfully tapped the wells. The canal crosses al-Soroah village from the eastern side, and the work continued till the water flowed from the valley until it reached Hid Kubar Eassa, where the forested area begins by Sultan Fadl Bin Ali al-Abdali. When World War I broke in 1914, the Turks entered Lahj, and the local sultans and princes were forced out the province and work almost stopped at the farm. But, after their withdrawal in the wake of defeat, local care for the garden resumed. Ahmed Fadel al-Kumandan supervised the work, and planted a variety of rare and foreign trees, some of which were brought from India. Al-Husseini’s workers were mostly from the villages of Khadad and Quraishi. Most of the al-Quraishi work-

ers were charged with trimming the trees of the enclosure, which comprised mango, olive, and guava. After Ahmed Fadel al-Kumandan ‘sdeath, the land was given to his nephew Fadel Bin Abdelkarim, who after a short while leased al-Bustan to several farmers. Farmers had continued working there after the independence in 1967 from the British government. On New Years 1968, al-Bustan was occupied by the Communist government ruling in the southern provinces. Accordingly, work began to deteriorate as the experienced workers who maintained the facility during the lifetimes of the princes and sultans began to die out. Finally, the garden returned to their original owners in 1990. “Bustan al-Husseini stretches from Ramadah from the west and Hait Eassa from the east. It was divided into several sections, the most famous of which were those devoted to bananas, cane sugar and roses. But, some of these trees and fruits withered and disappeared as a result of a lack of water and interest, specifically after Sultans’ time,” a local said. Al-Kumandan brought trees from various countries, with the intention of making it resemble heaven itself, so he decided to call it «al-Husseini». But many of these tree varieties, such as the coconut and many others, have long since withered and died. Its tenders used to sing and chant among al-Bustan’s groves, fields, and aromatic leaves.

‘‘

Some of these trees and fruits withered and disappeared as a result of a lack of water and interest, specifically after the Sultans’ time

The size of the garden at its time of greatest extent was estimated at about 300 acres, and its workers were 120 male and female gardeners at the peak of its prosperity. Al-Husseini’s reputation for beauty attracted people from the surrounding areas. Visitors came from all over Aden, Abyan, and Lahj, especially on the weekends, as well as during public and Eid holidays. Also, it provided a good income to those who took part in maintaining it. The garden eventually became a tourist haven. The people of al-Huta region and some nearby villages made popular cuisine from its offerings, which included such as al –Kamer, and al-kedr bread, for which the region was famous. They also supplied al-Husseini’s visitors, who

used to stand in long lines waiting for its products, which have now essentially disappeared from local shops. Bustan al-Husseini was also productive farm, whose fruits and vegetables were marketed and sold not only in the local market, but also throughout the Republic, including all various kinds of mango, guava, banana in addition to other fruits, such as pomegranates, and figs, which no longer exist. There were different views over the founding of al-Husseini. Ahmed Fadel al-Gghemndan wrote a book which indicates that his father was more interested in agriculture. He said, “my father, Sultan Fadl Ben Ali was one of the vassals of the al-Abdali sultan, who was interested in expanding agriculture – a

The now barren Bustan al-Husseini

major priority at the time.” Even still, few disagree that al-Ghemndan was the real founder, regardless of whether it was the al-Abdali sultan’s idea, and he was the one responsible for finding and acquiring the rare tree species. These specimens gave the place the elegance and splendor for which it was known, and endowed the garden with flowers whose aroma could be enjoyed from a distance of even several hundred meters. But today they have disappeared, and knowledge of the Bustan’s very existence with it. Last year, in 2010 one of the investors restored part of the area and converted it to a resort for visitors in addition to renovating a pool in order to regain al-Husseini’s old glory days.

National Yemen

BUSINESS

Sunday, Jan. 23, 2011 Issue 29 www.nationalyemen.com

A Governmental Report Expected to Increase the Non-oil Sectors Contribution in GDP During the Next Two Years A recent government report anticipated the increase of non-oil economic sectors in the composition of the real GDP for the period of 20102012 from 84.2% in 2010 to about 85.6% in 2012. The same report forecast the decline of the oil and gas sector in the structure of real GDP by about 1.4 percentage points over the same period to reach 14.4% in 2012. The report stated that services will continue as the primary sector in terms of contributing to the structure of the GDP and accounts for up to 60.9% of the domestic gross of the average period of 20102012, followed by the agriculture, forestry, and fishing sector in second place, whose

contribution is 12.4% on average. The industrial sector comes in third and includes extractive industries -- excepting the oil and gas sectors – manufacturing, electricity, water, building and construction; it increased by an average of 11.4% during the same period. The deterioration in the industrial sector is due to the structural constraints and emerging issues represented in the deterioration of the private investment because of the slow recovery of the investment and the persistence of traditional methods of production. In addition, poor performance is linked to the weak competitiveness for products,

the difficulties of export and marketing and the negligence of scientific research and industrial development. The report noted that the overall economy will witness structural developments in the coming years 2010-2012, represented in the increased contribution of service sector activities, with the rise in importance of trade, restaurants, and hotels activities, in addition to the importance of the activities of transport and storage. The government aims during the coming period to restructure and improve the performance of the local private sector according to modern standards, since it represents a cornerstone of

economic and social development. Also it aims at raising the

Foreign Investment Projects in Yemen Decrease The chairman of the Promotion Section in the General Investment Authority had declared, “We are preparing to launch local awareness campaigns in a number of provinces to spread the culture of investment.” Foreign investment projects in Yemen have declined during last year to 26 projects at the cost of YR 129 billion. Foreign initiatives had reached 272 investment projects during 2009 at the cost of YR 314.9 billion with ﬁxed assets reaching to YR 102.1 billion. According to the government report issued by the General Investment Authority (GIA), Gulf investment projects registered at the GIA and its branches have fallen to 11 projects, compared with 14 investment projects the year before During 2009, Saudi Arabia topped the list of foreign and Gulf investment projects with eight projects, followed by Kuwait with two projects, and the UAE with a single project. During 2010, the GIA had granted permits for 164 projects, out of which 138 are local and 26 foreign. The report mentioned that the ﬁxed assets for these projects have amounted to YR 81 billion and the highest rate of registration for the projects occurred during August at 7.19%, while no projects were registered during the months of September,

October and November. Industrial projects ranked first in list with 87 in total, followed by tourist projects at 33 with a cost of YR 14 billion, while service projects recorded stood at 27 at the cost of YR 31 billion. The province of Hodeida came first in the list of with 22 projects at the cost of YR 68 billion. The year 2009 had witnessed a remarkable boost in terms of the number of Arab and foreign projects despite the financial crisis that faced the world. The Chairwoman of the Promotion Board at the GIA, Montaha Mothanna, has stressed that this year she will increase promotion for investment through seminars that present the investment atmosphere and available investment opportunities. “We are attempting to boost promotion domestically and abroad,” she said. “We in the promotion section will facilitate the initiatives by supporting the policies, and the section will conduct awareness campaigns in a number of provinces in order to spread the culture of investment among the people for the purpose of creating work opportunities and contributing to improving the standards of living for citizens.” These campaigns will be carried out through media outlets, in schools, and in universities as per the schedule

prepared by the promotion section. Montaha pointed out that during the coming period, the GIA will work on projecting the positive image of Yemen, promoting improvement in the investment atmosphere and the environment of business performance, and will publicize the available investment opportunities amongst decision-makers, researchers, and investors abroad. “The difficulties facing us lie in the insufficiency and lack of infrastructure required by investment projects and the weakness of the judiciary with regard to business. “However, we will work on resolving these difficulties by encouraging investment in infrastructure and contributing to accelerating the speed of establishing the proposed industrial zones in Aden, Hodeida, and Mukalla, and the necessity of providing them with the services necessary for establishing the projects that will be carried out in these zones, and also proposing new areas and complexes in the other provinces. In addition, the rehabilitation of commercial courts will be accelerated,” Mothanna continued. In relation to legal and legislative frameworks, she affirmed that a new investment law has recently been issued in addition to the tax and customs law. All these laws will make

efficiency of the comparative advantages of the national economy and support the more

potentially lucrative economic activities for the sake of general economic growth.

World Bank Reveals Flagship Initiative for 2011 By Dan Driscoll

Montaha Mothanna for more inducements for local, Arab, and foreign investors and also will maintain the recent international developments in this field. In relation to the judiciary, Mothanna asserted that the government is very much concerned with upgrading the commercial courts at all levels and working on shoring up the efficiency and legitimacy of the courts concerned with investment issues and disputes, as well as determining a timeline for accomplishing their tasks. In general, the GIA will play an assisting role within the executive panel to improve the investment environment within the framework of comprehensive economic reforms carried out by the government at the short and medium term. Coordination will also be held, Mothanna projected, with the competent authorities in order to find serious solutions to overcoming other difficulties and also progress will be made on improving the investment environment in a way that ensures the influx of investment into Yemen.

Sana’a - A representative from the World Bank, Mr. Arun Arya, held a lecture and question session with Yemeni press at the World Bank Information Center on Sunday to provide details on its new initiative to modernize the public finance sector of Yemen. The initiative was recently approved by the World Bank board of directors and will be implemented from 2011-2015 with a budget of approximately $12 million. This budget is part of a larger $82 million dollar project, the remaining funds of which will go to providing much needed support to the Yemeni Government as it weathers the global financial crisis. The $12 million initiative will focus on improving transparency and efficiency of Yemen’s public management of finances. Mr. Arya, the World Bank Team lead for this project, stressed that this new project will be primarily implemented by the Ministry of Finance while the World Bank will provide technical assistance and support. Through this, the project seeks to improve two key aspects of modernizing and improving the Yemeni financial system as well as increasing the transparency of the public finance management institutions. This will include hard aspects such a computerized financial management system that will increase accountability among the government in its budgeting process. It will also include soft aspects, such as an emphasis on strengthening the capacity and improving

the speed of the decisionmaking process of the public finance sector. These initiatives intend to overcome problems that have been commonly found throughout the public finance sector, such as the lack of coordination in reporting of budgets of the central government and regional governorates. It will also seek to match the government budget with the actual existing amounts of cash flow as these have rarely matched in the past, stymieing government disbursements of funds. Furthermore, it will seek to improve the decision making process of the public finance sector significantly decreasing the time individuals and organizations need in order accomplish work with it. Serious concerns remain if the government has the capacity to utilize the new financial system and implement the recommended changes that the initiative includes. Mr. Arya, agrees that the capacity of the public finance sector is not at its full potential but stresses that this is a main focus of the program. Mr. Arya added, “17% of the allotted budget for this program will go towards exactly that, improving the capacity of the public finance personnel so that they can implement the needed reforms” that will make the system more accountable, efficient and transparent. Mr. Arya noted that “by the end of the implementation of this project, the capacity and efficiency of the public finance center will be markedly increased.”

SOCIAL

Sunday, Jan. 23, 2011 Issue 29 www.nationalyemen.com

National Yemen

Yemen Among Ten Most Water-Deprived Countries By Saddam Alashmory

A recent report issued by the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) revealed that Yemen is among the poorest ten countries vis-à-vis water. The report said that the average share of renewed water for a person in Yemen amounts to around 125 cubic meters a year, pointing out that this portion is only 10% of what an average person in the Middle East and North Africa region gets, which is 1250 cubic meters per person, while the global share of water for a person is 7500 cubic meters. The amount of arable land in Yemen is estimated at 3.6 million hectares, only 6.5% of the area of Yemen. However, due to the sharp decrease of water, the total cultivated area in Yemen does not exceed 1.6 million hectares, a much smaller 2.9% of the total area of Yemen. The water problem in Yemen, the ﬁndings revealed, is one of the most dangerous

catastrophes threatening the country, just as it is one of the most signiﬁcant reasons for poverty. It deprives huge numbers of the workforce from participation in the agricultural sector, which is the main industry in Yemeni society. The report reviewed the key problems that lead to the water crisis in Yemen and the depletion of water resources that are associated with the widespread cultivation of qat, which is one of the crops that need large quantities of water for irrigation. Cultivation of qat has lead to the depletion of ground water, the report concluded. Experts said that more than 60% of the water consumed in Yemen goes toward qat irrigation, which encompasses 800 million cubic meters annually. In the Sana’a capital secretariat alone, about four thousand wells provide water for qat, which results in the decline of the water table by 3 – 6 meters annually.

The demand for qat has increased in the last three decades due to the rise in wages and the expansion in digging ground wells, as the chewing of qat turned from a habit practiced from time to time into a daily pastime for many Yemenis, both men and women. In addition, neither was a strategy of restructuring the Water Sector implemented, nor was its administrative efﬁciency raised. Also, expansion of the implementation of ﬁnancial and management decentralization in administering water policies has not been implemented. That is to say, there is no clear water policy. Available alternatives, which could alleviate water depletion have not been used. The appropriate use of sewage water and the technique of desalination could have been adopted. The waste and excess in using water, whether in agriculture, in the household, or for

Ruling Party in Ibb Flexes Muscles By Abdul-Ghani Al-Yusuﬁ The opposition Joint Meetings Party coalition held a festival headed by Aziz al-Zindani, Gareen al Fahd region, in al-Dalea governorate. The local authorities deployed dozens of security vehicles of the Central Security to prevent the people of Ibb province from participating in the festival. Al-Zindani accused the government of blocking the roads leading to the festival. “We will not stay home, but we will come out into streets carrying out marches. We are against insurgency and using arms against the State. Shooting and intimidating citizens is a notable conspiracy organized by the GPC’s leadership,” al-Zindani declared to the crowd. “We are ready for the formation of revolutionary committees to search internal and

foreign bank accounts to know who plundered the wealth of the nation and who irritated the Southern issue,” he added. He went on to hold the ruling party responsible for unemployment, inﬂation, and other widespread grievances. “The JMP no longer has any initiative to resolve crisis through the national dialogue. The security authorities have set a number of security obstacles to prevent the participants of this rally, even by walking to its grounds, by blocking the roads,” al- Zindani said. Some attendees noted to National Yemen that they had been insulted, searched, and some others had been prevented from raising logos and banners. On the other hand, journalists had been prevented to access the rally site and even bus drivers were reportedly barred from entering Ibb province.

Ibb governorate’s assistant to the deputy governor Ali Mohammed al-Zenam announced last week, “it’s clear and evident that holding of elections on its legal scheduled date is applies the provisions of the constitution”. He reported that the political tensions between the ruling party and the opposition may move the country from “a state of law and order to a state of rioting. It seems that the oppositions parties has tried to intimidate people, and all just to escape the elections.” “The opposition no longer has the people’s trust, and dreads a repeat of the election results of 2006. Therefore, both oppositions parties and the authorities must respect the constitutional deadlines and accept the elections’ results as well.”

Opposition in al-Dalea Condemns GPC By Saleh al- Mansoob The people of al-Dalea expect the elections will escalate the political tension in the absence of an agreement between the ruling party and the other political parties. The opposition Joint Meetings Party coalition announced in a statement that it condemns what is happening in the

current parliament in terms of non-consensual policies and ruling party intransigence The statement continued, “the southern movement (“alHirak”) does not believe in the elections, but they consider the current situation as an occupation which needs to be removed, and the that parliamentary elections will be

conducted without any integrity. “ While some local leaders view the elections as system by which the authorities will use their force and social enticements to influence sheikhs and tribes, who are largely ignorant of parliamentary election procedures.

other uses, is one of the problems that led to the water crisis. There are no sufficient dams and water containment walls in the country that could be used for many vital purposes in agriculture and in other aspects. Such dams could play a vital and significant role in feeding ground waters. Some people are unaware of the importance of coordination with the concerned authorities for eliminating this problem that endangers the security and stability of the country. Minister of Water, Abdul Rahman al-Iryani, had earlier warned against the huge depletion of water and said that the water reserve is almost finished, pointing out that the quantity of ground water goes down by six meters every year in critical basins, which are expected to deplete in the next few years due to the pumping of water from one hundred thousand wells in Yemen. The Strategic Vision of Yemen up until 2025, issued recently by the Ministry of Planning and Development, has estimated the reserve of ground water available in all the basins at almost 20 billion cubic meters. But based on the current consumption rates, Yemen depleted around 12.02 billion cubic meters in 2010, which leads to the fact that the reserve of water would only be

sufﬁcient for a few years. The chairman of the Ministers Council had stressed in a meeting that included most of the bodies concerned with water that the water problem will be dealt with by all means available and that during the

coming period decisions will be made to empower local authorities to conﬁscate the drills which dig the deepest and most wasteful wells and deal with the phenomena more strictly, as it is considered a step towards alleviating the prevailing crisis.

11 REPORT National Yemen Sana’a University’s Center of Business Administration Holds Graduation Ceremony for its Third Class Sunday, Jan. 23, 2011 Issue 29 www.nationalyemen.com

By Dan Driscoll Sana’a – Twenty MBA students graduated with an E-MBA this past Thursday in a large ceremony. The Sana’a University’s Center of Business Administration (CBA) in partnership with the Netherlands’ Maastricht School of Management presented Masters in Business Administration (MBA) to its third graduating class. Hundreds of friends, families and colleagues attended the festive graduation ceremony that featured live music, food and speeches from distinguished guests such as the Ministry of Information, Hassan Al-Lawzi, on behalf of the Prime Minister, Dr. Ali Mujawar; the ViceMinister of Higher Education, Dr. Mohammed Al-Mutahhar; Sana'a University Rector, Dr. Khaled Tameem; Dutch Embassy Deputy Head of Mission, Mrs. drs. Elena Reesch; CBA Director, Dr. Ahmed Bin-Mubarak, and MSM Director of Outreach Programs, Mrs. drs. Helena Koolen. The graduation was a huge event celebrating the participants as they concluded two years of rigorous study. “This celebration highlights the academic achievements which we have all worked so hard for, I think it has been exceptionally organized and has been very inspiring for all of us” said Ms. Helmy Koolen, the Director of Outreach Programs at the Maastricht School of Management, the Netherlands. For many of the faculty and participants it was an emotional day, “It feels almost as if today is the wedding day for both my sons,” said Dr. Ahmed Bin-Mubarak, the Director of the Center of Business Administration. “It is so difﬁcult to describe my feelings because we’ve been working with the participants for over two years through this program step by step from the very beginning,” Dr Bin-Mubarak continued. The electric and festive celebration matched the accomplishment of the newly minted graduates as they not only completed two years of rigorous study, but achieved this success in evening courses as they maintained full time work in their respective careers. Many participants found the program challenging even though they were already veterans of the business sector as they all held positions as senior managers in some of the most prominent Yemeni businesses throughout their studies. These rigors of this program

are a reflection of the high standards set by the Center for Business Administration’s MBA program. “We are very strict with our participants because we need to meet the international standards set by our school,” said Dr. Bin-Mubarak. The standards are so high that it is now currently the only fully internationally certified MBA program in Yemen. Thus far, it was received three international certifications solidifying the center's position as one of the strongest MBA programs in the

interests and in return personalize their education. Mohammed Al-Asaadi, Freelance Journalist / Consultant, who received the University Award for the best academic performance and top student in class, focused his dissertation and research on his background of private media, “I hope that my research on private media in Yemen will develop this important sector and ignite the interest of other researches to study this topic.” On the other hand, Ms. Dalal

will stand us in good stead no matter what we come across.” Agreeing with him, Mr. Mohammed Abdo Al-Haddi, OMV Yemen as well, said that the class set-up and professor approach added value to his project management and problem solving approaches through feedback of real life experiences and group work. “This program had opened my eyes on business and management in general which made me seriously plan for a big move in my personal life and career,” he

Minister of Higher Education, stressed the importance of this, “This is a very important program from our point of view and will contribute to the development and capacity of the private sector.” Mrs. drs. Helmy Koolen added, “The students will advance their career and with the knowledge and skills learned from this program will beneﬁt their places of work and their country whether it be private business, government, or a non-governmental organization.”

Hassan Al-Lawzi

Ms. Helmy Koolen

world. The program is able to set these high standards and meet them as the CBA’s program is supported by and works very closely with the Maastricht School of Management; a world leading business school based out of the Netherlands. To meet these standards, the school focuses on three areas: knowledge, such as theories of management, tangible skills in effective management and most importantly networking not just in Yemen but with international counterparts from all over the world. Many students spoke highly of the standards and how the studies have beneﬁted their career. “This program has been very helpful to me as I was taught with the latest curriculum from the best universities in the world and with distinguished local and international faculty that not only served as teachers but leaders for us,” said the class valedictorian, Mohammed Al-Asaadi. One of the distinguishing factors students claimed that notably marked their experience was that they were encouraged to apply their education to their personal career, future goals and

added. With the continued imporAl-Yazidi, Management AssisWith the effectiveness of the tance of this program to the tant – ICT Project, spoke highly Center for Business private sector development of about the program, faculty and Administration’s MBA Yemen, a strong need for its overall experience. “I always program, the program hopes to graduates continues far into the aspired to obtain a master’s create a better future for Yemen future. The program has already degree from abroad for one by training individuals that meet started recruiting for it’s 6th simple reason: unlike us, people the needs of Yemen. “The class as the 4th and 5th classes there do study for the sake of biggest problem in Yemen at the are currently working towards knowledge and not just for moment is that there are no their very own celebration, just passing their exams,” Al-Yazidi, management skills, “ Dr. Ahmed like the one held this past Thursrecipient of CBA Award for the Bin Mubarak, CBA Director, day. By fulfilling its vision to best dissertation, said. “The “Like all others, the Yemeni create a center of excellence in CBA brought the world to us government depends mainly on Management for Yemen that here.” the private sector which CBA directly targets the leadership On the same line, Mr. Abdulthrives to improve. Although roles of the private and public malek Alhaddad, Managing defined as an essential part of the sectors, CBA will continue to Director – Grand Entertainment development in the 10 Priorities, play an integral role to Yemen’s Ltd, says that the CBA provides greater effort and time should development and future. a unique environment for such still be exerted to CBA.” The educational experience and an excellent mosaic of facility, faculty and management team. Talking about the participating students, Alhaddad said, “the participants and their level of competitiveness and diversified backgrounds and expertise add value to the whole experience.” Mr. Fadie Shaif, HR Manager – OMV Yemen, says in appreciation of this academic experience: “The grueling test of character that I and my fellow graduates have overcome to meet the extremely demanding Abdulmalek Alhaddad Mohammed Abdo Al-Haddi Fadie Shaif standards of this MBA program

Dr. Mohammed Al-Mutahhar

Dr. Ahmed Bin Mubarak

Mohammed Al-Asaadi

Sunday, Jan. 23, 2011 Issue 29 www.nationalyemen.com