Children vow against weapons

Arms markets like this one in Jihana were thriving last week, before they were closed.

Yemen’s Ministry of Interior has ordered the closure of 160 shops for selling weapons throughout the country in order to “enhance security and stability,” official sources said on Tuesday. 

About 131 weapons traders were also arrested according to the same decree which was issued by the Minister of Interior, Mutahar Rashad al-Mesri.

An anti-weapons campaign had been launched about one year ago by the Ministry of Interior, seizing more than 100,000 weapons from citizens during this period.  Traders, however, have been selling and buying weapons secretly, in black markets, houses and secret shops because there is still a high level of demand, a weapons trader told Yemen Observer.

“Even during the anti-weapon campaign, we were doing business in the black market to earn our living,” he said, “and yes, the shops were closing and opening because we did not believe the government would continue its hard-line on this issue.” A draft law on possessing and carrying guns was not passed although the government submitted it in 1995. Tribal forces in the ruling party and in the largest opposition party, Islamist party Islah, are believed to have been trying to organize a bloc to obstruct the passage of the law through Parliament.

“If there is a law that can be applied to all, we will agree with it and we will go and find new businesses to make our living,” said the weapons trader who asked to remain anonymous. “I still hope to get permission from the government to get back to the market,” he added.

The Cabinet took the decision to close weapons shops throughout the country on April 24, 2007.

The official’s spokesperson said that shooting incidents decreased by 39 per cent in the first four months of the anti-weapon campaign.

Weapons in the streets, markets, and wedding places are 85 percent fewer than they were before the campaign, according to official estimates. Unofficial estimates put the number of firearms in circulation nationwide at around 60 million, among a 22 million population.

A United Nations-sponsored small arms survey, released in August 2007, concluded that Yemenis own between 6 million and 17 million firearms.

In the same context, tens of Yemeni children demonstrated in front of the parliament building last Wednesday demanding the approval of the draft law restricting the dealing and carrying of weapons.

The children raised a message directed to the President of the Republic Ali Abdullah Saleh and the Prime Minister Ali Mohammed Mujawar, calling on them to provide a safe community environment that can protect children from accidental death.

“Carrying weapons is a blunt show of aggression against life and human safety. It is a clear threat to kill and injure,” read the children’s message.
 
In their message the children also said that carrying weapons disturbs the security and stability of the nation and it is a clear violation of national laws and of human rights.

The message also stressed the need to protect children from the consequences of widespread public weapon-carrying.

“We the children stress that we should enjoy general protection against all risks created by weapons being carried publicly,” the children said in their message. “We also stress the necessity to look after our rights, the right to live being the most important of them” the message added.

The children also demanded that their issues should be top priorities on the work agendas of decision makers. They also called on all citizens to commit to their demands by supporting the banning of weapons carrying so as to stop Yemen from plunging down to the status of a “primitive country.”

The demonstration was organized by SHAWTHAB organization, which runs a number of programs for child protection. 

Lamia al-Eryani, head of SHAWTAHB, said that they decided to demonstrate at this particular time for two main reasons: the first was in support of the government, for issuing a new law organizing weapons carrying; the second was that the organization has produced a cartoon movie against weapons carrying and for raising awareness of weapons harmful effect on children. 

She said that the organization is to launch the cartoon on Saturday June 21 in the capital Sana’a. Later the cartoon will be screened on Yemeni local and Satellite TV. The third step is screening the cartoon in all cities and towns across the country.

Al-Eryani also said that this movie was the second one produced by their organization. She added that a third cartoon about child sex abuse is to be produced within a month.

The demonstration coincided with the debate of the draft amendment law of weapons obtaining and carrying, the draft law that has been rejected by the Joint Meeting Parties (JMP) ‘the opposition coalition,’ particularly MP’s of the Islah Islamic party and by the tribal leaders.

Mr. Jamal al-Shami, head of the Democratic School Organization, said that a number of children from his organization took part in the demonstration because they believe that the contribution of children in bringing the new weapons-carrying law to light is of great concern because the children are severely affected by the weapons carrying problem.  “We appreciate the government’s latest measures for banning weapons in the main cities and the latest measure for closing down weapons shops,” said al-Shami.

In a related issue 85 weapons shops were closed down and 48 traders of weapons and ammunition were detained in different governorates of Yemen last Monday, according to a statement issued by the Ministry of interior last Tuesday.

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