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20 June 2014

Yemen: Second Cycle of Yemen UPR; no particular progress for Human Rights despite several commitments

The Human Rights Council adopted yesterday the report for the second cycle of the Universal Periodic Review of Yemen. This mechanism involves for every United Nations member state to be reviewed on the situation of Human rights in their country.

Although Yemen first took several commitments towards protecting Human rights, the authorities failed to implement most of them, under the pretext of the difficult internal situation. As a consequence, primordial reforms were repelled. However, even taking into account these shortcomings, Alkarama considers that the National Dialogue Conference and the decision of adopting a new Constitution protecting fundamental rights of Yemenis is a hopeful progress.

We also note that serious violations continue to occur in the country and Alkarama continues to receive from its field researchers cases of arbitrary detention and violations of international fair trial norms. More and more enforced disappearances are reported and death penalty sentences for minors are still pronounced, despite the initial commitment of the government to abolish them. We regret as well the decision of the authorities not to ratify the Convention on Enforced Disappearances and the Optional Protocol to the Convention against Torture.

Alkarama will pursue its follow-up on the Human rights situation in Yemen and hopes that the 166 recommendations accepted by Yemen at the occasion of its second cycle of the UPR will be implemented, especially with regard to the ratification of the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court.