MIGRATION CASE STUDY - Yemen [a country in which sovereignty has been challenged]

Question 1

About Yemen:
- what is it and when was it created?
- where is it?
- what is the landscape like?
- who does it share borders with?
- what is the population?

Answer 1

• The Republic of Yemen is the merger of South and North Yemen in 1990 to become a new sovereign state.
• Southern end of the Arabian Peninsula
• shares borders with Saudi Arabia and Oman also has coastal settlements e.g the ports of Aden
• Population of 29 million

Question 2

what is the capital?
What is the capital’s population?

Answer 2

• Sanaa
• 2 million

Question 3

What is Yemen’s economy like?
What is its human development Idex and UN rankings?

Answer 3

• LIDC
• GDP has fallen recently
• 20% of gdp - agriculture
• 12% industry
• 68% services
• HDI score of 0.463 - 177th among UN member states
• 1st on the state fragility Index.

Question 4

How has Yemen’s Sovereignty been challenged?
Why has this happened?

Answer 4

• The Houthi Shai muslim movement has led to threats for many years.
• The Houthi’s beleived the government was corrupt:
  specifically because of their apparent inability to adress food insecurity, unemployment, poverty etc…

Question 5

What has this movement led to?

Answer 5

• The removal of the internationally recognised governement through armed force
• Houthi’s Seized the North, West and Capital of Yemen.
• there have been demands for an electoral reform due to the unfair representation of Houthis in Governement.
• In 2015 the deposed president requested Saudi-Arabia led airstrikes in an attempt to restore the original governement. This was against Humanitarian Law as it led to loss of life
• Anti-Houthi groups have been seeking independance for south Yemen which challenges both terretorial and soveriegn integrity. These groups seized port of aden; this has since been resolved through agreements with the gov.
• terrorist activity has arisen amongst the chaos of the civil war: Al quaeda attacks against US military in Aden + US embassy in Sanaa

Question 6

what is the impact on people due to this?

Answer 6

• 17,700 deaths/injuries
• 80% of the pop requires humanitarian assistance/protection
• 20 million are food insecure
• 8.4 million are at risk of starvation
• health system collapsed - 19.7 million lack acess to HC - huge outbreak of cholera
• 17.8 million people lack access to safe water and sanitation
• 1000s of people displaced by fighting many in camps
• civil war decimated agriculture and businesses
• 5 million children have no access to education

Question 7

Impacts on places

Answer 7

• Sanaa - in 2015 Houthi rebels took over the capital in protest
• sanaa - airstrikes cause civillian casualties + destruction of buildings
• Northern Yemen - medicine and food distribution hindered by lack of co-operation between Agencies and Houthi military
• Marib - attacks on hospitals; 15,000 people endangered
• ATtacks on Ports hindered aid.