Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights considers report of Yemen

10 May 2011

The Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights has considered the second periodic report of Yemen on that country’s implementation of the provisions of the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights.

Introducing the report of Yemen, Rashad Al-Rassas, Minister of Legal Affairs and acting Minister for Human Rights, said that Yemen needed more support from the international community to promote human rights and in order to do away with the obstacles that prevented them from ensuring these rights. In the last few years they had adopted several laws and strategies to ensure the rights of women and close the gender gap between men and women. They had also adopted national strategies relating to health and education for women and girls and a national strategy for young children which addressed education, the fight against human trafficking and violence against children. Turning to economic concerns, Mr. Al-Rassas said that Yemen had passed laws to combat money laundering and terrorism and adopted several laws, amendments and strategies to promote economic growth and put an end to poverty. For example, they had created more than 60,000 jobs in the government for graduates with technical specialities.

Mr. Al-Rassas said there were several difficulties Yemen needed to overcome such as demographic and geographical issues, a lack of foreign investment, the high level of illiteracy in the country, instability in the Horn of Africa, the flow of refugees and the increase of piracy and terrorism. There was also the issue of the increase of external debt due to a lack of domestic resources and the Government was trying to manage inflation, rationalize expenditures, manage the deficit and increase gross domestic product. Yemen was also trying to strengthen the social security safety net.

Among the questions and issues raised by Committee Experts were the status of women and what was being done to address gender inequality in all areas of life including education, employment and political life. Committee members also asked what was being done to combat other forms of discrimination against women, including early marriages and domestic violence. Corruption was another issue that several Experts raised and they asked what was being done to end corruption and impunity. The status of the akhdam, a minority ethnic group in Yemen, was also addressed as this community experienced high rates of poverty and discrimination. Numerous Experts asked about the Ministry of Human Rights, its funding, functions, powers and independence. As with other countries, the delegation was asked about the application of the Covenant in the country and whether it enjoyed primacy above domestic legislation and whether it could be directly applied in courts. Other concerns that were raised included the minimum wage and social assistance and whether they provided a decent standard of living for families, the right for employees to form unions and strike and sexual harassment in the workplace.

In concluding remarks, Mr. Al-Rassas said it was a great pleasure to appear before the Committee and to show the seriousness with which the Government of Yemen approached its commitments to economic, social and cultural rights, despite the crisis. The Government was trying to overcome imbalances and address problems in the enjoyment of economic, social and cultural rights. They were a poor country that faced geographical difficulties and other challenges, but despite this they had tried their best to meet their obligations. They had begun on this path slowly but surely and they were seeking to improve on and promote all human rights. They were pleased to hear the Experts’ views and they would take them into consideration when drafting their next report.

The delegation of Yemen was composed of representatives from various government agencies including the Ministry of Legal Affairs, the Ministry of Planning and International Cooperation, the Ministry of Social Affairs and Labour, the Ministry of Education, the Ministry of Health, the Ministry of Human Rights, the Ministry of the Interior, the Office of the Presidency, the Supreme Council for Motherhood and Childhood, the Supreme National Authority on Combating Corruption, the Council of Ministers, and the Permanent Mission of Yemen to the United Nations Office at Geneva.

The next public meeting of the Committee will be at 10 a.m. on Wednesday, 11 May when it will begin consideration of the fifth periodic report of the Russian Federation (E/C.12/RUS/5).

Report of Yemen

The second periodic report of Yemen (E/C.12/YEM/2) says that Yemen has achieved meaningful progress in the advancement of human rights, having acceded to over 59 international human rights treaties. The high degree of consistency between these treaties and the domestic legislation which deals with many human rights issues has helped to strengthen this process. Since the submission of the initial report, there have been a number of positive human rights developments in Yemen. For example, on 27 April 2003, parliamentary elections were held by free, direct and universal suffrage; this was the third round of parliamentary elections to be held since the unification of Yemen. A total of 8.3 million persons registered to vote, 3.4 million (48 per cent) of them women. Some 1,369 candidates stood for election, 931 nominated by political parties and 405 standing as independents; 11 of the candidates were women. The 2006 presidential and local elections were conducted freely and fairly in a tightly fought contest which helped to entrench democratic principles.
Over the reporting period, the Government took several measures to revise the domestic laws on the status of women in the family and in public life; the Protection from Domestic Violence Act No. 6 of 2008 passed into law and includes numerous provisions guaranteeing all family members protection from acts of violence or harm within the family. With regard to general education for girls, the Yemeni Government has continued the efforts begun in recent years to promote female education more widely by encouraging girls to enrol in primary, secondary, higher, vocational and technical education and by increasing educational capacity in girls’ schools. The passing of the Children’s Rights Act No. 45 of 2002 was a major step forward for children, and Yemen has furthermore ratified the Optional Protocol to the Convention on the Rights of the Child on the involvement of children in armed conflict and the Optional Protocol to the same Convention on the sale of children, child prostitution and child pornography. With the creation, in May 2003, of a separate ministerial portfolio for the Ministry of Human Rights, the level of attention paid to human rights issues was raised. Together with relevant organizations, it helps to raise awareness of the legal aspects of all public and private rights and freedoms.
These positive developments and other measures to promote human rights are worth noting, as they provide a true picture of the actual human rights situation in Yemen. Despite the achievements scored in the human rights domain, however, the newness of the experiment means that certain kinds of human rights violations still occur. Moreover, certain negative aspects of the country’s cultural and social traditions continue to leave their mark and it will take additional effort, patience and persistence to deal with them. Even though the political will to promote and protect human rights is there, there are real difficulties and obstacles which prevent the Government from achieving a number of human rights objectives. These difficulties can be ascribed to economic, cultural and social factors: Yemen is classified as one of the least developed countries, because it has few economic resources. This issue is being widely discussed at the highest levels with a view to finding appropriate solutions. It is obvious that a human rights culture cannot be created overnight; it is a task which takes time, patience and persistence. The main thing is to show persistence and to move forward in a credible and convincing manner.

Presentation of Report

RASHAD AL-RASSAS, Minister of Legal Affairs and Acting Minister for Human Rights, in presenting the second periodic report of Yemen, said that Yemen would continue to comply with its international obligations in accordance with the treaties it had signed. Open communication and cooperation with the Committee was important in order to give a true picture of the situation of economic, social and cultural rights on the ground. Yemen had replied to the list of issues based on their responsibility to comply with international obligations. They felt that this meeting as well as their presence was a valuable opportunity to discuss and review directly and transparently the situation of rights in Yemen.

The people were the holders of power and exercised this power through elections and referendums. The equal opportunities of all citizens were affirmed and based on social security, justice, freedom and equality. The Government was also obliged to protect mothers, children and youth. The security and armed forces must not work for any party, individual or group. Any laws could only be amended after a referendum. Ever since the unity of the Republic Of Yemen, citizens had enjoyed their right to elections and two presidential elections had taken place. There had also been local elections and elections for governors, all of which had entrenched the political participation of all citizens, including women. Civil society was also involved and a number of laws and rules had been developed to guarantee fundamental rights in compliance with the international conventions signed by Yemen. In cooperation with civil society and donor countries, Yemen was working to develop and modernize this legislation to align it with new developments in the world.

Mr. Al-Rassas said that Yemen needed more support from the international community to promote human rights and in order to do away with the obstacles that prevented them from ensuring these rights. In the last few years they had adopted several laws and strategies to ensure the rights of women and close the gender gap between men and women. There were national strategies relating to health and education for women and girls. There was also a national strategy for young children which addressed education, the fight against human trafficking and violence against children. Women were now able to transmit citizenship to their children. They had passed laws to combat money laundering and terrorism. On an economic level they had adopted several laws, amendments and strategies to promote economic growth and put an end to poverty. They had created more than 60,000 jobs in the government for graduates with technical specialities.

Mr. Al-Rassas went on to say that laws in numerous areas had been developed and adopted. For example, they had accepted the recommendations of the Committee against Torture. Yemen had also passed a law on public health combat AIDS, a law to fight illiteracy and laws on polio and food insecurity. Economic and political security was the basis for protecting the rights of citizens. However, there had been some obstacles. The world food and economic crises had had negative consequences on developing countries and these crises were continuing. They could also not forget the effects of climate change as well as the sweeping changes that were happening in the region of which Yemen was a part. Yemen advocated peaceful change through peaceful consultations and elections. In Yemen they were strongly convinced that they could not solve any conflict without dialogue which would allow them to take into account the views of all political parties in Yemen.

There were several difficulties they needed to overcome such as demographic and geographical issues, a lack of foreign investment, the high level of illiteracy and lack of awareness, instability in the Horn of Africa, the flow of refugees and the increase of piracy and terrorism. There was also the issue of the increase of external debt due to a lack of domestic resources and the Government was trying to manage inflation, rationalize expenditures, manage the deficit and increase gross domestic product. It was also trying to strengthen the social security safety net.

Questions by Experts

In an opening round of questions, Committee Experts asked the delegation to clarify the standing of the Covenant in the country. Could an individual base their claims on the provisions of the Covenant and was the Covenant directly applicable? Did the Covenant enjoy supremacy over domestic legislation?

In terms of guaranteeing equality and non-discrimination, did Yemen plan to adopt a general equality act which would specify the equality principle in general areas of life, including those in the area of economic, social and cultural rights, particularly for women and other vulnerable groups? What was being done to change attitudes of the public and officials toward vulnerable groups and ethnic minorities?

What was the status of women in the country? Was it true that women still had to get permission from a male relative to work in the public sector?

According to the State party report, despite laws and significant legislative advancements, the gap between men and women in education remained significant. Was this situation due to poverty, religious or cultural considerations, or economic reasons? After the unification of Yemen in 1990, power was given to local authorities through a process of decentralization, but were these bodies on an equal footing in terms of funding from the central government?

Did the Ministry of Human Rights enjoy true freedom to operate without outside influence? If there were violations what could this body do to address them?

There were many fields in which progress needed to be made in terms of equality between men and women and while poverty did have something to do with it, political will was lacking, not money. Cultural habits that discriminated against women existed everywhere, but many countries had been able to overcome this. The constitution in Yemen guaranteed equality, but the wording was abstract and needed to become concrete. Marital rape was not categorized as a crime and this was a form of discrimination against women. Women were scarcely represented in the public and political life of the country. What was being done to address the situation of the group known as the akhdam? They had heard allegations that this was a marginalized group of people whose children did not finish secondary school and who were overwhelmingly poor. Also, what was being done to decrease the consumption of khat?

An Expert said Yemen had serious problems protecting human rights, particularly economic, social and cultural rights. How much international assistance was Yemen receiving and how much of the total budget was devoted to these issues? Why had the situation of corruption not improved, despite various mechanisms for combating corruption? There were serious problems with discrimination against women, racial minorities, persons with disabilities and other groups, yet there were less than 1,500 complaints received in a span of two years by the Ministry of Human Rights? Could the delegation provide disaggregated data on these complaints? How was the complaint mechanism publicized? If the Ministry did not offer redress, what was the use of the agency? The Expert reiterated a colleague’s call for the establishment of a national human rights institution that could deal with complaints as well as provide redress for these complaints?

Could women become president because one of the requirements for president was that he could not be married to a foreign woman, which indicated that women could not even run for the office? The assumption seemed to be that only men would run for office so were women even legally able to run for president? Turning to other forms of discrimination against women, the Expert said that early marriage was fundamentally forced marriage so what was being done to solve this problem? This problem of early marriage was linked to other problems such as rape, domestic violence, human trafficking, the right to health and the right to family.

What were the powers of the Human Rights Ministry and shouldn’t those cases be dealt with by prosecutors? One of their duties was to visit prisons, so what happened when they found problems in places of detention such as overcrowding and mistreatment? Did courts in Yemen directly or indirectly apply the Covenant and were there examples of this jurisprudence? What was Yemen’s position with regards to the Optional Protocol? Did the State envisage its ratification?

Turning to documentation, a Committee member asked why the State party had not updated the core document. The number of people living below the poverty line was very high, as was the level of unemployment. What recent efforts had been undertaken to address these issues? To what extent could the implementation of the rights contained in the Covenant help maintain stability in the country?

Was there international cooperation with organizations such as the International Monetary Fund, the World Bank and other groups? The State party had not indicated anything about what was being done to curb the use of khat and if there was no information provided then they could not have a dialogue on the issue. Was the Government thinking of steps to curb the growth of khat, perhaps by providing subsidies to farmers to get them to grow other crops?

Response of Delegation

The delegation said that once a convention was ratified it became a rule in law and international conventions, treaties and instruments would be taught in the high judiciary council. Any lawyer could invoke these instruments before any court and they were treated equally with any national law because they had been ratified by Congress. They had many challenges so they needed time to achieve their goals and overcome these obstacles.

Regarding laws banning discrimination, their legislation did not recognize discrimination against women, the marginalized or the akhdam. Some groups did not go to court, but this was the only way to protect one’s rights. The akhdam moved around a lot so they often did not go to school, but they had every right to do so. Everyone was equal before the law.

In terms of cultural obstacles to the protection and promotion of human rights, they needed some time to change attitudes, but it also had to do with economics. For example, women did not drop out of school for cultural reasons, but for economic reasons. They were fully committed to the implementation of the Covenant, but there had been a great deal of drop outs due to the demonstrations and all this had had an effect on education and health and they hoped that this was just transitional.

Regarding the Ministry of Human Rights, the Government had decided to set up a committee to study the establishment of a national human rights institution in all its aspects. The establishment of such an institution in line with the Paris Principles was vital. The matter was discussed on a wide scale within government circles and civil society and they were waiting for the final official decision to set this up. They firmly believed a national human rights institution would only supplement and support the work of the Ministry of Human Rights. The Ministry of Human Rights was a link between organizations and had tabled a number of draft laws before parliament on issues such as the marriage age and citizenship. There were people who were against reintroducing the law on marriage age and did not accept that minimum ages should be instituted for work and marriage.

In terms of the Universal Periodic Review and the recommendations from the review, there were 120 recommendations that were issued in 2009 and 90 recommendations that were accepted and they were sent to the competent ministries for implementation. There were procedural measures being taken in order to implement these recommendations.

Some extremist religious parties had opposed a quota system for women in politics and education. The Government had carried out outreach and awareness raising programmes on television to promote the importance of stopping violence against women and stereotypes of women. On an international level there was a female ambassador and five female consultants and nine female diplomatic attaches. In terms of education for women, the delegation said they had set up technical and vocational training institutions to encourage girls who left school to get training. Women made up 18 per cent of university staff. The delegation acknowledged there was a high drop out rate in schools for girls, but boys dropped out as well to meet the needs of their daily lives.

The law set a minimum age for marriage and there was a proposed law with penalties for those who encouraged early marriages, but the law was rejected on religious grounds. They were gathering birth statistics by developing a birth register and enlisting the help of midwives to guarantee birth registration. They had also instituted a pilot programme to extend micro-credit to women in an effort to decrease early marriages. On the issue of honour crimes, the delegation had no statistics on this issue. According to Shari’a law, there had to be four witnesses to establish adultery. Turning to khat, there were programmes to encourage farmers to replace their khat crops and this was supported by the European Union and some international organizations.

The State party was working on redrafting development strategies to improve the capacity of poor people in the areas of education, health, infrastructure and other sectors. The number of people living below the poverty line had increased to 42 per cent in 2010 due to the food and financial crises. There were 1 million Yemenis who worked in Gulf Countries so when the international economy went into a tailspin this also affected the State.

Regarding aid and assistance from international institutions, the delegation said Yemen was among the countries that benefited the least from international aid. Uganda and Taipei received $ 70 per person, while in Yemen each citizen received $ 11 even though the situation in Yemen was worse than in the other two countries. The aid came in the form of assistance and loans at favourable rates. Currently the foreign debt of Yemen was approximately $ 5.5 billion, which was 30 per cent of GDP. There had also been a delay in implementing many projects because development aid that was promised in 2006 had not been delivered by donors.

Turning to corruption, the delegation said it was a complex phenomenon in all societies, not just Yemen. The national agency against corruption was backed by strong political will. They had introduced changes and amendments to some laws and drafted a law on prosecution of civil servants and this bill was before parliament now. There was also a 2006 law against corruption and they had reviewed their definition of corruption because certain abuses were not included under the previous law. There had been 39 cases of corruption brought before the courts and 27 were settled administratively. Currently, 112 cases were being investigated and as a result of these activities the Government had recovered $ 111 billion. There was also an awareness-raising campaign that was included in their activities. So far they had had 13,000 cases investigated. The Law on Financial Responsibility required public figures to disclose their financial records and if they did not they could be dismissed or tried and sentenced to up to six months in prison. The State was not empowered to intervene in the workings of this body and the people appointed to serve could not be dismissed in order to preserve their independence.

Questions by Experts

In another round of questions, an Expert asked why women were fired before men. Why had a minimum wage not been established and were there plans to do so? What was being done to establish equal pay for equal work? Were people free to establish trade unions, because it seemed that the law as it was written now prohibited the formation of trade unions?

What was being done to reduce child labour, while giving work to the working age population, including women? Could the delegation shed light on the problem of unemployment among university graduates? Was there a vision for addressing this problem?

Did social benefits ensure a decent standard of living in the country and how often were they evaluated to ensure they met the needs of the people?

Another Expert asked what measures had been taken to bring non-governmental organizations into the process of ensuring the rights of women? Were there any laws guaranteeing the right to work and equal pay for men and women?

There seemed to be a large number of legal systems in the country, including common law, Shari’a, tribal customs and laws based on Turkish laws. Which law prevailed and took precedence when there was a conflict between the laws? What happened when these laws ran counter to the provisions of the Covenant? In terms of women’s issues, did they have access to work in the informal sector and with such a high illiteracy rate, how could they guarantee their rights? What was being done to ensure women’s access to employment, education, equality and credit? Was there actually a social security scheme in the country, because there did not seem to be one based on the State party’s report?

There had been reports that police had opened fire on a peaceful protest of teachers, killing 2, leaving 3 in critical condition and injuring 50 others. There was also information that similar crackdowns had occurred in other cities during other peaceful protests and Committee members were concerned about these reports. Could the delegation better help Experts understand what was happening in the country?

Response of Delegation

Regarding the issue of the akhdam, the delegation said they had attended many meetings related to the questions surrounding this community. In Yemen the social and historical facts did not prove that there were different ethnic minorities; the akhdam were not an ethnic or cultural minority. In fact, they had many common features socially and were part and parcel of Yemen. They were Arabs and Muslims and they spoke Arabic. Yemeni people ranged in skin colour so some were darker and others lighter. This group of people was very poor, but they were Yemenis and enjoyed all the rights afforded to citizens. Poverty was very high, especially in rural areas so akhdams were affected by this like everyone else. Funds and institutions targeted this group and civil society and international groups were encouraged to provide direct support to the akhdam. Amendments to a number of laws had been drawn up to eliminate discrimination against this particular group and they were based on a number of international instruments such as the International Convention for the Elimination of Racial Discrimination. The akhdam had property rights, so it was not true that they could not own property. There were seats set aside in universities for the akhdam and special departments in hospitals that provided treatment, jobs set aside for them and the National Association of Marginalized Groups also dealt with issues relating to vulnerable and marginalized groups. Many akhdam had also been granted free housing that was subsidized by the government and civil society organizations. Thirty five akhdam had been elected as members of local councils and they were part and parcel of Yemeni society and they were not considered minorities because they were Yemenis.

Persons with disabilities were a distinct group in the positive sense of the word. The Government had provided them with resources to help them overcome their disabilities. There was a 1996 law for the rehabilitation of persons with disabilities as well as a publicly funded fund of 5 billion reals for the care and rehabilitation of the disabled. The State had also drawn up a special strategy to provide care for the disabled and improve their living conditions and enable them to enjoy their rights freely. The akhdam and persons with disabilities were better off now than they had been in the past.

On the labour rights of foreigners, the delegation said the constitution stipulated that there was no discrimination based on ethnic origin, colour, religion, opinion or nationality, therefore equal opportunity and equal treatment were provided to all. There were few foreign workers in Yemen as it was a country that exported workers. Most of the workers who were there were with foreign companies and were there as civil servants or consultants. Yemen had ratified several regional and international conventions on workers’ rights and workplace safety. Laws on trade unions and cooperatives had been drafted in accordance with Yemen’s international obligations and there were more than 9,000 civil society organizations in the country.

The delegation said that child labour was a problem that was present in the country unfortunately because there was poverty and unemployment. Some estimated put the number of working children as high as 500,000 while other estimates said it was much less. The Central Bureau for Statistics was carrying out a survey to assess the phenomenon. This problem was taken very seriously by the government and the State continued to exert efforts in this field.

The delegation said that there was no distinction between Yemeni workers and foreign workers.

On issues concerning healthcare such as discrimination in health services and combating poverty and the effect on healthcare and education, the delegation said there was a five-year plan in place to combat poverty and the process included healthcare and access to medical services. Combating poverty was an important element in improving healthcare so the two questions were tackled together as cross-cutting issues. There was a national strategy for mental health and during the recent past they had been trying to eliminate polio and they were now combating measles. They were involved in eliminating certain diseases that disproportionately affected women. They were also increasing sexual and reproductive health services. There was no big gap between men and women in access to medical care. They were also training 715 female volunteers to provide services to women and children in poor communities.

The delegation said there had been no confirmation of the accuracy of the events a Committee Expert described in terms of peaceful demonstrators being killed or injured by police. The country did have a political crisis, but everyone could engage in political life. Public servants needed to understand that they had an obligation to work so even though they had the right to demonstrate, they could not strike and leave work and expect to continue to get paid. There was a law that required groups to get authorization to demonstrate and this was to guarantee the rights of those who would suffer from demonstrations and to make groups liable for any damage that resulted should the demonstrations get out of hand. Cases of death had resulted not so much from security or armed forces, but from armed people protecting their property.

The Ministry of Labour and Social Affairs, in cooperation with the International Labour Organization and the Government of the Netherlands, had created a department devoted to the development of women who worked to strengthen capacity and to defend the rights of women and ensure social justice in the workplace. Women enjoyed maternity leave and there was an office where women could lodge sexual harassment complaints.

Turning to social security, there was a social assistance fund which served the most underprivileged strata of society. This fund was created in 1986 after a reform in all spheres of society. Social security payments did not cover all of a family’s needs because the resources in Yemen were limited, but families did receive 4,000 reals to cover part of their needs. Various other forms of assistance were made available to these families as well.

As the Committee was aware, unemployment and poverty were structural in Yemen and unemployment was largely due to the age pyramid in the country; 75 per cent of the population was below the age of 30 which created a great deal of pressure on the employment sector and there was an imbalance between supply and demand. According to a 2004 survey, 17 per cent of the labour force was not employed in Yemen and the unemployment rate for young people was approximately 36 per cent. This rate was three times higher for women, although the causes were different. Seventy five per cent of the population lived in rural areas where there were fewer job opportunities and there were social and cultural factors at work that impeded women’s participation in the workforce. Regional job markets such as those in the Gulf States absorbed many Yemeni workers. There were also programmes for financing and micro-financing to help needy families. Yemen was the second Arab country to have a micro-finance bank. The Government had also adopted several programmes to help college graduates find work or to employ them in government jobs. Work applications were processed on an equal basis for men and women.

The Ministry for Human Rights received complaints and they tried to intervene, especially if the death penalty was to be applied to adolescents. It was true that the judiciary process was slow, but cases were dealt with in the order in which they were received and there were courts to deal with urgent matters. They would be taking up the matter of the Optional Protocol to determine whether they should accede to it or not.

Quotas were an important matter if women were to hold seats in parliament. Extremist religious parties had opposed women sitting in parliament. Discussions were underway about the adoption of proportional lists. There was political will to end such discrimination; however their social and cultural legacy represented an obstacle to end such discrimination.

Questions by Experts

A Committee Expert pointed out that persons with disabilities should not be referred to as handicapped people. What had been done to improve the everyday lives of persons with disabilities?

A Committee member asked a follow-up question on the minimum wage, which was what did the 4,000 reals a month actually cover.

Response of Delegation

The delegation said that security forces had been instructed not to fire on protestors and they did not have enough information to assess the truth of what really happened in these events. Journalists often told one sided stories.

The minimum wage and daily wage had to be equal in both the private and public sector so there could be no discrimination or discrepancy in this regard. The minimum wage did correspond to a family’s essential needs and a new draft of the labour code would allow for an increase in the wage.

In terms of vulnerable groups, they had developed parks for children with disabilities and had increased access to other public spaces for persons with disabilities. There were also efforts to make the akhdam feel as if they were Yemenis and not minorities, attract them to higher education and get them more involved in society as a whole.

Questions by Experts

Were any measures being taken to address polygamy, as this contributed to inequality between men and women? Was corporal punishment regulated in the home as it ran counter to the rights of the child? There were also cruel, inhumane and degrading treatments such as death by stoning and lashings. Was anything being done to change these punishments? Could the State provide more detailed information on human trafficking? How did the State seek to remedy the water shortage, which had repercussions for health?

What was the State’s policy to reduce, if not eliminate, the use of child soldiers?

A Committee Expert said their questions regarding khat had still not been addressed. Why had there been a decrease in nurses from 15,000 to 11,000 and what was the situation of healthcare in prisons? What concrete measures had been taken to improve overcrowding and sanitary measures in prisons?

What measures had been taken to eradicate female genital mutilation and punish those responsible? What had been done to punish people who engaged in early marriages of girls? There were reports that talked about the large percentage of Yemeni people who suffered from permanent hunger and 58 per cent of children who suffered from malnutrition. What was being done to address this?

Another Expert said the Yemeni report lacked information on income distribution. Had the State party identified the areas where the greatest number of people suffered from poverty?

The law on divorce was contrary to the concept of equality between men and women? Were there any plans to introduce court proceedings in which women could seek and obtain divorce? What was being done to guarantee access to water and sanitation, which had an impact on children being able to attend school?

What action was being taken to enforce provisions against child labour? What progress was being made in eliminating this problem? The Expert re-asked questions concerning forced marriages, the khat crop and its high water usage and sanitation and access to water.

Cultural activities could not be used as an excuse for negative movement and if practices were counter to human rights then they had to be considered negative. What was being done to curb malnutrition and improve maternal and child mortality statistics?

What was being done to achieve the target of universal education? Was international cooperation available and being used in Yemen to combat high drop out rates and illiteracy and to provide adult education?

What measures could be taken by the Government to improve the situation of school enrolment and access to the Internet?

An Expert noted that there was a dearth of information in the State party report on cultural rights, which gave the impression that these rights were not as important as other rights. What was being done to strengthen these rights? Harmful practices should not come under the heading of culture and one could not include practices that infringed on human rights, including flagrant violations of women’s rights. Culture should be used as a tool that would enable the State party to rectify many of the inequalities in the enjoyment of rights.

Child labour was connected to low rates of school enrolment and illiteracy because if children were forced to work then they could not attend school. Had Yemen considered offering free lunches in primary school as an incentive for parents to send their children to school?

Response of Delegation

Regarding women, children and related issues, the delegation said that there had been an issue with the birth registry being free of charge and there was a national strategy aimed at collecting certificates of all marriages, births and similar acts. They were raising the awareness of civil servants in this area and working on registering students in school if they had not been registered at birth. Regarding marriages of minor girls, Yemen wished to raise awareness to get girls to attend schools and they did this in cooperation with civil society to make people in remote areas aware of the problem. They also worked with moderate imams to warn people about the dangers of early pregnancy and street children. Two studies were now underway concerning child abuse and violence at home and in school as well as sexual violence. There were also hotlines children could call for physical and psychological help and rehabilitation if they were victims of abuse. There were TV and radio shows that discussed many of these issues concerning children which helped to raise awareness about problems such as child begging and other forms of child abuse and to inform children of their rights. Police officers, judges and other public officials were also trained in this area. There were also various programmes to help children who were repatriated back to Yemen after having gone abroad as unaccompanied minors, usually to Saudi Arabia. Over the last two years there had been a drop in the number of children leaving the country.

According to the delegation, female genital mutilation was a legacy in the coastal region and the Government was working with UNICEF to develop a strategy to deal with this. The Prophet Mohammed never resorted to excision for his daughters.

The delegation said it had replied to the question of khat yesterday by saying that farmers were being encouraged via incentives to grow other crops. There was also a survey underway to determine the extent of child labour and whether measures undertaken had been effective.

There were many challenges facing women in Yemen and while there were obstacles there was also political will to change the situation. There were only three women on the Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights, but the delegation could see the excellence of these women even though they were unequally represented.

Regarding healthcare in Yemen, there were communicable diseases and chronic illnesses such as bronchitis, diabetes, malaria and tuberculosis. There were traditional illnesses that some countries had been able to eradicate that were on the rise in Yemen. Road accidents in Yemen were also an issue. With the help of the World Health Organization, the State had also instituted a vaccination programme with the hopes of reducing the child mortality rate for children under the age of 5. Then there was the question of malnutrition and issues arising from malnutrition went beyond health matters to social factors. With the financial crisis the State had had to step up its interventions and attack the problem at the district level. The State also distributed foodstuffs to women and children suffering from malnutrition as well as provided palliative care to families. Last year with the help of the World Food Programme, Yemen had distributed 11 tons of foodstuffs. They had also taken measures to combat smoking and other harmful practices that impacted the health of citizens, such as the use of khat which resulted in lower birth rates for children born to women who used the product.

Turning to basic and secondary education, the delegation said that Yemen was classified among the countries with the lowest rate of enrolment in basic education with approximately 3 million children outside the educational system, 45 per cent of which were under 14 years of age. There was also a disparity between boys and girls and rural and urban areas. The drop out rate was high, especially among girls and in rural areas. They depended on international assistance to supplement their efforts to increase school enrolment and decrease drop out rates such as school lunch programmes.

On the issue of early and forced marriages, the delegation said a number of young girls had been provided with legal assistance for divorces and rehabilitation. Civil society organizations were highly involved as well in helping young girls reintegrate into society and school. Some children had been involved in armed conflict and political demonstrations and some had died during these political conflicts. The Government had talked to all parties to get them to stop using children in these political demonstrations and conflicts. Save the Children was also involved in an awareness raising campaign on the need not to involve children in such conflicts.

Questions by Experts

In a round of follow-up questions and comments, an Expert pointed out that while there were only three women on the Committee this was because Member States who were responsible for nominating Committee members did not put women forward as candidates. Culture was not a static thing and it changed over time, so instead of blaming things on culture it was the responsibility of the Government to put forward progressive measures in an effort to change attitudes and beliefs.

Another Expert asked whether any statistics had been collected on the programme on sexual and reproductive health such as how many women had used it, what services were used more often, what effect the educational programmes had had, etc.

Response of Delegation

On the question of the protection and promotion of cultural rights, the delegation said that the Internet had been introduced in some schools, but in view of the country’s economic situation and power shortages in the country these services were only intermittent. They also organized cultural events such as poetry readings and recitals and cultural rights enjoyed the same importance as other rights in the country.

In terms of sexual and reproductive health, the aim was to promote reproductive and maternal health and there was widespread support for these goals from international agencies. They worked on family planning and these services were provided for free as well as pre- and post-natal care. They offered specialized neo-natal care. Most cases of death during childbirth happened in rural areas so they had trained a number of midwives in these areas to provide care during and after childbirth.

The issue of polygamy was a religious matter and hard to deal with in a conservative society such as Yemen. They could not enact legislation dealing with it because this would be contrary to Islamic law and they would face a great deal of opposition to any attempt to ban the practice. Polygamy was much less widespread in 2011 than it had been in the past and in time it would disappear.

There had been a question about lashings, amputation of limbs and stoning. Stoning was only used in cases of adultery. In practical terms these penalties were not applied. Lashings have been replaced by imprisonment and amputation was used for robbers under Islamic law, but this was not done in practice in Yemen. For divorces, a man could repudiate his wife, but she could not do the same. When a woman sought a divorce from her husband, the case was adjudicated under Shari’a law.

Concluding Remarks

In concluding remarks, RASHAD AL-RASSAS, Minister of Legal Affairs and Acting Minister for Human Rights, said it was a great pleasure to appear before the Committee and to show the seriousness with which the Government of Yemen approached its commitments to economic, social and cultural rights, despite the crisis. The Government sought to participate in this dialogue and not seek excuses, but rather to show what they had done between 2002 and 2008. They were trying to overcome imbalances and address problems in economic, social and cultural rights. They were a poor country that faced geographical difficulties and other challenges, but despite this they had tried their best to meet their obligations. They had begun on this path slowly but surely and they were seeking to improve on and promote all human rights. They were pleased to hear the Experts’ views and they would take them into consideration when drafting the next report. Mr. Al-Rassas thanked the Committee members for the interest they had shown in Yemen and he hoped the next report would be a long and detailed one so that they would have all the information they needed.

__________

For use of the information media; not an official record