Although books begin in 2011, corrupt institutional practices (like beating employees) remained. The reason for the institutional revolution is not only the upper management withholding (stealing) workers salaries but quite frequently beating and imprisoning employees. Most ministries have “private prisons” including the Endowments Ministry.

Yemen also needs good labor unions but with hyper-politicization, corrupt Sanaa regime loyalists are management, and the state often “cloned” the workers unions with a regime created look-alike.

Yemen Post Director of the Yemeni Petroleum Company Omar Al-Arhabi has resigned following a wave of protests organized by the company’s employees.

They accused Al-Arhabi of standing behind assaults against some of the employees who headed to the cabinet demanding the resignation of Al-Arhabi.

They said Al-Arhabi was involved in corruption issues and looting of the company’s assets, threatening to carry out an inclusive strike from March 16th if a new director is not appointed.
Al-Arhabi attributed his resignation to health reasons that forced him to resign.
In a resignation letter presented to President Abdu Rabo Mansour Hadi, Al-Arhabi said he did best to maintain and develop the company and its employees, indicating that he could provid the oil derivatives during the political crisis that hit the country in 2011.
A committee presided over by the State Minister Jawhra Hamoud along with ten representatives of the financial and oil ministries was formed with the aim of resolving the problems of the company and its employees.
Media sources revealed that Al-Arhabi had left the country after two days of his resignation.
Some employees of the company cited that they were interrupted by armed men affiliated with Al-Arhabi they prevented them from heading to the cabinet to sit in.
Well-informed sources said that the government accepted the resignation of Al-Arhabi and tasked the Oil Minister Hisham Sharaf to appoint a new director.
What is recently known as the institution revolution hit many public authorities and resulted in the ouster of tens of corrupt officials in Yemen, as employees and students insisted on firing them.
Several military and security units demanded the removal of officers accused of corruption or involvement in the deadly crackdown on protesters.

Yemen Post: Hundreds of officers and soldiers protested inside the International Sana’a Airport on Sunday, demanding to sack commander of the Air Forces, Mohammad Saleh Al-Ahmar, half-brother of the outgoing President Ali Abdullah Saleh.

One officer told Yemen Post on condition of anonymity that five tanks and many military vehicles belonging to the Central Security and Special Guard Forces rushed to the airport with the aim of dispersing the protesting soldiers.

“However, Major General Ahmed Ali Al-Ashwal, Chief of General Staff, immediately headed to the airport and ordered the forces not to assault approximately 500 protesters.” he added.\

He further said that negotiations are being continuing between Al-Ashwal and some officers of the Air Forces, indicating that they insist on the resignation of Al-Ahmar and meet all other demands.

Sources said that Guards of Al-Ahmar arrested an officer, Omar Al-Hatimi, who loudly criticized Al-Ahmar and threw his shoes at him inside a meeting hall of the Air Forces.

Officers and troops of the Air forces Air complained that Al-Ahmar used to confiscate all their rights, and fail to keep his promises for which he pledged to grant them promotion and allowances.

Sources told Yemen Post that the soldiers were preparing to escalate their protests against Al-Ahmar in case all their demands are not met.
The revolution of institutions have hit many public authorities and resulted in the ouster of tens of corrupt officials in Yemen, as employees insisted on firing corrupt officials.

Among those high-ranking officials who lost their positions were Major General Ali Hassan Al-Shater, chief of the Armed Forces Moral Guidance Department and Abdul Khaleq al-Qadhi, chairman of Yemenia airlines.

From Chatham House, the full ( PDF report is here):
The recent political crisis in Yemen has created a cycle of hyperinflation, currency depreciation and disruption to the supply of basic goods. This is already having a serious impact on the 10.3 million Yemenis living in poverty, with the prospect of worse conditions to come.

Yemen’s economy is in thrall to a complex, intertwined network of elites that control the oil industry, imports, processing, and packaging and distribution of goods. Many members of these elite groups are key actors in the current crisis.

The country’s economy is dominated by the production and export of crude oil, which generates 70–80 per cent of government revenues and most of the country’s foreign exchange reserves. As a result, Yemeni consumers are highly vulnerable to shifts in international commodity prices, domestic oil output, the country’s overall fiscal position and domestic security.

There is a need to reinforce existing social protection mechanisms and bolster humanitarian aid to ensure the availability of, and access to, basic commodities for the country’s most vulnerable people. Western donors are demanding a swift political transition as a precondition for resuming the bulk of aid spending, but the transition process has already been lengthy and contested, and any resolution is likely to be protracted and complex.

The current ‘wait-and-see’ approach to the situation being taken by some members of the international community will hamper a swift and effective response to the economic crisis, and is likely to exacerbate the human cost of the crisis.

CH: Anti-government protests in Yemen are complicating Nexen’s efforts to renew its licence for the country’s Masila oilfield.

Nexen may lose its licence for Yemen’s Masila oilfield to a local operator, officials in Yemen said, as the Canadian company’s efforts to renew the deal are hindered by political turmoil and the government’s urgent need for cash.

The loss would be a blow to Nexen, which produces around 35,000 barrels per day or more than a tenth of its global output from the field and whose licence for it expires in December. The Calgary-based company has also seen production problems at its North Sea assets this year.

Nexen has been working to renew the licence for another five years. This has proven difficult, especially during months of anti-government protest in Yemen against President Ali Abdullah Saleh’s refusal to accept a mediated plan to quit power.

“It (a licence extension) is not going to be easy . . . It is a difficult process under a political crisis,” a senior government official told Reuters.

“In case of no agreement, they (Nexen) will have to hand over to a local company. . . . There is not going to be any stoppage of oil production,” the source added.

Industry sources have suggested some government members believe the deal with Nexen brings in less revenues than the project should generate for the state.

Nexen said it was still talkng to the government.

“Discussions continue with the government of Yemen on the extension on Block 14. We will not be making any comments until those talks are completed,” a spokesman said in an e-mail.

“Production and shipping activities continue unaffected,” he added. “And we remain focused on the safe and efficient operation of our facilities as we have for the past two decades.”

Nexen produces from its two blocks in Yemen – Masila (Block 14) and East Al Hajr (Block 51) – and exports almost all of it from the Ash Shahir terminal on the southern coast of the country, mainly to Asia.

Block 14 had the country’s biggest proven oil reserves at the end of 2010, according to data from Yemen’s Petroleum Exploration and Production Authority (PEPA).

The government source did not name the company that would take control of Masila should Nexen be unable to renew.

Another industry source based in Yemen and familiar with the matter said the government would like to pass operations at Block 14 to Yemen-based SAFER E&P Operations Company (SEPOC), which is the operator of Maarib Block 18.

“It looks like there is a mood within the government for SEPOC to take over Block 14 in Masila,” the industry source said.

An official at SEPOC confirmed the possibility but said the final decision would be made by the Oil Ministry.

Nexen began production in Masila oilfield in 1993 and operations have been largely unaffected during the eightmonth political crisis, except for a brief halt to production in May because of a worker strike.

Government forces have violently suppressed protests over Saleh’s refusal to accept a mediated handover plan and Nexen said it has temporarily closed its office in Sanaa, which has witnessed much of the violence.

The company has over 900 employees in Yemen, more than 90 per cent of whom are Yemeni nationals.

World powers fear that chaos in Yemen, home to alQaeda’s most powerful regional branch and adjoining the world’s biggest oil exporter Saudi Arabia, could threaten oil shipping lanes and raise the risk of militant strikes on Western targets.

The upheaval has hit the poorest Arab country’s modest oil industry hard. An attack by tribesmen forced the country’s main oil pipeline to shut for more than three months earlier this year.

The pipeline was repaired in July and the flow of Maarib crude resumed, enabling the Aden refinery to produce fuel again, although Gulf-based traders say the country still imports some 2-3 cargoes of fuel per month.

Packaging Essentials: Goss Community SSC press launches color expansion in Yemen
Submitted by Admin on December 21, 2010 – 07:54No Comment

* 14th October Foundation government printing operation enhances color capabilities
* Opportunity to increase circulation of leading daily titles

The inauguration of a new Goss Community SSC press at the 14th October Foundation for Journalism, Printing and Publishing in Aden City, Yemen, was officiated on November 22nd 2010 by the Yemeni vice president, Abdu Rabbu Mansoor Hadi. In a ceremony broadcast via national media channels and reported in the state press, Hadi announced a new benchmark for color and automation in Yemen.

Referencing new levels of speed and control, vice president Hadi mentioned the user-friendly design of the Goss technology, which will easily handle the increasing circulation and pagination requirements of key titles printed at 14th October Foundation, particularly that of the flagship broadsheet newspaper of the same name….Currently printing around 20,000 copies per day of government-owned 14th October as well as a range of Yemeni tabloid newspapers, the 14th October Foundation has ambitious growth plans. The company estimates the new press line has the capacity to print approximately 60 percent of the total volume of printed newspapers in the whole of Aden city.

According to the Foundation’s chairman Ahmed Al-hubaishi, the attendance of Abdu Rabbu Mansoor Hadi at the inauguration of the new press denotes the significance of the newspaper for the national populace. “As in most countries, electronic media have become a popular source of news and information, but the newspaper continues to constitute the primary and most accessible means of reliable, meaningful communication across our very broad and diverse population. We have a great responsibility here in Yemen and this latest investment indicates our enduring commitment to the task ahead.”

al Hadath: Attorney General released on Monday Secretary General of the National Commission for Atomic Energy to ensure the presence and charged after his arrest yesterday on the back of his expulsion of the Group of the Public Authority for the fight against corruption and close the doors of the building ..

من جانب اخر نفذ موظفو اللجنة الوطنية للطاقة الذرية اليوم الأحد 19 /12 2010 م اعتصاما مدنيا في مقر اللجنة بمنطقة حدة في العاصمة اليمنية صنعاء لعدم استجابة أمين عام اللجنة لمطالبهم التي يطالبون بها منذ أكثر من ستة أشهر واستخدامه القوة والتعسف الوظيفي بما يمس حقوق الموظفين.. From the other side do the staff of the National Committee of Atomic Energy today Sunday, 12.19 2010 sit civilians at the headquarters of the district unit in the Yemeni capital Sanaa, the lack of response Secretary General of the Committee for their demands, which they claim more than six months and use of force and abuse, including career prejudice the rights of employees. .

وذكر المعتصمون في بيان لهم، حصل الحدث على نسخة منه، أن أمين عام اللجنة قام بطرد فريق الهيئة العليا لمكافحة الفساد المكلفة بالدخول إلى مقر اللجنة بناء على توجيهات عليا لمراجعة السجلات والمخالفات المالية والإدارية والفنية في اللجنة.. The protesters said in a statement to them, the event got a copy of it, that the Secretary General of the Committee to expel the team High Authority to Combat Corruption in charge of access to the headquarters of the Commission at the direction of the Graduate Review records and financial irregularities, administrative and technical in the Committee ..

وأضاف البيان أن الاعتصام يأتي ردا على قيام الأمين العام بكسر باب غرفة الجهاز المركزي للرقابة والمحاسبة والعبث بمحتوياتها.. The statement added that the strike was in response to the Secretary-General broke the door of Room Central Organization for Control and Accounting and tampering with its contents ..

كما طالب المعتصمون، في بيانهم، الجهات الرسمية بالمسارعة إلى تدارك هذا الأمر قبل أن تصل الأمور إلى ما لا يحمد عقباها. The protesters demanded that, in their statement, the official authorities to promptly rectify this before things reach what may have dire consequences.

Dialogue Committee, Houthi Group in Coordination Deal
Yemen Post: The national dialogue preparatory committee and the Houthi Group reached an agreement at their meeting in Saada on Thursday for forming a joint commission to coordinate addressing various national issues.

They stressed the importance of deepening their mutual relationship, as they argue that Yemen’s problems can’t be tackled but within a general national framework and comprehensive national dialogue with no party excluded.

All crucial issues including the Saada and south files as well as building nation, establishing citizenship and quality, partnership of power and wealth and preserving the country from any plots should be addressed by all and soon, they said.

There should be a focus on the Saada and south issue because we all know that the crux of Yemen’s crises lies in their causes, they urged.

The national dialogue to be held soon should address the war file and war impacts topped by the topics of war prisoners, establishing the fate of those who went missing, rebuilding war-ravaged areas, compensating the affected people and sticking to all agreements including the Doha peace deal, they added.

Moreover, the regime should stop unconstitutional acts including suppressing activists and civilians, and it should also close all exceptional courts, they said.

Academic scholarships abroad are important for Yemen’s future but are largely an entitlement to the sons and daughters of influential persons, bypassing much more qualified applicants. Furthermore, hundreds of thousands are on the military payroll but perform no military service, including some al Qaeda. Military commissions are often awarded by tribal sheiks as patronage and the sweeping exclusion of applicants by region (especially the south) during recruitment has triggered riots. The state also has trouble collecting what is due, whether taxes or the millions are owed in electricity bills by high profile persons. There’s really a lot that can be done to rationalize the Yemeni governmental budget, but it remains to be seen if its Romania all over again.

SANA’A, Dec. 3,2010 – SABA: President Ali Abdullah Saleh ordered last Thursday to reduce the proportion of fuel spending given to senior officials estimated at YR 4.5 billion annually. The order comes within the austerity plans, economic and financial reforms and plans to reduce the public budget deficit.

Other measures Saleh has urged included rationalizing the public spending, limiting funds given for medical treatments outside the country, parties, hospitality, advertisement and other unnecessary activities.

The decision could save the budget about YR 10 billion a year.

YP: BY DIONNE SEARCEY- Wall Street Journal (For the Yemen Post)
New documents have emerged relating to possible bribery in Yemen by global oil-services giant Schlumberger.
Internal company documents reviewed by The Wall Street Journal show that Schlumberger employees raised concerns in 2008 about payments for cars the company rented from Yemeni government officials at above-market rates—including $6,000 a month for a Toyota Camry and two Toyota Corollas. Employees also cited a contract with customs broker Dhakwan Management Petroleum Co., whose chairman had ties to Yemen’s president.

Internal emails say the company was aware of those ties.

The new details of Schlumberger’s activities in Yemen come as the U.S. Justice Department continues an investigation into whether the company made improper payments to a government-related consulting firm there. Last month, the Journal reported that the probe, which was at an early stage, concerned contract payments Schlumberger made several years ago to a consulting firm headed by a nephew of Yemeni President Ali Abdullah Saleh.

At the time, the company was seeking approval from Yemen’s government to create an oil-exploration databank on the country.

A spokeswoman for the Justice Department declined to comment on its probe.

The documents reviewed by the Journal were part of an internal investigation in which Schlumberger delved into possible incidents of bribery reported by employees. It isn’t clear what conclusion, if any, the company probe reached or if documents from it are part of the Justice Department inquiry.

A spokeswoman for Schlumberger declined to comment. The company, with principal offices in Houston, Paris and The Hague, has said it has a robust compliance program and thoroughly investigates any concerns raised.

The internal documents show that Schlumberger tried to cancel contracts in Yemen out of concern they could violate U.S. foreign-bribery laws but sometimes faced what it said was retribution. In 2007, after it canceled a car-rental contract with one government official, a Schlumberger truck packed with three tons of explosives—which are commonly used in the oil-services industry—was hijacked in a volatile area of Yemen, according to the documents.

Schlumberger managers suspected the incident was tied to the contract’s cancellation, but didn’t cite any conclusive evidence.

No one was hurt in the incident, and the truck and explosives were recovered, the documents say.

The Schlumberger documents say that for years the company rented vehicles from officials of Yemen’s Petroleum Exploration and Production Authority, which approves crucial permits, contracts and activities of foreign oil companies. In 2008 alone, PEPA awarded $30 million worth of work to Schlumberger, company documents say; the documents don’t cite figures for other years. The car-rental contract that Schlumberger believes led to the hijacking incident wasn’t one of the contracts with a PEPA official.

Between 2005 and 2007, Schlumberger paid a total of $6,000 a month to rent one Camry and two Corollas from PEPA committee member Ahmad Abdul Jaleel Al-Shameeri, the Schlumberger documents say. The market rate for renting the cars was about $950 each per month, according to company documents.

As a member of the committee, Mr. Al-Shameeri would have signed off on contracts awarded to oil-service firms, including Schlumberger, the company’s documents say, though they didn’t identify any Schlumberger contracts he approved.

It’s unclear how much business, if any, Schlumberger got from the committee while it was renting cars from Mr. Al-Shameeri. The company documents indicate it canceled the contract out of concerns it might be violating U.S. foreign-bribery laws.

Mr. Al-Shameeri couldn’t be reached, and it isn’t clear if he is still works at PEPA.

The documents say that for four years starting in 2004, Schlumberger also rented three Toyota Land Cruisers for $2,700 a month each from Abdul Hameed Al-Miswari, a PEPA general manager of materials. The documents say he was responsible for permitting and signing off on imports of equipment by oil-services companies.

“He has it within his power to stop all importation and therefore, all work,” said one internal document that describes Mr. Al-Miswari. The document cited the market rate for Land Cruisers rentals as $1,600 each a month.

Schlumberger managers elsewhere in the Persian Gulf region learned about the contract with Mr. Al-Miswari and canceled it on Jan. 26, 2008, company documents say. Two weeks later, on Feb. 10, 2008, “Al-Miswari apparently stopped two [Schlumberger] imports into the country,” one company document states. The documents don’t indicate why the company believes Mr. Al-Miswari was personally involved in blocking the shipments. Mr. Al-Miswari, who continues to work at PEPA and was a committee member while Schlumberger was renting cars from him, didn’t return calls seeking comment.

PEPA’s current chairman, Nasser Al-Humaidi, didn’t return phone calls or answer emails seeking comment about whether the agency allows officials to conduct private business with oil or oil-service firms or why the PEPA committee members would be involved in renting cars to such companies.

Other internal documents say that Schlumberger has been using customs broker Dhakwan since 2003.

Dhakwan prepares and processes customs exemptions and re-export permits at PEPA, according to internal Schlumberger documents. Schlumberger paid Dhakwan $280,000 between 2004 and 2007, the documents show.

Schlumberger documents identified Dhakwan’s chairman then as Major Gen. Ali-Mohsen Al-Ahmar, a political ally and close friend of the Yemeni president. A person who answered Dhakwan’s phone said Gen. Al-Ahmar wasn’t available, and declined to comment further. Yemeni government officials didn’t return calls seeking comment.

When Schlumberger’s internal investigation revealed Dhakwan’s ties to the government, the documents say, the company tried to terminate its contract. But it found its imports stalled, and decided to reinstate the broker, according to company emails and other documents. The documents say Schlumberger thought Dhakwan officials might have interfered with its imports, but didn’t cite specific evidence for the company’s suspicions.

“It appears that PEPA will process NO documents unless they are presented by Dhakwan (and this applies to ALL companies in Yemen, not only SLB),” read an Aug. 11, 2009, email from Nigel Bennett, Gulf Supply Chain Services Manager for Schlumberger, to several other Schlumberger employees. “It appears that we have no choice but to continue to use them to present the paperwork to PEPA if we wish to continue business.”

Mr. Bennett couldn’t be reached for comment.

Schlumberger managers tried using another customs broker for a time but found it used Dhakwan to process its customs transactions, company documents say. The Schlumberger managers decided it wasn’t worth angering Dhakwan, according to the documents, and let the new company keep using the broker. The website of Dhakwan, now called Dhakwan Petroleum & Mineral Service Co., lists Schlumberger as a current customer.
—Margaret Coker contributed to this article.