Armies of Liberation

The pillaging of the economy continues:

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. (Read on …)

It was scary before. As of 2005, half of all kids were physically stunted from chronic hunger.

ADEN, 18 August 2011 (IRIN) – Continuing fighting in various parts of Yemen, which has recently displaced thousands of people especially in Abyan Governorate and the Arhab District of Sana’a, could compromise the nutritional status of those affected, especially children, the UN Children’s Fund (UNICEF) warns. This, it said, could potentially increase morbidity and mortality rates, especially among children under five.

“Yemen could become the next Somalia as child malnutrition is as big as it is in the Horn of Africa,” said Geert Cappelaere, a UNICEF representative in Yemen. While malnutrition was widespread in Yemen, the condition of many children had been worsened by displacement, he added. (Read on …)

PPO: About one-in-ten (9%) say they followed news about the anti-government unrest and violence in Yemen very closely. This was the top story for 2%. News about Libya and Yemen each accounted for 3% of coverage.

About a quarter of the public (23%) says the economy was their top story of the week, according to the latest News Interest Index survey conducted June 9-12 among 1,002 adults by the Pew Research Center for the People & the Press. By comparison, 13% say they most closely followed news about Weiner’s admission that he sent sexually suggestive photos and messages to several women online.

Beeb: The UN has added two groups in Yemen and two in Iraq to its annual list of those recruiting or abusing children during armed conflicts.

During Yemen’s recent civil war, as many as 15% of the pro-government militia and 20% of the Huthi rebels were made up of children, the UN says.

Even though that conflict was now over, nobody knew where the children were, said a UN special representative.

The annual report said children were involved in warfare in 22 countries.

“2010 proved another tragic year for children in conflicts all over the world,” said Radhika Coomaraswamy, Special Representative of the Secretary General for Children and Armed Conflict

Many of these are internet cafes with multiple users. The population of Yemen is 24 million with half of those under 20 years old. Due to very high birthrates, the population is expected to double by 2034.

Yemen Post: The number of the internet subscribers increased in Yemen last year to 563299 people, up 107870 subscribers from 2009, a report by the Public Corporation for Wire and Wireless Telecommunication said. (Read on …)

Riyadh police round up 109 in clampdown on beggary
ARAB NEWS: Jan 21, 2011, RIYADH: Riyadh police rounded up 109 beggars in the capital city during the past week as part of an intensive campaign against beggary, authorities announced on Friday. A police official said most of those caught were foreign nationals….A survey conducted by UNICEF in 2007 found that up to half of child beggars in the Kingdom entered the country with their parents.

It is reported that Saudi authorities arrest each month around 3,500 Yemeni children who are smuggled into the country to work or beg.

Its not hidden, its just that no body talks about it.

JPost: According to Dr. Hisham Al-Nabhani, a psychiatrist at Al Amal psychiatric hospital, about six cases like Samir’s cross his door every month seeking treatment for alcohol abuse.

“They usually come after drinking for three or four years,” Al-Nabhani told The Media Line. “Most of them have high economic status, are the sons of military officers or businessmen who have money and therefore access to alcohol.”

Al-Nabhani said most of them had lived in Saudi Arabia for extended periods. (Read on …)

1.8 million are out of school, many work on family farms in addition to the half million street children. Poverty drives child marriage and child trafficking in addition to child labor.

Yemen Observer: More than 500 thousand children working in the streets

Article Date: Dec 20, 2010 – 4:19:37 PM

More than 500 thousand children are working in the streets, according to new statistics from the Central Bureau for Statistics. This number has been documented to the Social Affairs Ministry through several implemented surveys. (Read on …)