The report “The Implementation of CEDAW in Yemen” describes the importance of the Women’s Convention in Yemen. The situation of the Yemeni people is a very serious humanitarian catastrophe. The war has escalated since 2015 and caused enormous suffering to the civilian population. Yemen is today classified as one of the world’s largest and most serious crises. One reason for this is that the warring parties commit war crimes that affect the entire civilian population. The humanitarian catastrophe is characterized, among other things, by a collapsed health care system, a total lack of supplies and constant violence against the civilian population by warring parties.
In this crisis it is clear that women are being affected in a serious way. Women in Yemen are very much exposed to gender-based violence. In addition, there is no functional legal system in Yemen, which means that women all too often lack legal protection. The women who work to strengthen women’s rights in Yemen are also exposed to threats, abuse and sabotage of their activities, which undermines the work of strengthening the positions of women. A consequence of the war is the extensive refugee crisis that has hit Yemen as the civilian population flees the war. It has also led to vulnerability amongst women in the refugee camps as there is insufficient protection against violence in all its forms. Yemen is ranked fourth in the world when it comes to the number of people who are internally displaced, which highlights the enormous crisis that prevails.
The peace negotiations that take place all too often have a total absence of female participants, which leads to opinions from women not being represented. It demonstrates how women are excluded from peace negotiations and are given minimal opportunities to make their voices heard. The challenges presented highlight the importance of the implementation of the Women’s Convention in Yemen in order to create a more just and lasting peace. The Convention on the Rights of Women, which seeks to eliminate all forms of discrimination against women, is necessary to provide support to female victims of crime in war torn Yemen. The recommendations highlighted in the report “The Implementation of CEDAW in Yemen” emphasizes the importance of strengthening women’s security and calls for an end to the violence against women in Yemen. The report also points out that women’s low inclusion numbers in peace negotiations must increase and the goal should be for women to account for 30 percent of the participants in peace negotiations. In addition, civil society organizations play a key role in providing support to the civilian population and it is therefore recommended that civil society organization participate in peace negotiations.
Nahom Kubrom, intern 2020, Operation 1325
Link to report: HERE
