The Impediments Faced by Yemen in Enforcing International Arbitral Awards: a Legal Analysis
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THE IMPEDIMENTS FACED BY YEMEN IN ENFORCING INTERNATIONAL ARBITRAL AWARDS: A LEGAL ANALYSIS OMAR SALEH ABDULLAH BAWAZIR DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY UNIVERSITI UTARA MALAYSIA 2018 THE IMPEDIMENTS FACED BY YEMEN IN ENFORCING INTERNATIONAL ARBITRAL AWARDS: A LEGAL ANALYSIS OMAR SALEH ABDULLAH BAWAZIR (901289) A thesis submitted to the Ghazali Shafie Graduate School of Government in fulfillment of the requirements for the Doctor of Philosophy Universiti Utara Malaysia PERMISSION TO USE In presenting this thesis in fulfilment of the requirements for a Post Graduate degree from the Universiti Utara Malaysia (UUM), I agree that the Library of this university may make it freely available for inspection. I further agree that permission for copying this thesis in any manner, in whole or in part, for scholarly purposes may be granted by my supervisor(s) or in their absence, by the Dean of Ghazali Shafie Graduate School of Government where I did my thesis. It is understood that any copying or publication or use of this thesis or parts of it for financial gain shall not be allowed without my written permission. It is also understood that due recognition shall be given to me and to the UUM in any scholarly use which may be made of any material in my thesis. Request for permission to copy or to make other use of materials in this thesis in whole or in part should be addressed to: Dean (Ghazali Shafie Graduate School of Government) UUM College of Law, Government and International Studies Universiti Utara Malaysia 06010 UUM Sintok Kedah Darul Aman i ABSTRACT The importance of an award of international arbitral proceedings is considered to be of no value if the award is not enforceable. The enforcement of international arbitral award (IAA) depends on the national court of a nation. In Yemen, however, the enforcement of IAA by the national court is difficult because of the loopholes of the provisions of Yemeni Arbitration Act 1992 (YAA), tribalism and corruption. The objectives of this study are: firstly, to investigate the provisions of the enforcement of arbitration laws in Yemen; secondly, to study international provisions relating to the enforcement of arbitration laws; thirdly, to study the impact of tribalism on the court of appeal in the enforcement of IAA in Yemen; fourthly, to determine the impact of corruption on the court in the enforcement of IAA in Yemen; and finally, to make suggestions for the improvement of the enforcement of international arbitral awards in Yemen. This study employed two methods namely doctrinal legal research and socio- legal research. The data were collected through face-to-face, semi-structured interview. The researcher applied purposive sampling by choosing expert persons from the Central Organization for Control and Auditing, Public Funds Prosecution, the Supreme National Authority for Combating Corruption, academicians, arbitrator, Judicial Inspection Board member and the Court of Appeal judges who conduct arbitral cases. The collected data were analysed using content analysis method. This study found that YAA is unable to cope with issues relating to the enforcement of IAA. It failed to include some legal provisions that are related to the enforcement. The study also confirmed the adverse impact of tribalism and corruption on the court in enforcing the international arbitral awards. This is because the tribes dominate the government institutions. While, the corruption impedes the judicial operations. Therefore, the suggestions to overcome the impediments are: firstly, the amendment of YAA; secondly, ratification of New York Convention 1958; thirdly, development of strategies to civilize the tribes by the government; and finally, the independence of the judiciary must be enforced. Keywords: Arbitration, International Arbitral Awards, Tribalism, Corruption, Yemen. ii ABSTRAK Kepentingan satu ‘award’ prosiding penimbangtaraan antarabangsa dianggap tidak ada nilai jika ‘award’ itu tidak boleh dikuatkuasakan. Penguatkuasaan ‘award’ penimbangtaraan antarabangsa (IAA) bergantung pada mahkamah sesebuah negara. Akan tetapi, penguatkuasaan ini sukar dilaksanakan oleh mahkamah di Yaman kerana halangan-halangan seperti kelemahan di dalam Akta Timbangtara Yaman 1992 (YAA), tribalisme dan rasuah. Kajian ini mempunyai lima objektif iaitu: pertama, menyiasat peruntukan penguatkuasaan undang-undang penimbangtaraan di Yaman; kedua, mengkaji peruntukan antarabangsa berkaitan penguatkuasaan undang-undang penimbangtaraan; ketiga, mengkaji impak tribalisme ke atas mahkamah rayuan dalam penguatkuasaan IAA di Yaman; keempat, menentukan impak rasuah ke atas mahkamah dalam penguatkuasaan IAA di Yaman; dan terakhir, memberi cadangan ke atas penambahbaikan penguatkuasaan IAA di Yaman. Metodologi kajian yang diguna pakai ialah kaedah penyelidikan undang-undang doktrinal dan kajian sosio- perundangan. Manakala data pula dikumpul melalui kaedah temu bual separa struktur secara bersemuka. Kajian mengguna pakai pensampelan bertujuan dengan memilih pakar dalam bidang tertentu daripada Central Organization for Control and Auditing (COCA), Public Funds Prosecution (PFP), Supreme National Authority for Combating Corruption (SNACC), ahli akademik, ahli penimbang tara, ahli Judicial Inspection Board (JIB) dan hakim mahkamah rayuan yang mengendalikan kes penimbangtaraan. Data yang dikumpul telah dianalisis menggunakan kaedah analisis kandungan. Kajian mendapati YAA tidak berupaya untuk menghadapi isu berkaitan dengan penguatkuasaan IAA. Ia gagal untuk memasukkan beberapa peruntukan undang- undang yang berkaitan dengan penguatkuasan. Kajian juga mengesahkan terdapat impak buruk tribalisme dan rasuah ke atas mahkamah dalam penguatkuasaan IAA. Ini kerana suku kaum mendominasi institusi-institusi kerajaan. Manakala, rasuah pula menjejaskan operasi kehakiman. Oleh sebab itu, cadangan-cadangan bagi mengatasi halangan tersebut ialah: pertama, pemindaan YAA; pengesahan New York Convention 1958; pembangunan pelan strategik untuk mendisiplinkan kabilah oleh pihak kerajaan; dan kebebasan badan kehakiman hendaklah dikuatkuasakan. Katakunci: Timbang Tara, ‘Award’ Penimbangtaraan Antarabangsa, Tribalisme, Rasuah, Yaman. iii ACKNOWLEDGEMENT First and foremost, my deepest thanks and gratitude goes to God for providing me the opportunity, means and perseverance to complete my PhD journey. Without His will and generosity, none of this or any other accomplishment would have been possible. I would like to express my sincere gratitude to my supervisors, Associate Professor. Dr. Haji Hairuddin Megat Latif, Dr. Mohammad Azam Hussain, for their guidance, encouragement, advice and invaluable help. I am most grateful for their open door policy and willingness to make themselves available to me whenever I needed assistance. I am greatly indebted to my parents and brother who show patience and support during my study. My sincere thanks also goes to my family specially my wife Eman and my two daughters Layal and Bian for the advice and their patience during my research. I am greatly indebted to Hardhramout Establishment for Human Development which financially supported my PhD journey. Last but not the least, I would like to thank the School of Law staff, University Utara Malaysia, for what I have learnt from them in terms of knowledge, ethics, and cooperation during my LLB, LLM, and PhD programmes. iv TABLE OF CONTENTS PERMISSION TO USE ................................................................................................ i ABSTRACT ................................................................................................................. ii ABSTRAK .................................................................................................................. iii ACKNOWLEDGEMENT .......................................................................................... iv LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS ...................................................................................... x LIST OF CASES ......................................................................................................... xi LIST OF STATUTES ............................................................................................... xiii CHAPTER ONE: INTRODUCTION ...................................................................... 1 1.1 Background of the Study ........................................................................................ 1 1.2 Problem Statement ................................................................................................. 8 1.3 Research Questions .............................................................................................. 19 1.4 Research Objectives ............................................................................................. 19 1.5 Significance of the Study ..................................................................................... 20 1.6 Research Methodology......................................................................................... 20 1.6.1 Research Design ........................................................................................ 23 1.6.2 Research Scope .........................................................................................