1. BRITISH AID AND BRITISH BOMBS
CRISIS IN YEMEN
BRITISH AID AND BRITISH BOMBS
This presentation is about the humanitarian crisis and conflict in Yemen
Begin by asking how many people in the audience have heard of Yemen; can locate Yemen on a map; or know the name of Yemen’s capital city (Sana’a).
Despite the conflict in Yemen not hitting the headlines as frequently as Syria or Iraq, 21 million of its people are in need of humanitarian assistance. This is more than any other country in the world, including Syria or Iraq.
Yemen is an extremely complex crisis. The British government has been generous in the humanitarian aid it has provided to Yemen’s people. Yet at the same time it has continued to sell bombs and other weapons to the government of Yemen’s neighbour, Saudi Arabia. Saudi Arabia is involved in Yemen’s conflict. Its military is accused of using British weapons against civilians in Yemen, in a conflict where all sides are accused of breaking international humanitarian law.
Therefore, there is a puzzling situation where Britain and other countries give aid with one hand, and weapons which make matters worse and cause innocent deaths with the other. This presentation will help you to make better sense of this conflict and decide what you think is the best way to respond.
Photo of Nour and Samar: Hind Al-Eryani/Oxfam (2016)
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2. The geography of Yemen Do you know where Yemen is located on the map?
Yemen occupies the southern tip of the Arabian peninsula; and its land neighbours are Saudi Arabia to the north and Oman to the east. Its coastline is bordered by the Red Sea to the west and the Arabian Sea to the south. The capital city is Sana’a and the largest port is Aden. Aden was a British colony until 1963 and supplied ships travelling through the Suez Canal to India.
commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:LocationYemen.PNG
The geography of Yemen

3. Yemen is one of the oldest inhabited regions of the world and a cradle of civilisation. Tradition has it that the ancient city of Sana’a was founded by Shem, the son of Noah. Despite this long history of civilisation, Yemen’s more recent past has seen almost continual conflict and crisis. The 1960s saw violent resistance to British rule in Aden, before Britain finally left in Yemen was then divided into two parts, North and South, which were finally reunited in Civil war then broke out. During the 2000s the civil war continued as guerrilla warfare in the countryside. In 2011 the ‘Arab Spring’ saw a spread of popular protests before armed conflict intensified in 2015 and increasingly involved Yemen’s neighbour Saudi Arabia.
Photo: Sana’a old city (2001) Toby Adamson/Oxfam
The history of Yemen

4. According to the United Nations (UN), almost 4,000 civilians were killed by the conflict in Yemen between March 2015 and August 2016
The photo shows people searching for survivors under the rubble of houses destroyed by Saudi Arabian airstrikes near Sana’a Airport, Yemen, on March
Photo: Abo Haitham/Oxfam (March 2016)
The conflict – Sana’a

5. However, the impact of the conflict goes far beyond the number of deaths and injuries directly caused by fighting and air raids.
This photograph shows a destroyed building in the port city of Aden. With ports blockaded, Yemen has been unable to import food, fuel, medicines and other vital supplies for long periods of time. This is having severe knock on effects. People go hungry; trade slows to a standstill without fuel for vehicles; schools, hospitals and water facilities are forced to close without fuel and supplies; and shops empty of goods. The situation is now at crisis point.
Photo: A destroyed building in Aden (August 2015) Mohammed Taleb/Oxfam
The conflict - Aden

6. The crisis – forced to flee
2.4 million people in Yemen have been forced to flee their homes due to the conflict. The vast majority are internally displaced within Yemen.
This photo shows Halima, a mother of eight children. She fled her home following intense fighting and airstrikes, which killed her husband.
Halima says: “I could not see anything because of the dust. All I remember is that I was screaming the names of my kids".
With nowhere else to go, she fled to this camp in Amran.
Photo: Moayed Al-Shaibani/Oxfam (August 2016)
The crisis – forced to flee

7. This photo of Yemen’s capital city Sana’a doesn’t show a normal traffic jam. Instead these cars are queuing at a petrol station during the fuel shortages in April 2015.
One element of Yemen’s conflict has been the blockade of the main ports such as Aden (see slide 5) and Hodeidah. Yemen relies on imports for most of its fuel, food, medicines and other vital goods. Even when ships can dock their goods, they are often stuck in ports due to the lack of fuel to unload and transport them. In addition, ongoing violence affects major roads and cities, and this limits transportation and distribution around the country.
In August 2015, the UN commented that the damage caused to Hodeidah port by airstrikes ‘potentially deprives millions of people of food and prevents the import of fuel to run health facilities, flour mills and water and sanitation works.’
160 health facilities were forced to close due to a lack of fuel to power generators, and millions of people are unable to obtain clean water due to a shortage of fuel for water pumps.
Photo: Abo Haitham/Oxfam (2015)
The fuel crisis

8. In 2015, more than 20 million people in Yemen were unable to access clean water and sanitation facilities. The main reason is the lack of fuel to pump water from underground wells.
Yemen’s crisis can be understood as a ‘perfect storm’. Many factors combine together to make the overall situation much worse. For example, the shortage of fuel is a big problem in itself, but it also has the knock-on effect of stopping millions of people’s access to water.
Mujahed is 11 years old and lives with his family and hundreds of other displaced families in Huth camp. He comes to a water point installed by Oxfam and says : “I come here four times a day to collect water as I am the oldest from my brothers. I wish I could go back to live in my house and stop collecting water. When I used to live in Sana’a, I used to go to school every day. But now I can’t because we were forced to move.”
Photo: Moayed Al-Shaibani/Oxfam (September 2016)
The water crisis

9. This shop in the city of Taiz used to serve long queues of people
This shop in the city of Taiz used to serve long queues of people. By the time the photograph was taken in February 2016, it stood empty. Blockades of the ports, insecurity on the roads, and a shortage of fuel for transport mean that prices for essential goods have increased rapidly and shops are empty.
Throughout 2015 and 2016 Oxfam reported alarming signs of rising malnutrition and starvation across the country. People’s coping strategies were being exhausted as they spent their savings and sold assets. By the time the DEC Yemen Crisis appeal launched in December 2016, 7 million people in Yemen did not know where their next meal was coming from.
Photo: Abdulnasser Al-Sedek/Oxfam (February 2016)
The trade crisis

10. On top of all the other problems, Yemen’s government has been running out of money since March This is important because businesses need foreign currency to import food and fuel. As the government ran short of cash, it was unable to provide sufficient foreign currency for imports. This slows down trade even more and pushes prices even higher.
The different crises had been building up during 2015 and By December 2016 the situation had reached breaking point.
Photo: Wolfgang Gressmann/Oxfam (2012)
The cash crisis

11. Your response – campaigning
Britain’s role in Yemen is also highly controversial.
Yemen’s neighbour Saudi Arabia is deeply involved in Yemen’s conflict. Saudi Arabia has repeatedly bombed and attacked targets in Yemen, killing Yemeni civilians. All sides in the conflict are accused of harming civilians, but according to the UN, the majority of civilian casualties have been due to attacks by a Saudi-led coalition of countries.
Britain sells bombs to Saudi Arabia. In the 18 months leading up to October 2016, Britain exported £3.3 billion worth of weapons to Saudi Arabia. Oxfam says that the export of arms to Saudi Arabia for use in Yemen is breaking UK, EU and international law as there is a high risk that the bombs will be used to kill and injure civilians. This challenge has been made because the UK is part of the Arms Trade Treaty, which says that arms sales must be suspended if there is a risk they may be used to violate international humanitarian law. Oxfam is calling on the government to immediately suspend its export of arms to Saudi Arabia, for use in Yemen.
This photograph shows Oxfam campaigners posing as Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson, visiting Westminster with the message to ‘Stop British Bombs Fuelling the Yemen Crisis’.
Therefore, one response to the Yemen crisis is to participate in Oxfam’s Red Line for Yemen campaign, calling on the British government to suspend arms sales to Saudi Arabia which will be used in Yemen.
Photo: Andy Hall/Oxfam (October 2016)
Your response – campaigning

12. Your response – humanitarian aid
As we’ve seen, the crisis in Yemen is complicated and there is no single ‘right’ way to respond. The second action is to fundraise for the DEC Yemen crisis appeal.
The British government is a lead donor in Yemen and during 2015 provided £44 million in new humanitarian aid, to help people affected by the worsening conflict. Oxfam also has a large programme in Yemen; making cash payments for 106,000 people to buy food, and providing water and sanitation facilities for 435,000 people. But the situation in Yemen has been steadily getting worse and by the end of 2016 it reached crisis point million people, half of Yemen’s population, needed help with food.
On 13 December 2016, the Disasters Emergency Committee (DEC) launched a major crisis appeal for Yemen. During a DEC appeal the main charities, including Oxfam, work together to fundraise for a particularly serious emergency. The last DEC appeal before Yemen was for the Nepal Earthquake Appeal in 2015.
The photograph shows water equipment being prepared for delivery to Yemen from Oxfam’s warehouse in Bicester, Oxfordshire.
You could respond to the Yemen crisis by raising money for the DEC appeal.
Photo: Tegid Cartwright/Oxfam (May 2015)
Your response – humanitarian aid

13. As you have learned, the crisis in Yemen is complicated and there is no single ‘right’ way to respond. However, whether you decide to fundraise for the DEC appeal, participate in the ‘red line’ campaign or do a combination of both, please do not ignore this most urgent of emergencies. Thank you.
Photo: Chris Worrall/Oxfam. Football at sunset in Shibam (2004)
Thank you