Sa’dah war’s flagrant abuse to childrens’ rights (part 2)

Every war has a price, and all Yemenis from the remote areas of al-Mahrah to the Saudi borders  have paid this  price, however Sa’dah people bear the bulk of the price. Every dispute has victims but the people of Sa’dah are the most affected and the Sa’dah children are the first among the victims with the utmost complications.

In part one of this report we talked about the main problems facing the displaced. In this part we go in depth to tackle IDPs stories focusing on children situations.

We won’t go back
Yahiya Mohammed Al-Sa’di, 55, from the al-Zahir area says that he will not return to for a number of  reasons including  security, the mines and explosives in addition to what he describes as constant tension between the disputing parties, adding that war could break out at any time. “So why do I risks myself and my family again,”

Asking him if the existence of the state in that region is enough to protect them, he said that the Central Security cannot distinguish between the two, and the Houthis are still there. They are people who if you are not with them they treat you as an enemy and poor citizen are often the victims.

Al-Sa’di says that there are services in the camps but they are inadequate and declining.

Khalid Saeed al-Sa’di, 28, says that the reason for not returning is the lack of security in the areas from which they fled, and there are people who have returned from the same camp where he lives who did not find safety, and were denied when they return again to the camps. He adds “We do not want to stay here, but life here is better than death and humiliation there. There they suppress our freedoms (in reference to the Houthis), they want us to be with them. Khalid told of their fleeing story to the Saudi borders before Saudi Arabia intervened in war. On our escape from the village during the clashes between the army and the Houthis my wife was hit with two bullets in her right hand.

He described the camp services as “giving a prisoner food that only saves him from death,” he explains that the food support was available at the beginning, but now is drying up.

Eida Awad Hassan from Razih says that he is staying in the camp because he had no other choice, “My children and I won’t be safe returning to our areas. How can I go back while the bag of flour that I have will be split into two there and given to them (referring to the Houthis).

Relief Provisions sold in the markets
Another refugee, preferring to speak anonymously for fear of parties he declined to name, saying that they manipulate the displaced peoples’ relief under the eyes and ears of the competent authorities.

He adds there are also outsiders who are not victims of war and take their shares of relief items and sell them in markets (intending to stockpile) and then go begging in the surrounding areas as war victims.

Ali M. said that the camp services are not enough and he does not rely on them. He said that he works in the market in the sale, purchase and smuggling of Kat into Saudi Arabia, adding that this is his original job even when he was in his area in Al-Malahiz.

Relief decreased to 50 percent and diseases spread among children
Hajah Um Hussein, 50, had intervened in the dialog, complaining of a lack of nutritional food “they cut off the quantities of rice and beans, and decreased sugar, flour and oil. They used to give us 10 kilograms of mix (a mixture of food) per month for every two persons. Now the same amount is given to every four people per month”

Fatima S., 40, is mother of eight children, the oldest aged 15 years and the youngest, born in the camp who did not live past her first year. Their father died in war and she took her children to the camps to live in a tent next to her married sister. She is also a mother of five daughters.

Fatima complained of the bad situation and their helplessness. “My children love rice and beans and they got used to it when we first came here but now because of the cut in such materials, our tent is filled with crying and wailing.”

The only thing that satisfies Fatima is that her three male children attend schools set up by UNICEF and the camps receive the service of clean water from a project sponsored by Oxfam.

However, Fatima also complains of a wave of disease spreading in the camps, which is confirmed by many of the displaced, including malnutrition and skin diseases. Fatima brought one of her sons with a skin disease and Yemen Observer cameras took shots of it.

During our field tour in the camps we noted clearly that diseases were spreading among young boys and girls, such as diarrhea, acute malnutrition and skin diseases confirmed by Dr. Saleh Marsh director of the field hospital in camp number one. He said that most of the infections of children are the result of poor feeding and the skin diseases are caused by climate change, but he confirms that since last March. camp number one has not seen the death of any children.

“Malnutrition cases are among about 60% of the children in Yemen, but they may be noticed here as a result of the lack of adequate feeding material. As for the skin diseases including those caught on Yemen Observer camera they are caused by climate change and are rampant in many region and not only among the displaced Dr. Marsh said.

With regard to diarrhea among children, Dr. Marsh said that it is present but can be easily treated.

No electricity
 “Don’t take pictures of the electricity pylons; they are not for us . They only pass our camp and go to the Movenmbek, someone yelled, adding that the pylons are for us and the electricity for them. There is no electricity in the camps, but electricity is available for the so-called displaced persons at the Movenmbek  or five-star camp, referring to camp 2 which is supervised by the United Arab Emirates’ Red Crescent.    Hamoud explains that the services there are distinct and the amounts of food has not decreased, ele ctricity and other services are available but we are a second grade IDPs.

Birth in the open
Hussein Al- Wabeli who is at the end of his early forties said that his wife is pregnant with his first baby, but he cannot secure her a tent to give birth in. “About a month ago I asked in vain for a tent.  My wife could give birth at any time in the open, I just want a tent so that my first child could see the first light in it. I have been denied offset in all my life”

Childhood at stake
Ali Hussein Ibrahim, 13, from Al- Malahiz said he, his six brothers, and parents in addition to a number of families from the same village had fled at the beginning of the last war to their relatives on the Saudi side of the borders and stayed there until the Houthis came to Saudi territories.

He said that he had seen with his own eyes one of the displaced being showered with bullets from a machine gun. What I will never forget is his tragic death.  He was very close to me and I could hear bullets mixed with the screams of women and crying children. I expected to be shot but my mind was with my mother who was embracing my little brothers , Mariam and khaled.

Hussein added that one of their neighbors, a women, was shot in the legs in the same incident,   but did not die and continued to escape on the back of her husband’s uncle Ahmed Jaber.

Abdel Wahab Saleh, 15, is suffering from a very troubled state of mind and behavior that scare his family and neighbors. His father talked about him and advised the crew not to go to him, not allowing photography.

His father said that he has been experiencing physiological difficulties since the second war between the Houthis and the government after surviving an incident in which five of his companions were killed, escaping with numerous physical injuries.

After the war stopped we took him to a doctor in Sana’a who gave us medicine to help calm him. He became an isolated person, aggressive and made a lot of problems, especially for members of his family. “We had been trying to give him the medicine during the four past wars as much as we can, but since the last war we haven’t been able to provide him with the medicine, of course his psychological condition become worst.”

“Here in the camp there is no medicine available, he is mentally and physically handicapped as a result of firearm related injuries to his left foot.

Another tragic story of Saleh Salman Fares, 13, and three others of his brothers who all have Leukemia and Rheumatism.  In his village he was unable to go to school because he can not walk for long distances but now he joined a school in the camp with his brothers “ I am student in the first class although my young brother,12, is a student in third class. I am happy because I can go to school with my brothers , Saleh said with smile “ this is the only thing that keeps me here” he added.

Regarding the medicine for him and his brothers his father said “The medicines for my four children are not available here in the camp,”

Saleh , his brother Salem,12,  and their friend Mohamed Klfood , 13, want to go back to their village in Marran “ all we need is back home in our village,  here it is too hot and  the atmosphere is grimy … please tell the Houthis to stop the war and allow us to come home,” Mohamed Klfood said.

aziz@yobserver.com

Related Content

•   Alcohol sells from hidden points in Yemen
•  IRIN: Fighting in north Yemen leads to fresh displacements
•  Yemen President’s visit to the United States has other purposes than medical treatment
•  YEMEN: Little hope of swift return for Abyan IDPs, says report
•   African refugees to Yemen surpass expectation, says UN report
•   Al- Hujrain, Yemen’s treasure trove
•  Campaign in Yemeni to revolt against Qat
•   IRIN: Yemen coping with unrest - aid workers turn to the community
•   Qat diminishes Yemen water resources
•   Qat depletes Yemen water resources