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2008 Assessment

Yemen: Integrity Indicators Scorecard

Yemen: Integrity Scorecard Report > Sub-Category: Civil Society Organizations
Indicators		Score
1	Are anti-corruption/good governance CSOs legally protected?	100
2	Are good governance/anti-corruption CSOs able to operate freely?	25
3	Are civil society activists safe when working on corruption issues?	0
4	Can citizens organize into trade unions?	63

Indicator and sub-Indicator Details

Are anti-corruption/good governance CSOs legally protected?

1a: In law, citizens have a right to form civil society organizations (CSOs) focused on anti-corruption or good governance.

Score:

YES

Comments: The International Center for Non-Profil Law, ICNL, an organization that helps governments set up appropriate legal frameworks for a sound civil society, conducted a workshop (Nov 17-18, 2007) to come up with recommendations for reforming Law No. 1. The recommendations would have given greater strength and momentum to civil society, but nothing materialized.

The Executive Procedures have further restricted nongovernmental organizations (NGOs) activity. Independent studies such as the Carnegie report highlight the difficulties: "While there is legal space for NGOs, the regimes redlines are perpetuated by a civil society aware of the consequences and of the probable futility of aggressive dissent, as well as of the rewards of at least partial compliance. Yemens economic turmoil compounds this situation because, although the background threat of political violence remains, economic scarcity makes government offers of financial assistance hard to turn down"

Earlier this year, a Danish Institute of Democracysponsored workshop organized by HOOD (a Yemeni Human Rights NGO) came up with a new Law for Civil Society.

References: Constitution of the Republic of Yemen, Article 58

Law No.1 2001 (Law of Associations and Foundations Executive Procedures of Law No. 1, 2004)

Carnegie Report on Yemen 2004, Page 8, [ LINK ]

[ LINK ]

[ LINK ].

Peer Review Comments: There are some restrictions, by implication if not explicitly, on the establishment of CSOs. The establishment CSOs is conditional on the approval of the Ministry of Social Affairs and Labor. Such CSOs cannot perform any activity unless they are officially launched. CSOs should renew their licenses annually from the same ministry.

1b: In law, anti-corruption/good governance CSOs are free to accept funding from any foreign or domestic sources.

Score:

YES

Comments: Special provision is made for civil society organizations (CSOs) that are of an advocacy nature. The war in Sa'ada was against CSOs said to be supported from the outside, when they were actually supported by the government. The government encourages foreign support to organizations that it favors or whose activities are backed by the President. In order for Yemen to accept mediation of Qatar in the Sa'ada War, Qatar was asked to support the construction of a grand mosque being built by an NGO that had been set up by the President or bore his name.

References: Law No.1 2001, on Associations and Foundations

Law No. 66 1991

Draft Law on Organized Demonstrations,1993

Draft Law Regulating Social and Cultural Associations, Federations, Forums, Professional Unions, and Charitable Societies 1997

1c: In law, anti-corruption/good governance CSOs are required to disclose their sources of funding.

Score:

YES

Comments: "Nongovernmental organizations (NGOs) can accept money and assistance from foreign sources without government permission, although they are required to inform the government that such assistance has been given. However, before undertaking an activity based on a request or assignment from an external [foreign] entity, an NGO must obtain approval of Ministry of Pensions and Social Affairs (MPSA)."

References: Law No. 1 2001, Article 9, [ LINK ]

Are good governance/anti-corruption CSOs able to operate freely?

2a: In practice, the government does not create barriers to the organization of new anti-corruption/good governance CSOs.

Score:

100

Comments: As the second and third references above indicate, activists can still organize to defend human rights and fight corruption, but the registratiion process can be difficult, depending on the nature of the organization and who is behind it.

References: Executive Procedures for Law No. 1 2004

[ LINK ]

2b: In practice, anti-corruption/good governance CSOs actively engage in the political and policymaking process.

Score:

100

Comments: Law No.1 contradicts the Constitution by placing obstacles and hindrances on the right of association guaranteed by the Contitution that render this right non-existent.

"Yemeni nongovernmental organizations may not be involved in political activities." From Carnegie Endowment

References: Alwasat article on nongovernmental organizations (NGOs) rights, Feb. 7, 2007

[ LINK ], Page 12

Peer Review Comments: Anti-corruption/good governance organizations are not allowed in practice, by authorities, to engage in the political and policy-making process.

2c: In practice, no anti-corruption/good governance CSOs have been shut down by the government for their work on corruption-related issues during the study period.

Score:

YES

$Scoring Criteria :: YES: A YES score is earned if there were no CSOs shut down by the government or forced to cease operations because of their work on corruption-related issues during the study period. YES is a positive score. NO: A NO score is earned if any CSO has been effectively shut down by the government or forced to cease operations because of its work on corruption-related issues during the study period. The causal relationship between the cessation of operations and the CSO\'s work may not be explicit, however the burden of proof here is low. If it seems likely that the CSO was forced to cease operations due to its work, then the indicator is scored as a NO. Corruption is defined broadly to include any abuses of power, not just the passing of bribes.$

Comments: Law No.1 contradicts the Constitution by placing obstacles and hindrances on the right of association guaranteed by the Contitution that render this right non-existent.

"Yemeni nongovernmental organizations may not be involved in political activities." From Carnegie Endowment

Needless to say, many Zeidi religious institutes were closed, some of which were engaged in political activities. Although the issue of licensing and permits for these institutions was used as a rationale in this case, it is not an issue for Salafi (fundamentalist extremist) institutions..

References: Alwasat article on nongovernmental organizations (NGOs) rights, etc., Feb. 7, 2007

[ LINK ]

Peer Review Comments: No organization working explicitly on good governance/corruption was shut down.

Are civil society activists safe when working on corruption issues?

3a: In practice, in the past year, no civil society activists working on corruption issues have been imprisoned.

Score:

YES

$Scoring Criteria :: YES: A YES score is earned if there were no CSO activists imprisoned because of their work covering corruption. YES is a positive score. NO: A NO score is earned if any activist was jailed in relation to work covering corruption. The causal relationship between the official charges and the person\'s work may not be explicit, however the burden of proof here is low. If it seems likely that the person was imprisoned due to his or her work, then the indicator is scored as a NO. Corruption is defined broadly to include any abuses of power, not just the passing of bribes.$

Comments: Several reporters were imprisoned or harassed by authorities, and several government opposition and independent websites were blocked.

Cases of government repression against journalists and operators of websites includes closure of the Yemenportal.net website, created and run by Walid Al-Saqqaf. His car was also attacked and broken into. For more information on the Al-Khaiwani case, search the Internet for "Khaiwani," and you will get thousands of articles, statements by Human Rights groups and even government statements of condemnation.

Now an internationally known case, Abdulkarim Al-Khaiwani was sentenced to six years on bogus charges of aiding the insurrection in Sa'ada. This was in addition to several cases of repression against journalists and other advocates of human rights and sound governance.

Even satirists were not spared the long arm of government repression, as Fahd Al-Qarni was arrested and sentenced for mocking government corruption.

References: [ LINK ] (May 2008)

[ LINK ] (bottom of page)

3b: In practice, in the past year, no civil society activists working on corruption issues have been physically harmed.

Score:

YES

$Scoring Criteria :: YES: A YES score is earned if there were no documented cases of CSO activists covering corruption being assaulted in the specific study period. A YES score can be earned if there was an attack but it was clearly unrelated to the activist\'s work. YES is a positive score. NO: A NO score is earned if there were any documented cases during the study period of assault to an activist who covers corruption. Corruption is defined broadly to include any abuses of power, not just the passing of bribes.$

Comments: Mohammed Miftah, a Zeidi religious scholar openly critical of government corruption, was shot at and arrested by the Political Security Office (April 2008) as he was going home, reportedly with wife and his children in the car with him. He previously had been arrested in 2005 and charged with supporting the Houthi insurrection in the north. He was initially arrested and tried for leading a rally against the war in Sa'ada. The last arrest came after he was released from jail after he and another Zeidi scholar were sentenced to eight years imprisonment and death, respectively. (Amnesty International appealed for their release. Miftah was released, and the other scholar was pardoned). Both men and many more are still under arrest even though the war has ended.

References: [ LINK ] (May 2008)

[ LINK ] (bottom of page)

Peer Review Comments: Activists on corruption may be harassed and detained, but none was beaten in the past year.

3c: In practice, in the past year, no civil society activists working on corruption issues have been killed.

Score:

YES

$Scoring Criteria :: YES: A YES score is earned if there were no documented cases of CSO activists being killed because of their work covering corruption in the specific study period. YES is a positive score. NO: A NO score is earned if there were any documented cases during the study period where a person was killed related to a corruption trial, scandal or investigation. The relationship between a mysterious death and an individual\'s history may not be clear, however the burden of proof here is low. If it is reasonable that a person was killed in relation to his or her work on corruption issues, then the indicator is scored as a NO. Corruption is defined broadly to include any abuses of power, not just the passing of bribes.$

Comments: There were deaths during protest marches in Aden earlier this year, when southern pensioners, retired government employees and members of the armed forces demanded equal treatment for all government employees and armed forces personnel. The most obvious reason those in the military were not getting their pensions is because the commanders of their respective units were swallowing the pensions. Surely this is as obvious a case illustrating the prevalent corruption as could be found in the armed forces. The protests in Aden (as is the case in Sa'ada and elsewhere in the country) were not just for the sake of pensions but also against the all-around state of corruption that is rampant in all spheres of government.

References: [ LINK ]

[ LINK ]

Peer Review Comments: The authorities harassed activists on corruption issues, but none was killed.

Can citizens organize into trade unions?

4a: In law, citizens have a right to organize into trade unions.

Score:

YES

Comments: The Constitution and the Labor Law guarantee workers right to organize. However, there is strong infiltration of labor unions by "government staff" and officials, and the Federation of Labor Unions and Syndicates is, for all practical purposes, an government entity with a government-appointed chairman and employees. Severe obstacles hinder the work of unions, and labor law for the most part favors employers.

References: Constitution

Labor Law

Law No. 35 2002, Concerning the Regulation of Labor Unions

Law No. 5 1995, Concerning Labor

4b: In practice, citizens are able to organize into trade unions.

Score:

100

Comments: This reference date cannot be determined, but is still worth quoting, as it is still valid today:

"United Yemen enacted a new labor code in 1995 (amended in 1997) that guaranteed the rights of unionization and collective bargaining. The government restricts this right by placing government officials in union positions of prominence. The Yemeni Confederation of Labor Unions, the country's only labor confederation, had 350,000 members in 14 unions in 2002. A limited right to strike exists. All collective bargaining agreements must be reviewed by the minister of labor."

The second source provides the most recent assessment of the relationship between the law and labor:

The labor law applies to all workers except public servants, foreign workers, day laborers and domestic servants. The law provides workers with the right to organize and bargain collectively. The government permitted these activities; however, it sought to influence them by placing its own personnel inside groups and organizations. The Ministry of Labor has veto power over collective bargaining agreements, a practice criticized by the International Labor Organization (ILO).

References: [ LINK ].

[ LINK ]