Violence Against Women in Yemen: the Gender Divide

Written by Leila Koohi

With conflict escalating in the region since 2015, an economic crisis and the COVID-19 global pandemic, the situation in Yemen has culminated into a humanitarian crisis of 24 million people in need of support.

A large source of the conflict in Yemen began in 2015 when a civil war broke out in the region, a by-product of the rising decade-old tensions between the Saudi-backed Yemeni government and the Houthis — a Muslim minority group in Yemen, occurring upon the foundation of unrest caused by the Arab Spring five years prior (“Yemen: A Brief Background,” n.d.). Human Rights Watch (2019) estimates that from the beginning of the war until now, there have been 17,500 casualties, coupled with a staggering 20 million people facing food insecurity and 10 million on the verge of famine. And while the crisis in Yemen has no doubt touched the lives of all its citizens, facing the brunt of this crisis are Yemeni women who are looking to find leverage in their personal lives that have been upturned by war and famine while grappling with the increased vulnerability that comes with being a woman living in a conflict zone.

Prior to 2015, women in Yemen faced pre-existing issues with gender disparities in their access to basic rights like education and governmental representation. Such inequality is reflected in the World Economic Forum’s Gender Gap Report (2014) in which Yemen ranked 142nd, scoring 0.5145 out of 1. The report (2014) highlighted the fact that Yemeni women were only less than half as likely to pursue tertiary-level education in comparison to men and had zero representation in parliament. The general lack of access to basic resources and limited political power ensure Yemeni women remain oppressed by the governmental and societal systems structured to ensure their lack of control. It is these factors, among many more, that have inhibited Yemeni women and perpetuate the inequality which locks them in place.

And so, even before the conflict began, the lack of supporting socio-political infrastructure for Yemeni women placed them in constant risk of gender-based violence. A study conducted by Dr. Maria Holt (2020) at the University of Westminster revealed that, among the women surveyed in Yemen, 55% had been physically abused, 34% financially victimized, and 17% sexually abused. In addition to these alarming statistics, female genital mutilation is performed on Yemeni girls from aged 0–14 with about 15% undergoing the practice with almost 85% experiencing the procedure within the first week of life without sterile tools or a licensed health practitioner, leading to health complications later on in life (“Female Genital Mutilation: A Global Concern,” 2016). And with the conflict in Yemen persisting, the war has exacerbated the issue of gender-based violence with the number of reported cases increasing by 36% in 2017 (“Take Five,” 2018). Precisely because of the lack of support and infrastructure for women, gender-based violence continues. The perpetuation of said acts allows the violence Yemeni women and girls suffer through to be engrained into societal norms and encourages them to both consciously and subconsciously accept their mistreatment (Holt, 2020).

Despite the prevalence of these traumatizing occurrences in their lives, a large number of Yemeni women find themselves battling against the inequality while being the sole caregivers for their household as the conflict in the region persists and men continue to join the fight with few returning. As UN Women Programme Associate, Areej Jamal Al- Khawlani, says: “Yemeni women are now having to step into roles that were traditionally filled by men because so many men have been killed or injured, forcibly disappeared or have lost their jobs. But now they have the double burden of being the family’s main provider while also performing their expected role of primary caregivers in the family,” (“Take Five,” 2018). Now facing the challenges of caring for their families, Yemeni women like Um Nuria face the financial hurdles of needing to provide while living in a conflict zone. She says, “I started to suffer from rising prices. I found it difficult to pay rent and meet the daily expenses, not to mention the medicines for me and my children,” (“Yemen COVID Amidst Armed Conflict,” 2020). The struggle for these Yemeni women and girls who now work to support the livelihood of their families highlights the need for a focused approach that reflects the gender gap within the status quo.

Even more so, additional support to alleviate the additional economic stress of COVID-19 is needed as businesses and schools close, leaving mothers like Um Nuria without a stable income. “Many Yemeni women have demonstrated a high level of resilience and have worked hard to survive and create their own opportunities during the war, but unfortunately, the COVID-19 outbreak has affected them badly,” says independent expert on economic development and empowerment of women, Kholoud Hajar (“Take Five,” 2018). And due to the pandemic, more than 75% of major UN food, health, water and sanitation, shelter, and protection programs have closed or been reduced since April, leaving more families vulnerable to infection from COVID-19, hunger, and financial hardship (“Yemen Humanitarian Crisis,” 2020).

In light of the evidence from international bodies highlighting the impact of the conflict, humanitarian crisis, and COVID-19 pandemic in Yemen, the United Nations Entity for Gender Equality and the Empowerment of Women (UN Women) is working to cultivate resources from government and international partners to provide women in Yemen access to working opportunities and services for those who have experienced or are facing gender-based violence. All of these efforts are in hopes that Yemeni women can be provided with social and financial stability, “Women in Yemen have long been paying the price of conflict in the country, and now, they are bearing the burden of COVID-19 too…[they] need support, and they need peace in their country,” (“Yemen COVID Amidst Armed Conflict,” 2020). UN Women’s goal for the future in supporting the women and girls in Yemen is to build the foundational support systems that can allow Yemeni women to grow from their trauma, provide them with spaces to empower their community and advocate for more women in leadership to rise upwards from their fragmented nation, born anew.

“The dreams of many Yemeni women and girls have not come true, just because they are women and girls living in Yemen,” (“Take Five, 2018).