“The situation needs us to be active” Youth contributions to peacebuilding in Yemen December 2019 “ The situation needs us to be active” Youth contributions to peacebuilding in Yemen December 2019 Acknowledgements This paper was written by Kate Nevens, Marwa Baabbad and Jatinder Padda. They would like to thank the youth interviewees for their generous contributions of time and knowledge, as well as everyone who took the time to read and comment on earlier versions of the paper. The paper was edited by Léonie Northedge and Madeline Church, copyedited by Martha Crowley and designed by Jane Stevenson. The paper was funded by the European Commission and the Netherlands Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Cover photo – A young Yemeni woman stands in an abandoned building in Sana’a. © Jehad Mohammed © Saferworld, December 2019. All rights reserved. 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Contents Executive summary i 1 Introduction 1 2 The changing roles of youth activists: 3 a revolution and a stalled transition 3 Fight, flight or adapt: the impact of conflict 5 on activism Limited movement and ability to meet 8 Direct targeting of youth activists 8 Rising costs, loss of income and fewer resources 9 Increasing social divisions and problems engaging 9 with local authorities Strains on mental health and psychological 10 well-being 4 “The situation needs us to be active”: 13 How Yemeni youth are working towards peace “Driving peace” 14 Humanitarian relief and community organising 15 Art, peace messaging and peace education 16 Psychosocial support 17 Social entrepreneurship 18 Human rights monitoring 19 Influencing local authorities, local mediation 20 and conflict resolution Differences across locations 21 The role of Yemeni diaspora 21 5 Conclusion 25 A boy cycles past graffiti in Sana’a. © Reuters/Mohamed Al-Sayaghi i Executive summary More than four years of brutal conflict in The conflict has taken a heavy toll on the country’s Yemen have had a catastrophic effect on youth activists – a vibrant part of civil society that grew rapidly during Yemen’s 2011 revolution. Young the country and its people, creating one of activists have been forced to retreat and adapt as the world’s worst humanitarian crises and the space for engagement narrows. But young leaving millions without access to people continue to play vital roles across Yemen, adequate food, water, housing or demonstrating adaptability, pragmatism and healthcare. The war’s devastating effect innovation in their responses to the challenging and changing context. They are spearheading on the economy has led to job losses for humanitarian initiatives in spaces others are unable more than 70 per cent of the workforce. to reach, and contribute to social cohesion and well- Families face difficult choices in order to being within their communities. They monitor human survive, with more parents forcing girls to rights abuses and spread messages of peace at marry early, while young men and boys local, national and international levels. are driven to join militias.1 The work young people are doing lays the groundwork for peace in the long term and makes immediate contributions to the well-being of their communities in three critical ways: 1. Keeping youth away from violent conflict and identity politics, and helping them choose alternatives to violence. Youth activists are role models, providing an alternative vision of agency and empowerment for their peers. 2. Maintaining social cohesion and community relationships. Communities are under huge strain due to the political and humanitarian impacts of the conflict, but youth initiatives help build solidarity and cooperation. 3. Creating hope and building support for peace, embedded in an effort to spread a ‘culture of peace’. Youth are promoting openness, inclusiveness and tolerance and building their peers’ knowledge on peacebuilding and other issues that they see as crucial to preventing violence. ii “the situation needs us to be active”: youth contributions to peacebuilding in yemen This type of grassroots, youth-led action is more youth are doing and support the individuals and than just a good news story amid a brutal conflict. organisations on the front line of peacebuilding. Ensuring that international peace engagement in Yemen supports local conflict transformation is critical, as prospects for the mediation process led 1. Support youth initiatives and by the United Nations (UN) in the short term are – their visions for peace with flexible at best – to achieve some de-escalation between the main parties to the conflict at the national and and fast funding that meets their international level. At a local level, the day-to-day needs realities of conflict and violence are affected by a much broader set of interconnected factors, from “Youth are the main axis. If we help them develop long-term, deeply rooted inequalities and themselves and build their capacity, we will be able exclusionary governance, to localised power to drive activities and work that contributes to struggles and conflicts over resources. peacebuilding and social cohesion”. Buthaina, Programme Manager, Hodeidah Girls Foundation. Part of Martin Griffiths’s mandate as UN special envoy for Yemen is to develop a framework for a long- Flexible and rapid funding of relatively small term peace process, beyond the current focus on amounts – usually less than USD$20,000 – is what immediate de-escalation. He has publicly stated his the majority of youth-led initiatives need. commitment to ensuring an inclusive process. This Microgrants can be disbursed rapidly, paper echoes the calls of the ‘2018 independent acknowledging that young people are best placed to progress study on youth, peace and security’ – identify how to contribute to peacebuilding in their mandated as part of UN Security Council Resolution communities. These smaller grants also need to be 2250 – to address the ‘violence of exclusion’, where accompanied by flexible work plans and budgets political exclusion is defined ‘as a form of structural that can be adapted and altered when needed. and psychological violence that is deeply rooted in Strategies for supporting youth need to be based on the reciprocal mistrust between young a broad understanding of what contributes to people, their governments and the peacebuilding and should encompass a range of any efforts to support multilateral system’. small but joined-up initiatives that contribute in civil society, youth and different ways to building the structures and But any efforts to support civil society, relationships needed for long-term peace. women’s participation in youth and women’s participation in formal processes risk formal processes risk being tokenistic being tokenistic and and disconnected if they are not rooted 2. Bridge the gap between young disconnected if they are in people’s experiences and needs, and people and power-holders: not rooted in people’s should be sustained by diverse challenge the political exclusion community activism. This is the experiences and needs essential basis on which independent, of youth Yemeni-led influencing of the peace process can be built. “The international community, including the UN, are all now dealing with the old elite groups and not Decisions and activities at the national level are not listening to youth. They need to get closer to youth the only ones that can have a positive impact on the and give them attention. Youth have the capacity to lives of Yemenis during conflict. Of equal importance create solutions.” is supporting young people’s ability to address the Akram, Taiz. conflicts they experience in their communities – through their own identified priorities and methods. Diplomats need to increase their direct political As the youth who contributed to this paper have engagement with youth representatives and reflect highlighted, empowerment activities, cultural and the importance of the role of young people, in order artistic spaces, advocacy for change, conflict to challenge their political exclusion and capitalise mediation and humanitarian relief initiatives in their on their potential for building peace. International communities are all part of a spectrum of activities donors and diplomats should not put engaging with that they see as contributions to peacebuilding. youth into a ‘post-conflict’ category – forgotten or sidelined while a national peace agreement may or Based on our experience of working with youth may not be successfully brokered. New initiatives are organisations and activists in Yemen since 2010 and needed to provide forums for young civil society on interviews for this paper, we have identified areas activists to discuss critical issues in the peace for donors, diplomats, international non- process with international diplomats – facilitated in governmental organisations and the UN to take a way that puts young people on an equal footing action on in order to build on the vital work Yemeni with others in the room. executive summary iii 3. Understand local dynamics critical component of peacebuilding work: peace and avoid reinforcing historic negotiations provide a chance to embed greater inclusion in political systems – a space which often marginalisation shrinks after a peace agreement is negotiated.2 “There are many conflicts that need to be analysed and understood with local tools.” 5. Give youth peacebuilders Young man, Mukalla. platforms for their work and “I want the youth of the other governorates in support peer-to-peer learning Yemen to have the same chances, experiences and knowledge as the youth in Sana’a”. “It will be more beneficial to help them see beyond Young woman, Aden. the immediate problem. Help them to think big. Link them to each other and with the world.” Youth programming needs to take into account the Young woman, Sana’a. legacy of historic marginalisation on activists, particularly those in the south of the country and in There are no off-the-shelf models for peacebuilding.