( أصداء و متابعات إخبارية): القضية الجنوبية في الصحافة العالمية

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اقتباس   المشاركة الأصلية كتبت بواسطة Ganoob67 Press Freedom First Casualty Of Yemen Unrest Friday June 5th, 2009 / 6h37ADEN (AFP)--The growing separatist unrest in southern Yemen and the ensuing government crackdown has already made a casualty of press freedom. Eight publications independent or critical of President Ali Abdullah Saleh's *****istration were suspended in early May when police halted their distribution and seized all copies. The information ministry accused them of violating the press law which bans the publication of anything that could threaten the unity of Yemen, the poorest Arab country. The regime accused the seven weeklies and the main southern daily, Aden-based Al-Ayyam, of siding with anti-government protesters in the south. A total of 16 people, including five members of the security forces, have been killed in the south since the new wave of unrest erupted in late April. Some of the four-million-strong population of southern Yemen, the most impoverished part of the country and until May 1990 an independent state, feel discriminated against by the central government which is controlled by northerners, and are now demanding independence. "I am against independence but I understand the demands of our brothers in the south," said Samir Jubran, the young founder and editor-in-chief of Al-Masdar (The Source), one of the eight publications that were shut down. Jubran believes the problem is that the government considers any publication that doesn't toe the official line to be supporting the opposition. The government has also decided to set up a special court to deal exclusively with press-related offenses. "These actions are a clear effort to silence independent voices in Yemen," New York-based Human Rights Watch said May 16, calling on Saleh to "end this campaign of intimidation and censorship." Information Minister Hassan Ahmad al-Lawzi didn't give an interview, despite several requests. But Justice Minister Ghazi al-Aghbari said that establishing the court was merely a "technical measure" aimed at "protecting the dignity of journalists," not at silencing them. However, journalists remain skeptical. Jubran, for example, is convinced the new court "will not be independent." Many Yemeni publications have never been afraid of vigorously criticizing the government. This is rare in Arab countries, where the press is either censored by the authorities or practices self-censorship. Press freedom has deteriorated alarmingly in the past few years, especially since the start of an uprising in the north in 2004 by Zaidi rebels. An offshoot of Shiite Islam, the Zaidis are a minority in the mainly Sunni country, but they are a majority in the Saada governorate in the far north. Journalist Abdul Karim al-Khaiwani, 43, has been jailed four times and has spent a total of 359 days behind bars over the past five years on charges of supporting the Zaidi rebels. A former editor-in-chief of the opposition weekly Ash-Shura, he has harsh words for the government over the way it has tried to crush the uprising. Khaiwani was last sentenced in June 2008 to six years in jail, before being pardoned by Saleh in September, but he has had to give up writing for the time being. He says he was simply doing his job by trying to present the rebels' point of view. The Brussels-based International Crisis Group, in a report late last month on "Yemen: Defusing the Saada Time Bomb," cited the Zaidi rebellion as carrying "grave risks for Yemen's political, sectarian and social equilibrium." As with the Zaidi conflict in the north, a similar situation seems to be developing regarding secessionist sentiment in the south. "The fall of the regime might come from the south," Khaiwani said. Jubran said he had already been interrogated three times over his weekly's coverage of the unrest in the south, especially over seven articles published in one edition. He believes the aim of the government is to bully the newspapers into submission, but also that if the situation in the south deteriorates even further, "it might well shut down all of them." Monday, Qatar-based watchdog the Doha Centre for Media Freedom pointed the finger at Sanaa, saying: "There can be no doubt that the Sanaa authorities have sacrificed press freedom in their efforts to control unrest in the south of the country." [فقط الأعضاء المسجلين والمفعلين يمكنهم رؤية الوصلات . إضغط هنا للتسجيل]

Press Freedom First Casualty Of Yemen Unrest Friday June 5th, 2009 / 6h37ADEN (AFP)--The growing separatist unrest in southern Yemen and the ensuing government crackdown has already made a casualty of press freedom. Eight publications independent or critical of President Ali Abdullah Saleh's *****istration were suspended in early May when police halted their distribution and seized all copies. The information ministry accused them of violating the press law which bans the publication of anything that could threaten the unity of Yemen, the poorest Arab country. The regime accused the seven weeklies and the main southern daily, Aden-based Al-Ayyam, of siding with anti-government protesters in the south. A total of 16 people, including five members of the security forces, have been killed in the south since the new wave of unrest erupted in late April. Some of the four-million-strong population of southern Yemen, the most impoverished part of the country and until May 1990 an independent state, feel discriminated against by the central government which is controlled by northerners, and are now demanding independence. "I am against independence but I understand the demands of our brothers in the south," said Samir Jubran, the young founder and editor-in-chief of Al-Masdar (The Source), one of the eight publications that were shut down. Jubran believes the problem is that the government considers any publication that doesn't toe the official line to be supporting the opposition. The government has also decided to set up a special court to deal exclusively with press-related offenses. "These actions are a clear effort to silence independent voices in Yemen," New York-based Human Rights Watch said May 16, calling on Saleh to "end this campaign of intimidation and censorship." Information Minister Hassan Ahmad al-Lawzi didn't give an interview, despite several requests. But Justice Minister Ghazi al-Aghbari said that establishing the court was merely a "technical measure" aimed at "protecting the dignity of journalists," not at silencing them. However, journalists remain skeptical. Jubran, for example, is convinced the new court "will not be independent." Many Yemeni publications have never been afraid of vigorously criticizing the government. This is rare in Arab countries, where the press is either censored by the authorities or practices self-censorship. Press freedom has deteriorated alarmingly in the past few years, especially since the start of an uprising in the north in 2004 by Zaidi rebels. An offshoot of Shiite Islam, the Zaidis are a minority in the mainly Sunni country, but they are a majority in the Saada governorate in the far north. Journalist Abdul Karim al-Khaiwani, 43, has been jailed four times and has spent a total of 359 days behind bars over the past five years on charges of supporting the Zaidi rebels. A former editor-in-chief of the opposition weekly Ash-Shura, he has harsh words for the government over the way it has tried to crush the uprising. Khaiwani was last sentenced in June 2008 to six years in jail, before being pardoned by Saleh in September, but he has had to give up writing for the time being. He says he was simply doing his job by trying to present the rebels' point of view. The Brussels-based International Crisis Group, in a report late last month on "Yemen: Defusing the Saada Time Bomb," cited the Zaidi rebellion as carrying "grave risks for Yemen's political, sectarian and social equilibrium." As with the Zaidi conflict in the north, a similar situation seems to be developing regarding secessionist sentiment in the south. "The fall of the regime might come from the south," Khaiwani said. Jubran said he had already been interrogated three times over his weekly's coverage of the unrest in the south, especially over seven articles published in one edition. He believes the aim of the government is to bully the newspapers into submission, but also that if the situation in the south deteriorates even further, "it might well shut down all of them." Monday, Qatar-based watchdog the Doha Centre for Media Freedom pointed the finger at Sanaa, saying: "There can be no doubt that the Sanaa authorities have sacrificed press freedom in their efforts to control unrest in the south of the country." [فقط الأعضاء المسجلين والمفعلين يمكنهم رؤية الوصلات . إضغط هنا للتسجيل] __________________
حرية الصحافة في اليمن أولى ضحايا الاضطرابات

الجمعة يونيو 5th ، 2009 / 6h37ADEN (اف ب) -- تزايد الاضطرابات الانفصالية في جنوب اليمن ، وأعقبت ذلك حملة الحكومة بالفعل ضحية لحرية الصحافة.
ثمانية منشورات مستقلة أو تنتقد الرئيس علي عبد الله صالح الادارة علقت في مطلع ايار / مايو عندما اوقفت الشرطة توزيعها واستولت على جميع نسخ.
وزارة الاعلام واتهمتها بانتهاك قانون الصحافة الذي يحظر نشر أي شيء يمكن أن يهدد وحدة اليمن ، أفقر بلد عربي.
واتهم النظام السبعة الأسبوعية واليومية الرئيسية في الجنوب ، ومقرها عدن الأيام ، بالانحياز متظاهرين مناهضين للحكومة في الجنوب.
ما مجموعه 16 شخصا من بينهم خمسة أفراد من قوات الأمن ، قد لقوا مصرعهم في جنوب البلاد منذ موجة جديدة من الاضطرابات التي اندلعت في اواخر نيسان / ابريل.
بعض من أربعة ملايين نسمة في جنوب اليمن ، والأكثر فقرا من البلاد وحتى أيار / مايو 1990 في دولة مستقلة ، وتشعر للتمييز من جانب الحكومة المركزية التي يسيطر عليها في الشمال ، والآن يطالبون بالاستقلال.
"أنا ضد الاستقلال ولكن أنا أفهم مطالب اخواننا في الجنوب" وقال سمير جبران ، الشاب مؤسس ورئيس تحرير شركة مصدر (المصدر) ، وهو واحد من ثمانية من المنشورات التي تم إغلاقها.
جبران يعتقد أن المشكلة تكمن في أن الحكومة ترى أن أي نشر لا تسير على الخط الرسمي أن يدعم المعارضة.
وقررت الحكومة أيضا على إنشاء محكمة خاصة للتعامل مع الصحافة حصرا في الجرائم المتعلقة.
"إن هذه الأعمال هي جهود واضحة لإسكات الأصوات المستقلة في اليمن" ، من نيويورك مقرا لها قالت هيومن رايتس ووتش في 16 ايار / مايو ودعا صالح الى "وضع حد لهذه الحملة من التخويف والرقابة".
وزير الإعلام حسن أحمد اللوزي لم يعط مقابلة ، على الرغم من عدة طلبات.
لكن وزير العدل غازي Aghbari قال إن إنشاء المحكمة هو مجرد "تدبير التقنية" التي تهدف الى "حماية كرامة الصحافيين ،" لا إسكاتهم.
ومع ذلك ، لا يزال متشككا تجاه الصحفيين. جبران ، على سبيل المثال ، على اقتناع المحكمة الجديدة "لن تكون مستقلة".
العديد من المطبوعات اليمنية لم تكن تخاف من انتقاد الحكومة بشدة. هذا أمر نادر في البلدان العربية ، حيث لا رقابة على الصحافة من قبل السلطات أو ممارسات الرقابة الذاتية.
حرية الصحافة تدهورت بصورة مفزعة في السنوات القليلة الماضية ، وخصوصا منذ بدء الانتفاضة في الشمال في عام 2004 من قبل المتمردين زيدي.
فرع من المذهب الشيعي ، وأبناء الطائفة الزيدية هم اقلية في البلد الذي يغلب على سكانه السنة ، لكنها أغلبية في محافظة صعدة في أقصى الشمال.
الصحفي عبد الكريم الخيواني (43 عاما) بالسجن أربع مرات وقضى ما مجموعه 359 يوما خلف القضبان على مدى السنوات الخمس الماضية بتهمة دعم المتمردين من الطائفة الزيدية.
سابقا رئيس تحرير اسبوعية للمعارضة الرماد الشورى ، فقد وجه كلمات لاذعة الى الحكومة بسبب الطريقة التي حاولت سحق الانتفاضة.
الخيواني للمرة الاخيرة في حزيران / يونيو 2008 بالسجن لمدة ست سنوات في السجن قبل ان يتم العفو عنهم من قبل صالح في أيلول / سبتمبر ، لكنه كان لا يتخلى عن الكتابة لبعض الوقت.
ويقول انه كان يؤدي وظيفته لمجرد محاولة من جانب المتمردين لعرض وجهة نظر.
من بروكسل مقرا لها المجموعة الدولية لمعالجة الازمات في تقرير لها أواخر الشهر الماضي عن "اليمن : صعدة نزع فتيل قنبلة موقوتة" واستشهد التمرد الزيدي كما تحمل "مخاطر جسيمة في اليمن السياسية والطائفية والتوازن الاجتماعي."
وكما هو الحال مع الصراع الزيدي في الشمال ، وضعا مماثلا ويبدو أن البلدان النامية فيما يتعلق المشاعر الانفصالية في الجنوب.
"ان سقوط النظام قد يأتي من الجنوب" الخيواني.
جبران وقال انه تم استجواب أكثر من ثلاث مرات في خطابه الاسبوعي تغطية الاضطرابات في الجنوب ، ولا سيما ما يزيد على سبع مقالات نشرت في طبعة واحدة.
انه يعتقد ان الهدف من الحكومة للضغط في الصحف على الخضوع ، وإنما أيضا أنه إذا كان الوضع في الجنوب يزداد الوضع تدهورا "قد اغلقت كل منهم".
الاثنين ، قطر ومقرها الدوحة لمركز حرية الإعلام اصابع الاتهام الى صنعاء ، قائلا : "مما لا شك فيه أن سلطات صنعاء ضحوا حرية الصحافة في جهودها الرامية الى السيطرة على الاضطرابات في جنوب البلاد".


[فقط الأعضاء المسجلين والمفعلين يمكنهم رؤية الوصلات . إضغط هنا للتسجيل]
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جنوب اليمن الفقيرة مرتعا للاضطرابات

بقلم كريستيان شيز

عدن (اليمن ، 3 يونيو 2009 (اف ب) -- ما يقرب من عقدين من الزمن بعد التوحيد و 15 عاما بعد فشل محاولة الانفصال ، جنوب اليمن حتى يشعر المبعدة من الشمال إلى أن وحدة البلاد واجهت شكوكا.
غضب جزء كبير من نحو أربعة ملايين شخص يعيشون في فقر شديد الجنوب تجدد المشاعر الانفصالية وتسبب في تصاعد وتيرة العنف في الاسابيع الاخيرة.
ستة عشر شخصا من بينهم خمسة من عناصر قوات الامن ، لقوا حتفهم في اشتباكات في الجنوب منذ المظاهرات التي اندلعت في نيسان / ابريل.
واضاف "وصلت الى مستويات خطيرة من الكراهية العنصرية. انه مثل الشماليين سباق آخر" وقال صحافي محلي.
أحد رجال الأعمال في عدن الذي طلب عدم الكشف عن هويته لوكالة فرانس برس انه "من الواضح" ان تصعيد العنف في الاشهر المقبلة.
المواجهة "قد تكون طويلة ودامية ، لأنها لن تكون معركة بين جيشين ،" كما هو الحال في تدم طويلا محاولة الانفصال في الجنوب في عام 1994 ، قال.
القلاقل الحالية له جذوره في سنوات بعد الوحدة اليمنية التي أعلنت في 22 مايو 1990 ، ولا سيما في الفترة التي تلت الحرب الاهلية عام 1994 التي استغرقت اقل من شهرين.
معروف من عام 1970 حيث الشعبية الديمقراطية وجمهورية اليمن ، والتي تديرها حكومة اشتراكية ، والجنوب ، التي كانت جزءا من الكتلة السوفياتية ، ومستقلة عن بريطانيا عام 1967 عندما غادر حتى عام 1990.
وقال "بمجرد ان الشماليين جاء الى هنا للتو أنها ساعدت في حد ذاتها -- لأنها ونهب الأرض والموارد الاقتصادية" وقال رجل الأعمال. الشمال "في عام 1994 ، تصرفت كما لو كانت قوة غازية هزمت في البلاد".
قضية ملكية الأراضي بشكل خاص الشائكة. قصص الشماليين نظرا حرة ضخمة من الأراضي في الجنوب وفيرة.
"ان الناس في المقام الأول في السلطة ، خصوصا العسكريين ،" وقال رجل الاعمال عدن.
لكن الشيخ سالم Banaffa مدير عام العقارات وادارة وتخطيط المدن في محافظة عدن ، وقال : "ليس هناك من فائدة ، لا امتياز لاحد."
"هذه الشائعات" من الأرض خالية من الادعاءات. "ليس صحيحا".
إضافة إلى قضية ملكية الأرض ، والاستياء من ظروف العمل والعميق ، وكثير من الجنوبيين على اقتناع بأن فرص العمل في الجنوب محفوظة لالشماليين.
'الانفصال ليس خيارا قابلا للتطبيق'
تقدر ب 40 في المئة بالنسبة للبلد كله ، والبطالة ، ويعتقد أن يكون أعلى بكثير في الجنوب.
وقال الوزير الذي استقال من منصبه العام الماضي ، وعبد القادر هلال ، وهي الآن عضو في لجنة حكومية في الجنوب.
انه يرى "بعض التشابه" بين الوضع الراهن في اليمن ، وبعد عام 1989 في المانيا الغربية عندما اندمجت مع الشرقية الشيوعية سابقا ، والجمهوريات السوفييتية السابقة.
"الجنوبيين لا يهتمون الانفصال عن الشمال أو الجنوب ، ما يهمه هو الإنسان ، والصحة ، والتعليم ، وإمدادات الكهرباء والمياه والخدمات" ، وغير مباشرة تؤكد فشل الدولة في توفير الخدمات الأساسية.
كثير من هذه العوامل لتعيد اشعال الأفكار الانفصالية ، مع بعض الجنوبيين تدعي منطقتهم كانت "استعمرت" من الشمال.
هذه المشاعر قد أدى الى ولادة "في الجنوب لحركة" وهو ائتلاف فضفاض من جماعات المعارضة من الاشتراكيين السابقين الذين كانوا في السلطة في عدن حتى عام 1990 على المتشددين الاسلاميين الذين قاتلوا في افغانستان ضد السوفيات في طول 1980s مع شركة زعيم القاعدة اسامة بن لادن.
وحتى في تنظيم القاعدة في شبه الجزيرة العربية وتعهد الجناح علنا دعمه لالجنوب ضد الحكومة المركزية.
الدوائر الحكومية مسؤولية الاضطرابات الراهنة على الأزمة الاقتصادية ، وأصر على أن بعض العاطلين عن العمل يجري التلاعب بها واستغلالها من قبل أنصار استقلال الجنوب ، وبعضها الآخر من قبل تنظيم القاعدة.
وجهة النظر هذه ، ينظر إلى المشكلة وليس واحدا من التمييز ولكن من نقص في التنمية.
أيا كان السبب ، ليس هناك شك في أن الحكومة قلقة صنعاء مع الرئيس اليمني علي عبد الله صالح نفسه في نيسان / ابريل التحذير من مخاطر تجزئة اليمن الى "العديد من الكيانات".
هلال يرى الحل يكمن في "منح السلطات المحلية مسؤولياتها كاملة" ، وتقول ان الاصلاح في هذا الشأن في الطريق.
بالنسبة للعديد في الجنوب فسيكون الوقت تأخر كثيرا ، ولكن ليس الجميع في الجنوب يعتقد أن الاستقلال هو الحل.
"الانفصال ليس خيارا قابلا للتطبيق ، وذلك لأن 80 في المئة من سكان اليمن (تقدر ب 24 مليون نسمة) يعيشون في الشمال ، ولكن الشمال سوى 20 في المئة من الموارد" وقال رجل الأعمال ، مشيرا إلى أن معظم النفط والغاز من حقول في الجنوب. استقلال الجنوب من شأنه أن يخلق "powderkeg" مع الشماليين التسرع جماعية في جنوب افغانستان ، كما قال.
<شعبة>

[فقط الأعضاء المسجلين والمفعلين يمكنهم رؤية الوصلات . إضغط هنا للتسجيل]

[Ganoob67]

There is no easy way out for Yemen

By Walid Al Saqaf, Special to Gulf News
Published: June 06, 2009, 23:22
For Yemen to emerge from its current crisis and avoid disintegration and falling into chaos, President Ali Abdullah Saleh will have to take long-awaited and painful decisions. Saleh will have to accept that the old-fashioned temporary solutions in trying to appease a faction, squash a rebellion by force, or prevent the media from covering growing problems around the country will simply not work this time around. The problems have grown out of proportion and cannot be contained by the usual rhetoric or symbolic, decorative gestures here and there.
Here, I will try to describe the most important decisions that the president will have to take in order to try and prevent a doomsday scenario for Yemen, not only for the sake of unity of its land and people, but for the sake of stability of the region.
The first and foremost priority for Saleh is to build the trust of the public in the judiciary by establishing the rule of law as it is supposed to. A real test for the president is in bringing the powerful, corrupt individuals in his regime to justice.
The people have had enough of the rhetoric about the need to combat corruption while showing no real progress on the ground when it comes to big names. Such a move will have to be genuine and sweeping. It must not bring a few scapegoats to trial while leaving the rest untouched.
Apart from corruption, action needs to be taken to resolve the numerous cases of crimes committed against civilians and land grabs by powerful tribal ******s and senior military officers, particularly in the south and west of the country.
Strong action in this regard will bolster the standing of the regime and show it is committed to justice and equality for all citizens, regardless of what class, tribe or province they belong to.
The parliamentary elections that were supposed to be held in April have been postponed and temporarily replaced by a bizarre and unprecedented vote by the members of parliament themselves. Such an act reflects a poor sense of understanding of how democracy works. One can't simply vote for himself to remain in his parliamentary seat for another two years without consulting the people. Yet that is precisely what happened in Yemen this year.
On the other hand, the two-year delay may not be the biggest problem. The real problem is the seriously deficient election process, which leaves little room for competition. The presidential elections of 2006 were a clear example of this problem and unless Saleh acts strongly to correct this serious flaw, democracy will remain handicapped.
Saleh will have to relinquish his grip on the media and allow the reporting of events in the south and other parts of the country without accusing journalists of 'inflaming hatred' or acts 'against the national interests of the country'.
Recently, many newspapers were prevented from publishing, including Yemen's most widely read independent daily, Al Ayyam, whose headquarters in Aden was besieged and two of its employees killed by government forces.
News websites were blocked, and various acts of intimidation against journalists through trials and threats have increased. Such acts are counter-productive and only inflame the situation across the country because in the age of satellite TV channels and the internet, it is virtually impossible to block out information all the time. People, particularly in the south, feel that their voices will not be heard because the media are prevented from reporting about their protests and miseries.
Finally, the regime needs to understand that unity for Yemen, regardless of how great an accomplishment it may be, is not a goal in its own right. Unity should have been an umbrella under which every citizen would be treated equally and justly. It is a means through which development and prosperity should have manifested themselves across the country.
Often times the regime portrays unity as a final destination, the last bus stop after which everyone is expected to leave the bus without asking any questions.
Obviously, unity as a symbol has never been and should never be seen as the reason for the deterioration of living standards and all the negatives that have dominated the lives of Yemeni citizens.
Although calls for breaking up Yemen and turning it back into two or more countries are not the solution to the ongoing crisis, it is important to explore the reasons behind those calls and try to remedy the situation before it is too late.
There is no easy way out of the mess Yemen is in right now. I cannot provide the secret recipe that can save the country from disintegration. But I am convinced that using force to squash local calls for separation, targeting the media, turning a blind eye to corruption and lawlessness, and underestimating or discounting the real roots behind the calls for separation are all the perfect recipe for disaster.

Walid Al Saqaf is the *****istrator of YemenPortal.net and a Phd candidate at Örebro University, Sweden.

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[Ganoob67]

Q&A-What are the risks of instability in Yemen?

Sun Jun 7, 2009 5:02am EDT

June 7 (Reuters) - Yemen, the Arab world's poorest country, is struggling with an on-off revolt in the north, a secessionist movement in the south and intensified al Qaeda militancy.

Oil output is dwindling and water resources are depleting. The global financial crisis has further limited the ability of President Ali Abdullah Saleh's government to cope with high unemployment, runaway population growth and widespread poverty.

If Yemen tipped further into instability, or even state failure, this could endanger its neighbours, especially Saudi Arabia, and complicate efforts to combat al Qaeda and protect international shipping routes from piracy in the Gulf of Aden.

Western alarm is growing.

The United States has reacted to unrest in the south, where several people have been killed in protests in recent weeks, by urging an end to violence it said could sap Yemen's unity.

The European Union's anti-terrorism chief warned in May that Yemen could become a failed state and a safe haven for al Qaeda.

WHO RULES YEMEN?

Saleh, 67, took power in the former North Yemen in 1978 and has been president since the merger with the south in 1990, winning another seven-year term in a 2006 election.

The former army officer has dominated Yemen's formal democratic structures via his northern tribal power base, patronage networks and support in the armed forces.

Parliament voted in February to delay this year's parliamentary election to 2011 pending electoral reform.

Saleh has no obvious successor. His own grip on power is facing multiple challenges in a country awash with weaponry.

HOW BIG A THREAT IS AL QAEDA?

Yemen, where Osama bin Laden's father was born, has suffered a new wave of al Qaeda attacks over the past year. Saudi Arabia has said it fears al Qaeda could use Yemen to relaunch a 2003-6 campaign to topple the U.S.-allied Saudi royal family.

Yemen issued a list of 38 wanted militants after an al Qaeda suicide bombing killed four South Korean tourists in March.

Al Qaeda's Yemen wing changed its name to al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula in February, suggesting it aimed to revive the struggle against Saudi Arabia, the world's biggest oil exporter.

Yemen cooperated with Washington after Sept. 11, 2001 and al Qaeda attacks at home, including one on a U.S. warship. Many Yemenis fought U.S.-led forces in Iraq after the 2003 invasion.

WHAT LIES BEHIND THE NORTHERN INSURGENCY?

Tribesmen led by members of the Houthi family began an intermittent rebellion against the government in the northern Saada region in 2004. The insurgents are Zaidis, an offshoot of Shi'ite Islam, whose Imam ruled Yemen until the 1962 revolution.

They have economic and religious grievances, accusing Saleh, himself a Zaidi, of favouring Salafi Sunnis who lean towards Saudi-style Wahhabi Islam. The Yemeni government has suggested that Iran supports the rebels, but evidence for this is thin.

Rebel ****** Abdel Malik al-Houthi signed a Qatari-mediated peace deal in 2007, which broke down. It was revised in August 2008. Tension remains and it is not clear the revolt is over.

WHY ARE SOUTHERNERS DISCONTENTED?

The latest violence erupted on April 28 at an opposition rally to mark the 1994 civil war, in which Saleh's forces defeated the secessionist south, known before the 1990 unity deal as the People's Democratic Republic of Yemen.

People in the south, home to most of Yemen's oil facilities, have long complained that northerners abused the unity agreement to grab their resources and discriminate against them.

Demonstrations over army pensions turned violent in Aden in 2007. Job protests in the south degenerated into riots last year. Some southern ******s have openly called for secession.

HOW IS YEMEN'S ECONOMY FARING?

Oil production, the source of two-thirds of public revenue and 90 percent of export earnings, averaged 300,000 barrels per day last year, down from 410,000 bpd in 2004. Government oil export revenue fell 75 percent in the first three months of 2009 compared to the same 2008 period, the central bank said.

Gross Domestic Product grew about 4.4 percent in 2008, up from 4.2 percent in 2007. The World Bank called this disappointing, given high world oil prices in the first nine months. GDP is slated to grow 7.7 percent this year because of the one-off impact of the start of liquefied natural gas (LNG) production. LNG exports are due to begin in August. About 10 percent of GDP is tied up in energy subsidies.

Inflation is expected to decline below 10 percent this year after jumping to 19 percent last year from 8 percent in 2007.

About 35 percent of Yemen's 23 million people live in poverty. The population is set to double by 2035. The poor were hard hit by a 60 percent spike in world food prices in 2007-8.

The global financial crisis could slow inflows of foreign aid, investment and remittances. The World Bank says medium-term prospects beyond 2009 are poor due to declining oil output.

* Source: World Bank, Yemen Economic Update, Spring 2009



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