In Yemen, a country torn by war and conflict since 2014, female journalists operate in an extremely dangerous work environment, facing violations that include murder, physical assault, harassment, and even arbitrary detention.
These violations are not mere isolated incidents but part of a “systematic campaign” aimed at “silencing women’s voices” in Yemeni media, according to experts from the Justice for Yemen Coalition.
Despite significant challenges, some Yemeni journalists find “the courage to break the silence and speak about their suffering, hoping for justice,” says journalist Wafa Al-Matari.
Statistics from the Yemeni Journalists Syndicate reveal that 45 journalists have been killed during the war in Yemen since 2014, including two female journalists, Suad Hajira and Rasha Al-Harazi.
Breaking the Silence
In October 2023, Yemeni Journalist Wafa Al-Matari was dismissed from her job, and the institution she worked for “reneged” on paying her dues, prompting her to take action against what she perceived as “systematic injustice.”
Her first step was to turn to communication groups via WhatsApp in Yemen to discuss her case, which became a public issue among her colleagues in the profession.
However, Al-Matari was unable to reach a resolution that would secure her rights, leading her to adopt a more effective avenue for pressure: a sit-in protest. She staged the protest outside the Health Office building in Taiz, where she had worked.
Al-Matari did not expect that demanding her rights would result in her imprisonment, as she was arrested by security forces affiliated with the Houthis, who confiscated her personal phone containing evidence against the officials at the Health Office from which she was dismissed.
Ultimately, Journalist Al-Matari found herself imprisoned in the notorious Al-Saleh Women’s Prison in the Hawban area of Taiz province, controlled by the Houthi group, where she remained for 11 days. During that time, she was denied visits and contact with her family; her mother was only allowed to visit her a week after her arrest.
Al-Matari recounts: “I was dismissed from my job, threatened, harassed, beaten, and imprisoned. Despite the ruling of the primary court, they refused to release my financial dues, and I faced harassment from a health official, for whom I had evidence and messages condemning him, until the criminal investigation unit deleted this evidence from my phone.”
When her 11 days in custody ended, Al-Matari’s release was not straightforward. She was forced to provide what is known as a “commercial guarantee” as a condition for her release. She states that the public prosecution “threatened to imprison her again if she resumed her protest.”
Al-Matari suffered due to her dismissal and failure to receive her dues for fifteen months, rendering her unable to pay her rent –which had accumulated for six months– putting her at risk of eviction. The university also barred her from taking exams until she paid her tuition fees, at a time when she could not afford to cover these expenses, as she explains.
“Fear Overcame Me”
Another Yemeni journalist spoke about her suffering, documented by the Justice for Yemen Coalition, but she chose to remain anonymous for fear of repercussions on her family. Her ordeal began when she was assaulted by a soldier from the internationally-recognized Yemeni government.
The Taiz governorate is divided between areas controlled by Houthi forces and those under the control of the Yemeni government.
This journalist opted to pursue legal action to fight her battle away from the media, stating that “fear overcame me” due to the potential retaliation against her family for demanding her rights and holding the offending soldier accountable, as documented by the Coalition.
In her testimony, she reveals that her ordeal began in May 2024 when she was attacked in the Wadi Al-Qadi area within the Taiz governorate, which is under the control of the Yemeni government.
She recounts: “One of the soldiers affiliated with the Taiz military command threatened me and hurled abusive language at me. After I boarded a public transportation bus, he pursued me, threatening me with a weapon and even fired shots to intimidate me.”
“When I was subjected to the assault, fear overwhelmed and consumed me, especially regarding my parents’ reaction. Just thinking about how my father and mother would feel upon learning that their daughter was subjected to an attempted assault by an armed man, who even shot at me, was distressing,” she added.
The journalist reached the conclusion that “I cannot remain silent; silence will not solve the problem but may exacerbate the violations,” according to the documentation by the Justice for Yemen Coalition.
She decided to seek legal recourse “in an attempt to achieve justice and keep my story out of the media.”
The Coalition reports her testimony that resorting to legal action was not easy, but rather “a daunting step filled with challenges.” However, she was “determined to break the silence.”
“My voice could serve as an example for many other Yemeni journalists who have faced violations and fear speaking out. It wasn’t easy, but I felt stronger when I saw myself fighting for my rights, which prompted me to consider the impact of my experiences on others.”
Torture of a Journalist
The Justice for Yemen Pact Coalition tried to document the details of another type of suffering experienced by Yemeni journalist Hala Badawi.
However, Badawi preferred to withhold much of the information on violations she faced, as she does not wish to dwell on the past.
The Coalition indicates that Badawi’s case “reflects the extent of the suffering and its psychological, health, and social effects on female journalists in Yemen due to the severe assaults against them.”
Badawi was arrested in December 2021 for over 100 days, during which she was tortured and subjected to enforced disappearance, according to the Coalition, which states that her arrest was related to her journalistic writings.
After some time passed since her disappearance, the internationally-recognized Yemeni government admitted to her presence in the military intelligence prison in Hadhramaut province in eastern Yemen.
At that time, Badawi faced accusations of being responsible for “subversive and hostile acts.”
The Coalition reports that the security authorities in the province “exerted psychological and social pressures” against Badawi, highlighting that she “was subjected to a smear campaign aimed at damaging her reputation, with fabricated videos about her circulated, putting her and her family in a difficult psychological and humanitarian situation.”
Hadhramaut was classified as one of the most oppressive provinces in Yemen concerning press freedoms during the tenure of Governor Al-Bahssani, who became known for his enmity towards journalists. He is currently a member of the Presidential Leadership Council. The number of violations committed against journalists during his administration totaled 51 out of the 79 violations recorded from 2015 until the end of 2023, reflecting a significant abuse of power during his time.
Abuse of Power
The Justice for Yemen Pact Coalition commented on the violations faced by female journalists in Yemen, stating that “at a time when the national judiciary and law enforcement agencies should serve as national mechanisms to protect female journalists from all violations and arbitrary practices, the conflicting parties have weakened these institutions and rendered laws for the protection of female journalists ineffective.”
In the case of the journalist, Wafa Al-Matari, a memorandum issued by the Investigation and Security Prosecutor’s Office in the Taiz governorate, controlled by the Houthi group, dated November 4, 2023, accused her of defamation through social media and her sit-in at the Health Office.
Al-Matari turned to the judiciary after her grievances against the Health Office and their refusal to release her dues were disregarded, prompting her to file a second case seeking her rights and salaries. Meanwhile, the first case filed by the Health Office against her for defamation is proceeding along its own path.
The first case remains unresolved, while in the second case, Al-Matari received a ruling from the primary court in Taiz on February 12, 2024, ordering the Health Office to promptly pay her financial dues, according to the Coalition’s documentation.
The Coalition highlights that the Health Office in Taiz “refused to implement the court ruling and the directives issued by the prosecutor’s office, exploiting its authority and influence in the region.”
It adds that “following the refusal of the director of the Health and Population Office in Taiz to comply with the ruling and the orders from the prosecutor and the court, the Public Funds Court and Attorney General issued a coercive order against him on June 2 for failing to appear before the prosecutor for questioning regarding obstructing the judicial process.” However, the Coalition states that this official “managed to obstruct the enforcement of the judiciary’s decisions through his influence.”
In the case of the journalist who was assaulted by a Houthi soldier, “the case remains pending in the prosecutor’s office, despite coercive arrest orders issued against the perpetrator, who has not been apprehended, benefiting from his affiliation with the Taiz military command,” according to the Justice for Yemen Pact Coalition.
The lawyer representing the journalist revealed that “the reason for the delay in the case’s progress is the difficulty of executing court judgments due to the ongoing war and the weakened authorities.”
She stated that “powerful individuals exploit their authority to obstruct the execution of numerous rulings and judgments, reflecting a lack of enforcement of the law regarding violations faced by female journalists in Yemen.”
The Painful Reality of Journalists’ Work
Mohammed Ismail, executive director of the Center for Studies and Economic Media in Yemen and a member of the Justice for Yemen Pact Coalition, states that female journalists “face systematic targeting through various methods and approaches from all parties involved in the conflict at varying degrees.”
He adds that “despite the limited number of female journalists who have faced violations compared to their male counterparts, the monitoring body recorded 46 violations against female journalists since 2015.”
Ismail confirms that “the reality far exceeds these figures, as many violations experienced by female journalists go unreported for fear of their safety and reputation, making it difficult to document them.”
He explains that the recorded violations varied from “arrests, verbal and physical assaults, to blackmail, bullying, and defamation through various electronic and media platforms.”
Ismail also notes that female journalists in Yemen “face complicated procedures when conducting interviews or obtaining permits, even when the subject of coverage is social and not political.”
A Dangerous Indicator
A recent study by the Media Freedom Observatory conducted at the beginning of 2023 revealed a growing phenomenon of cyberbullying against Yemeni female journalists as a form of systematic oppression aimed at restricting their activities. The study showed that 72 percent of participating female journalists reported experiencing “cyberbullying regularly.”
Ninety percent of the female journalists surveyed believe that the reasons for the directed cyberbullying against them are linked to “social and cultural factors,” which is a dangerous indicator of societal acceptance of escalating assaults against them.
This phenomenon of cyberbullying has led to “a reluctance among many female journalists and activists to use social media platforms,” according to results of the study.
Personal Threats
Several reports reveal the level of pressure and discrimination faced by women in Yemen, necessitating effective measures to ensure their rights in the context of a stringent culture, according to experts in the Justice for Yemen Pact Coalition.
According to a report from the Panel of Experts on Yemen to the Security Council, issued on November 2, 2023, Yemeni women working in fields such as politics and human rights face “personal threats, including death threats, and threats against their family members”.
The report emphasized that these types of violations “negatively affect women, particularly as they occur within the socially conservative Yemeni community.”
Additionally, a report issued by the Justice for Yemen Pact Coalition highlighted that conflict parties in Yemen “seek to silence human rights defenders through various threats such as detention, torture, and politically motivated trials.”
The report, which reviewed cases of female human rights defenders in Hadhramaut province, noted that local authorities and police in the province “ignore issues concerning human rights defenders, thereby reinforcing discrimination against women” in Yemen.
Impunity
Perpetrators of violence against Yemeni female journalists often “escape punishment” due to the fragile justice and judicial system, as well as the influence of armed militias and conflicting parties in the country, according to the Coalition.
A joint statement from more than 50 Yemeni organizations on International Day to End Impunity for Crimes Against Journalists in 2023 revealed that at least nine out of ten cases of assault against Yemeni female journalists, “escape punishment.”
Over 2,500 violations were committed against female activists working in the fields of politics, media, and human rights in Yemen, according to the report Violations Against Freedom of Expression published by the Studies and Economic Media Center.
Yemeni lawyer and human rights defender Nawal Bakhowneh states that the reality of violations against female activists, particularly journalists, requires both local and international communities to “seriously work towards ending the culture of impunity, providing justice for victims of these criminals, and empowering journalists to carry out their work freely and professionally.”
She clarifies that “despite the existence of national and international laws and treaties protecting women, the application of these laws in Yemen faces significant challenges, necessitating intensified efforts from the local and international community to ensure the protection of female journalists and women in general from violations and discrimination.”
Bakhowneh points out that the Yemeni constitution stipulates that “the state guarantees the right to freedom of opinion and expression and freedom of the press.” It also affirms “the protection of the rights of all citizens, including women.” Furthermore, the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights calls for the protection of women and girls in conflict situations, including journalists. The UN Security Council Resolution 1325 of 2000 also calls for the protection of women and girls in conflict situations and emphasizes the role of women in preventing and resolving conflicts.
