Advocating for Accountability in Yemen: Justice4Yemen Coalition at UPR

February 15, 2024

The Yemeni Coalition to Monitor Human Rights Violations - YCMHRV proudly presented a Joint UPR Statement as an active member of the Justice4Yemen Coalition, supported by the DT Institute, during this week's Universal Periodic Review (UPR) pre-sessions in Geneva. At the Human Rights Council meeting, our coalition addressed critical issues related to human rights violations in Yemen, encompassing the ongoing conflict, detentions, forced disappearances, and their impact on civilians. We have actively engaged in two vital platforms: UPR Pre-sessions and the exchange with NGOs and EU Member States.

The statement highlights pivotal human rights issues, with a specific focus on children's rights, and expressing concerns about arbitrary detention, enforced disappearance, and torture. As part of the coalition, we put forth the following key recommendations: Conduct impartial and transparent investigations into alleged violations of international humanitarian and human rights law by all parties involved in the conflict. Publicize the findings and ensure accountability by holding perpetrators responsible for all violations and abuses. Ensure that any peace agreement or political settlement in Yemen includes provisions for transitional justice, accountability, and reparations, in consultation with victims, survivors, and civil society. The full statement can be found here.

In our commitment to broaden our advocacy efforts, we collaborated with numerous local and international organizations, including Amnesty International, Human Rights Watch, the Cairo Institute for Human Rights Studies (CIHRS), among others, to further contribute to the UPR with joint recommendations. This collective statement encompasses submissions made by civil society organizations, addressing accountability and redress, arbitrary detentions, torture, and enforced disappearances, women’s rights and gender equality, children, and armed conflict, blocking and impeding humanitarian access, refugees, asylum seekers, migrants, and internally displaced people, persons with disabilities, freedom of expression, journalists, and human rights defenders. You can view the full joint recommendations here.

Mr. Mutahar Al-Bathiji,, The Executive President of YCMHRV stated that “Six grave violations are still being committed against children by parties involved in the conflict in Yemen, particularly the Houthi group. We urge the international community to actively intervene by exerting pressure on the conflicting parties in Yemen to promptly cease child-related violations, institute accountability measures for the perpetrators, pursue justice, ensure comprehensive compensation for the victims, and incorporate justice for children into any forthcoming peace negotiations in Yemen.”