YEMEN: Campaign Against Inhuman Sentencing of Children

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Summary: It is unlawful to sentence child offenders to capital punishment in Yemen, though it appears to happen in practice. It is also unlawful to sentence persons under 18 to imprisonment for life. However, young persons under 18 may lawfully be sentenced to corporal punishment, including flogging and amputation.

Advocacy Initiatives / Recent Developments / Resources / Contacts 


Advocacy Initiatives

SEYAJ is a a child rights organisation based in Sana'a that has been actively advocating for a fair juvenile justice system. In January 2011, along with other civil society organisations, SEYAJ sent a letter to the Yemeni President to stop the execution of Mohammad Tahir Smoom and ten other minors. The appeal was successful.

SOUL is a dedicated group of Yemeni professionals who recognise the need to assist the women and children of Yemen in the health, education and social development fields.

UNICEF's office in Yemen launched a three-year project in March 2010 to strengthen juvenile justice systems in Yemen in cooperation with the Ministry of Human Rights and the Delegation of the European Union.

 

The Yemeni National NGO Coalition for Child Rights Care works to monitor and implement the Convention on the Rights of the Child on a national level.

 

Recent Developments

In 1994, Yemen amended its criminal code to prohibit capital sentences for crimes committed by children under the age of 18.

According to UNICEF, only 22 % of births in Yemen are officially registered and, unfortunately, Yemen lacks adequate mechanisms to determine the age of defendants who do not have birth certificates.

In this section, you can read more about a recent case where children were sentenced to the death penalty because of Yemen's lack of adequate age assessment mechanisms.
In some cases, appeals submitted by several local and international organisations to stop the executions were successful.

 

On 18 January Yemeni authorities executed Fuad Ahmed Ali Abdullah Alsayed (Alshahari) in Taiz central prison for allegedly committing murder in June 2004, when his family claim he was still a minor. 

 

Urgent Appeal from Yemeni Civil Society Organisations to stop the execution of Mohammad Tahir Smoom and ten other minors.

 

Appeals submitted by several local and international organisations were answered when President Ali Abdullah Saleh decided to reconsider the death sentence of Mohamed Taher al-Sumom. Al-Sumom was sentenced to death when he was still a child.

Resources:

Resolution issued by the European Union with regards to the juvenile death penalty, in particular the cases of Mohammad Samoum and Fuad Ali, calling for a general moratorium on executions, the introduction of a comprehensive birth registration regime and the development of facilities to allow for adequate age determination in cases where birth certificates cannot be obtained. The Resolution also refers to current demonstrations across the region, national dialogue, etc.

 

A report analysing violations of children's rights in Yemen has been released by national NGO SEYAJ. The report documents incidents of murder, arrest and detention, beating, physical torture, kidnapping, rape, early marriage, sexual exploitation, displacement, neglect, and harassment, among other violations.

Research providing data on the death penalty for juvenile offenders in Yemen.

 

In this 20-page report, Human Rights Watch documents failures in law and practice that since January 2005 have resulted in 32 executions of juvenile offenders in five countries: Iran (26), Saudi Arabia (2), Sudan (2), Pakistan (1), and Yemen (1). The report also highlights cases of individuals recently executed or facing execution in the five countries, where well over 100 juvenile offenders are currently on death row, awaiting the outcome of a judicial appeal, or in some murder cases, the outcome of negotiations for pardons in exchange for financial compensation.

 

 

Contact

  • SEYAJ Organization for Childhood Protection
    Yemen - Sana'a - New University Sq
    Phone:009671238866
    Fax:009671228184
    E-mail: [email protected]
    Website: www.seyaj.org

 

  • SOUL For Development
    Street -16, Al-Rebat Street, Hail Saeed Area, Sana’a City
    P.O Box 18383
    Tel: +967 1 474732/474733
    Fax:+967 1 204524
    E-mail : [email protected]
    Website: www.soul-yemen.org

 

Violations against Children Monitoring Report 2009

pdf: www.crin.org/violence/campaigns/sentencing/

Organisation: 
Child Rights International Network
Attachment Link: 
http://www.crin.org/violence/campaigns/sentencing/
Web: 
http://www.crin.org/violence/search/closeup.asp?infoID=23453
Tags: 
Reporting to and monitoring the CRC
Individual cases of violations
Link : 

Countries

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