State of children in Yemen deteriorates, Children’s Parliament

The condition of Yemeni children has been called appaling, and the Children's Parliament report seeks to address the issues affecting children in the country.

The Yemeni Children’s Parliament has issued the first shadow report in the region concerning the state of children in Yemen during 2008. The report shed light on several important issues, including child trafficking and labor, juvenile prisoners, birth registration, and the situation of the children of Somali refugees in Yemen.

Yemen is unique in that it is the only country to have issued such a report- the first compiled by children in the region. It is a great step forward for Yemen, demonstrating the country’s future leadership potential. This report represents a continuation of the activities of many years, and it is being taken very seriously,” said Andrew Moore, the manager of the Save the Children office in Yemen, during a symposium held last Wednesday and attended by representatives of government ministries, as well as civil society and international organizations, concerned with the rights of children. 

“Save the Children (SC) has funded visits by the Children’s Parliament to look at the situation of birth registrations in 17 governorates, and of the refugees living in the Kharaz Camp. When the children spoke with parents in the 17 governorates about birth registration, they found that 60% did not know that they did not have to pay to register their children. Based on these findings, SC has launched a Birth Registration program in Aden, Abyen and Lahj, which will soon be expanded nationwide.”

We at the Yemen Observer, on behalf of children, call on the government, ministries, the people of Yemen and organizations working in the country to hear the voices of children and act upon them. The rights of children are enshrined in the Convention of the Rights of the Child, to which Yemen is a signatory. Our organization is supporting the voice of children in Yemen in order to put pressure on the government to implement the provisions of the convention. We will continue supporting children, and encourage them as much as we possibly can.” 

For his part, the Director of the Democratic School Jamal al-Shami said the situation of children in Yemen is shameful; nearly 2 million children are out of school, 600,000 are working, and 30,000 are in the streets of Sana’a and in local jails.  

“Through field visits to prisons and schools, we have noticed that children are exposed to torture by police officers, as well as violence in homes, in schools, and on the streets. This is in addition to other issues, including harassment and rape; about 60% of children in prisons and refuge homes are exposed to some forms of torture,” Al-Shami said.  

He warned about the possible reaction of children in the coming years; especially as many in society are illiterate and Yemen is not on track to achieve any of the Millennium Development Goals by the end of 2015.  “The report of children, away from the political wrangles and personal interest, conveys the suffering and problems of children.”

Ahmed al-Hutami, Deputy Minister of Information praised the children’s efforts in preparing the report, saying, “At the beginning, people were belittling the role of the Children’s Parliament, but it has proven that it is able to deal with the serious and important issues involved in childhood.” 

The family is the basis for raising children in the proper manner. Children want to invest their energies, though this may be in the wrong direction with the absence of the proper family supervision. The doors are open for youth to spread democratic awareness, he added.

The young parliamentarians confirmed that the report was prepared by the Children’s Parliament and the Democracy School, in cooperation with the Swedish organization Save the Children, in an attempt to make the voices of Yemeni children heard. Their appeal is especially targeted at the International Committee for Human Rights in Geneva, taking into account the role of government agencies and others in promoting children’s rights in Yemen. 

Child trafficking
The report addresses the important issue of child trafficking in Yemen, where children are exposed to many dangers and serious harm as they are sold to people in Saudi Arabia. 

Poverty, the absence of basic services such as education and health, lack of awareness concerning the risks of child trafficking and family dissolution have been identified as the main reason for the spread of trafficking, the report says.  

The Children’s Parliament has called on the government to improve the situation of children in Yemen, to implement severe punishments for smugglers, and to conduct awareness campaigns concerning the dangers of this problem.  

Child labor 
In the recent years, the spread of this problem has become noticeable in all Yemeni governorates, largely resulting from the weak economic situation, which forces children to work to support their families.

Children work in difficult, dangerous and non age-appropriate jobs, including stone bearing, working in iron workshops, street-vendors, etc. As a result, children may be exploited by gangs, and learn anti-social behaviors such as smoking and chewing qat, the report says. 

Mona Ali Salem, chairwoman of the Child Labour Unit in the Ministry of Social Affairs and Labour, said “The ministry has carried out a number of projects dealing with child labour, and it is preparing a project to monitor of the worst forms of child labour in a number of Yemeni governorates. However, the reduction of this project’s budget from 3 million to one million will make field visits more difficult.” 

The main reason for child labour is the absence of educational institutions. In some areas, there are no schools, while in other areas there are only primary schools, she added. 

For her part, Safia al-Sayedi, Chairwomen of the Centre for the Rehabilitation and Training of Street Children, said, “There are few centres for the rehabilitation of street children; there is only one centre here in Sana’a.”  

It is a waste of time to talk about ending child labour without finding alternative incomes for the families of children working on the streets. Children are exposed to many dangers in their work, so laws and bylaws forbidding certain kinds of work for children must be implemented seriously, she said.  

Child prisons 
The report strongly condemned the awful conditions of Youth Prisons and Juvenile Rehabilitation centers.  The health and nutrition situation are appalling, and violence is used during the interrogation of juveniles. Youth are put in the same prison as older prisoners, and as a result, youth begin to acquire bad habits, the report says.

“Unfortunately, there are no separate prisons for youth, and police officers need special trainings on how to deal with juveniles,” Dr. Ali Farwa, Director of the Juveniles Unit at the Ministry of the Interior,  

Situation of the children of Somali refugees
The situation of Somali refugees is particularly bad in the Haraz Camp. The camp is overcrowded, there are no primary or secondary schools, there are not enough books, and newborns are not registered. 

The conditions of the refugees in Kharaz Camp are also very poor. In reaction, SC has increased its funding to Kharaz with support from the UNHCR and BPRM. With this, the number of teachers at the Kharaz Camp will be increased by 15 in 2009, and the organizations will also increase their support in order to host a greater number of community schools, Andrew Moore said. 

The report demanded the government prepare a national plan to deal with the problems facing children. This national strategy for children and youth should contain clauses seeking to re-evaluate existing legislation, criminalise the abuse of children, and increase awareness among Yemeni’s concerning the rights of children.

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