US embassy cable - 03SANAA1577

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 SANAA 001577 
 
SIPDIS 
 
FOR A/S CRANER FROM AMBASSADOR HULL 
 
E.O. 12958: DECL: 07/01/2013 
TAGS: PGOV, PHUM, PREL, PINR, YM, HUMAN RIGHTS 
SUBJECT: AMBASSADOR AND MINISTER FOR HUMAN RIGHTS:  LET'S 
WORK TOGETHER 
 
Classified By: Ambassador Edmund J. Hull for Reasons 1.5 (b,d) 
 
1.  Summary:  The Ambassador called on the newly-appointed 
Minister of Human Rights Amat al-Alim al-Suswa on June 30. 
In a cordial meeting, they discussed the state of human 
rights in Yemen, the 2002 Human Rights Report, developments 
in the new Ministry and specific human rights issues, 
including women, prisons, security forces and the media. 
They also explored areas of closer cooperation, including 
increasing potential USG assistance such as community 
policing and media training.  The Ambassador offered to see 
if A/S Craner might be available to meet with al-Suswa during 
her planned visit to Washington for Yemen Days September 5-6 
(see paragraph 12).  Acting Pol/Econ Chief and A/PAO also 
attended.  See biographic note in paragraph 11.  End Summary. 
 
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General Environment for Human Rights; 
New Ministry of Human Rights 
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2.  (U)  The Ambassador and Minister agreed that human rights 
remains a difficult issue in Yemen that must be addressed on 
all fronts.  At the same time, they agreed that, unlike in 
some other Middle Eastern countries, the environment of 
openness and a higher level of freedom in Yemen offers 
opportunities to make great progress in improving human 
rights.  The Minister said there is great willingness to 
admit to problems, but often the capacity to address them was 
hindered by economic, social and sometimes bureaucratic 
constraints. 
 
3.  (U)  In the government formed in May 2003, the previous 
structure of a Minister of State for Human Rights 
coordinating the work of an inter-agency committee was 
improved to the status of a full Ministry of Human Rights. 
The Minister said she has a lot of work to do and asked for 
patience while she works to improve the capacity of the new 
ministry to undertake work, particularly in the areas of 
staff development and addressing specific complaints. 
 
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Human Rights Report (HRR) 
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4.  (U)  The Ambassador encouraged the Minister to increase 
the dialogue between the Embassy and the Ministry on human 
rights in general and the HRR specifically.  He urged the 
Minister to work with other ministries to bring old cases to 
resolution.  The Minister agreed, citing the issue of the 
disappeared from the 1986 and 1994 conflicts.  She said the 
families of the disappeared had come to informal agreement 
with the ROYG to resolve the issue, but that it should be 
resolved in an official manner. 
 
5.  (U)  The Minister indicated that the ROYG felt that the 
HRR was "important input" in improving their human rights 
situation.  The ROYG plans to issue an official government 
response to the 2002 HRR as it did in 2001, which would be 
published and discussed widely.  She said the inter-agency 
process was ongoing to formulate the response.  The 
Ambassador said the 2001 response was appreciated for its 
evidence of Yemen taking the HRR seriously and that it was 
taken into account as the 2002 HRR was drafted.  He added 
that dialogue on the report should be continual and frequent 
as well. 
 
6.  (U)  The Minister said that the ROYG was planning to 
develop a report on the U.S. treatment of Yemenis and 
Yemeni-Americans, citing ill-treatment in the aftermath of 
9/11 including Guantanamo detainees and arrests in the U.S. 
The Ambassador said the U.S. has a sincere desire to protect 
people's rights and that we should continue to discuss the 
issue. 
 
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Issues:  Women, Prisons, Security Services, Media 
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7.  (U)  The Ambassador brought up the status of women as one 
of the key concerns about human rights in Yemen.  The 
Minister agreed, noting it as one of her main interests.  She 
said it is a "huge, complex and difficult" issue because of 
Yemeni traditional society.  She noted that the ROYG cabinet 
plans to endorse a Strategy for Women.  She used the horrible 
treatment of women in prisons as an example of the extreme 
situation.  She said that while progress has been made on 
their conditions with the change to more female guards and 
higher political attention, the societal view that leaves a 
stigma where families refuse to take back women prisoners 
remains a huge hurdle. 
 
8.  (U)  The Ambassador noted improvements in the treatment 
of citizens by security services while stressing that much 
more needs to be done.  The Minister agreed that the 
ignorance by which some police and security services treat 
citizens needs to be comprehensively addressed.  The 
Ambassador described the concept of community policing in the 
United States and said it might be one way to address the 
issue.  He offered to work with the Minister and the Minister 
of the Interior to explore such programs that could possibly 
be assisted by the USG. 
 
9.  (U)  As a former journalist, the Minister agreed with the 
Ambassador that the media situation could be improved.  While 
much press freedom is allowed, journalists still often censor 
themselves for fear of government reprisal.  They agreed that 
journalists need to be more professional as well, and the 
Ambassador offered potential USG assistance in this regard 
via training and visitor programs. 
 
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Comment 
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10.  (C)  The previous Minister of State for Human Rights, 
Waheeba Fara'a, offered promise when she was appointed the 
first woman ROYG minister, but that promise was never 
realized to full potential.  This new appointment of a 
dynamic and energetic Minister, who appears to intend to 
accomplish concrete progress rather than rhetoric and who is 
well-regarded by internationals and ROYG officials alike, 
offers greater promise for Yemen to improve its human rights 
record.  The Embassy intends to explore concrete ways to 
assist in addition to ongoing programs, including improving 
community policing and training the media.  End Comment. 
 
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Biographic Note 
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11.  (U)  Amat al-Alim al-Suswa, Minister of Human Rights: 
 
--  Born in 1958, Taiz 
--  Masters in International Media, American University, 
Washington, D.C. (USAID scholarship) 
--  Chairwoman of the Yemeni Women's Union, 1989-1990 
--  Assistant Deputy Minister of Information, 1991 
--  Deputy Minister of Information, 1997 
--  Permanent Representative of Yemen to the Chemical Weapons 
Prohibition Council in the Hague 
--  Ambassador of Yemen to Holland, 2000-2003 (particularly 
significant as Holland was Yemen's most important economic 
assistance donor during this period) 
 
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Recommendation 
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12.  (U)  Post highly recommends that A/S Craner consider 
meeting with the Minister of Human Rights in September.  Post 
will assist the Minister in coordinating her visit and will 
provide additional information septel. 
HULL