Yemen – Women’s Hopes & Actions for Peace, Against Extremism

http://wunrn.wpengine.com

 

Full CNN Article: http://edition.cnn.com/2009/WORLD/africa/11/14/yemen.fighting/index.html

 

UN – YEMEN’S CIVIL WAR SPREADS TO
SAUDI ARABIA

 

(CNN) — Fighting in northern Yemen has moved into Saudi Arabia, forcing school closures and sending thousands fleeing, according to the United Nations……”Fighting has now spilled into Saudi Arabia, reportedly causing 240 villages to be evacuated and more than 50 schools to be closed, ” Sigrid Kaag of UNICEF said in a statement this week. “The total number of people displaced by the conflict since 2004 has gone up to more than 175,000, from an estimated 150,000 only a few weeks ago.”…… Battles between Yemeni forces and Shiite Houthi rebels have raged intermittently for five years. A government offensive launched this summer has caused more bloodshed. ______________________________________________________________   http://www.women-without-borders.org/news/uptodate/163/

 

Yemen
– Women of Hope, Action, Peace

A Women without Borders SAVE journey to
Sana’a

SAVE – Sisters Against Violent Extremism – Sisters Against Violent
Extremism
unites women against violent extremism: raising awareness, encouraging peaceful
alternatives and promoting a global response.

October 26th, 2009-November 2, 2009

“Extremism pulls countries
apart and creates new divisions between East and West, Muslim and non-Muslim.
Terrorism is not about religion, or nationality. It is about human nature which
has not been guided properly.”

The SAVE team
travelled to Sana’a, Yemen, during the last week of October to gain in-depth
information about women and their views on extremism in the country’s urban
center and to establish a
SAVE Yemen chapter. Despite increasing media coverage that portrays
Yemen as a training ground for terrorist activity and as a state on the brink
of collapse, Dr. Edit Schlaffer and her team found a vibrant civil society
being driven forward by educated and open women.

SAVE brought
together a group of engaged women from women’s and human rights’ groups, academic
institutions, the press, and international institutions to found SAVE Yemen. Over the
course of a series of meetings, the women shared their stories, debated, and
brainstormed ideas for a needs-based project that they wanted to undertake as a
group. The group agreed to establish regular SAVE
meetings and to involve further women and men in their work. They
agreed to particularly target mothers as potential alarm-sounders when their
children travel down the wrong path.

The SAVE team
also presented the SAVE film
“Journeys through Darkness”
on the occasion of the SAVE
press conference hosted by the Media Women’s Forum. The audience felt that
their own experiences and the reality of extremism in Yemen were reflected in
the film, and underscored the film’s message that violent extremism is
independent of religion, nationality, or political affiliation. Both
English-language and Arabic media extensively covered the event, highlighting
local interest in the role of women in the international security arena.

A number of outstanding women have committed to working with SAVE Yemen, including:

Fahmia
al Fotih

Fahmia Al-Fotih’ is SAVE Yemen’s
local coordinator and recently returned to Sana’a from London, where she
completed her Master’s Degree in International Relations from the University of
Westminster. The recipient of several international scholarships, Fahmia is a
strong voice for Yemen’s women and committed to empowering them on both the
local and the international level. Fahmia’s experience as both a journalist and
a teacher has positioned her as a valuable contributor to SAVE Yemen and SAVE
Global.

Husnia Al-Kadri is the director of the
Gender-Development Research and Studies Center at Sana’a University. Husnia has
contributed to the research and writing of numerous acclaimed studies on a
range of issues affecting women in Yemen, including early marriage and domestic
violence. Husnia is partnering with SAVE to conduct research on how Yemeni
parents experience and recognize their children’s adoption of extremist
ideologies. This action oriented, ground breaking research will pave the way
for evidence-based involvement of mothers in SAVE´s regional work.

Amal Al-Basha is one of the leading advocates for
women’s and human rights in Yemen. As the founder of the independent Sisters
Arab Forum, Amal has created a domestic violence hotline and speaks out for
women both politically and on the societal level.

Rahma Hugaira is a highly respected female
journalist and chairwoman of the Media Women’s Forum. Rahma’s goal is to
produce and broadcast media programs that positively affect development and
issues of good governance. Vibrant and motivated, Rahma has met Osama bin
Laden, had an entire newspaper established to criticize her progressive
articles, and travels widely.

Nadia Al-Saqqaf is
Yemen’s only female editor of a political newspaper: the “Yemen
Times”. She continued the family legacy her father left after his early
death and who had created one of the leading English-language newspapers in the
Gulf region. Nadia’s inquisitive and critical articles highlight issues
frequently neglected in government-run media, and she has gained the respect of
civil society, the government, and the international media alike.

A number of successful meetings with
government ministers, with a forward-thinking girls’ school that serves as a
model of holistic education, and with individuals committed to creating change
despite the odds have shown that Yemen is hopeful that a peaceful and inclusive
community is possible and desirable. Women’s participation is critical to
moving forward, and Yemen’s leading female voices must be shared to encourage others
to speak up against violent extremism.

The SAVE
team looks forward to returning to Sana’a in early 2010 to continue working
with the local SAVE Yemen group and to conducting cutting-edge research on
families and extremism.