UN Human Rights Council 37th session (26 February to 23 March 2018)
Item 10: General debate following the presentation of country reports and oral briefings of the Secretary-General and High Commissioner for Human Rights
Since the start of the armed conflict in Yemen in 2015, women’s rights violations and abuse have increased dramatically. Women have been disproportionately affected by the use of explosive weapons on their homes, weddings, funerals, schools, and markets. They have been targeted by snipers and fallen victims to indiscriminate shelling and mine explosions. They have been shot at with live bullets during peaceful demonstrations and detained arbitrarily.
The international community is both morally and legally obliged to protect civilians and address the additional burden born by women. In this context, WILPF would like to share key recommendations from a letter to the recently appointed UN Special Envoy to Yemen sent by more than 100 Yemeni civil society organisations and activists as well as a number or regional and international NGOs.
WILPF echoes the messages of Yemeni civil society leaders and calls on all UN States to support the UN Special Envoy to Yemen in addressing the following demands:
- Immediately working on a cessation of hostilities, opening safe humanitarian channels, lifting embargo on all airports including Sana’a airport, and allowing commercial flights to operate.
- Resuming the political and peace negotiations and ensuring that the peace agenda is gender responsive, that women’s issues and priorities are reflected, and that negotiating delegations include gender experts.
- Guaranteeing no less than 30% of women representation in all committees developed as result of the peace negotiations and political processes during the transitional period, such as the de-escalation committees, reparation and reconstruction committees, and any other committees formed.
Download this statement as PDF.