| Federalization of Yemen | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Category | Federated state |
| Location | Yemen |
| Government | |
The federalization of Yemen is the proposed transformation of the Republic of Yemen from a unitary state to a federal state. Driven by the significant economic, religious, political, and historical differences between the northern and southern parts of the country, federalization has been a common and controversial proposal to resolve regionalist tensions since the unification of the country in 1990. [1] [2]
In 1962, the British Aden Protectorate was transformed into the Federation of South Arabia, which initially contained 15 states. The country became South Yemen, a unitary state, in 1967. [3] After South Yemen unified with North Yemen in 1990, the new government was quickly divided over the issue of decentralization, with the Yemeni Socialist Party expressing support for a federal system while the General People's Congress opposed it. While an agreement was eventually reached to decentralize the country, it was largely abandoned following the outbreak of a civil war in 1994. [4] Decentralization continued to find popularity among members of the Yemeni opposition, and the opposition coalition known as the Joint Meeting Parties expressed interest in federalism in 2009. [3]
The 2013–2014 National Dialogue Conference concluded that Yemen would adopt federalism in an attempt to resolve the political crisis that began with the Yemeni Revolution in 2011. Under the federal system, Yemen's full name would become the Federal Republic of Yemen. [5] A committee organized by Yemeni President Abdrabbuh Mansur Hadi determined that Yemen would be split into six federal regions: Azal, Saba, Tihama, Aden, Janad, and Hadhramaut. [6] Azal, Saba, Janad and Tihama would have been northern provinces whereas Aden and Hadhramaut would have been southern. [7] Sana’a, the capital, was to become a federal city and would not have been part of any region. Aden, the former capital of South Yemen, would have been a part of the Aden region, but would have had special legislative and executive powers. [8] Each region was to be further divided into states, which would have taken the place of Yemen's existing governorates. [3] The conclusions of the Conference formed the basis of a new constitution, which was to be put to a referendum in 2015. [2]
The plan for a six-region federation received international praise, but was denounced by many within Yemen. [9] The Southern Movement suspected that the division of the south into two regions was an attempt to turn southern secessionists against each other; they preferred a two-region division between the north and the south. The Zaidi elites in the Azal region would have been left with almost no natural resources, whereas the sparsely populated Saba and Hadhramaut regions would have received nearly all of the country's natural resources. [10] Meanwhile, the Houthis were outraged that the plan would have landlocked their home governorate of Saada. The referendum on the new federal constitution was indefinitely delayed by the intensification of the Yemeni Civil War in 2015. [2] Some commentators have cited Hadi's federalization plan as one of the main causes of the civil war. [10]
On 20 June 2023, the National Hadhrami Council was formed marking the first steps for the transformation.
| Federal region | Flag | Governorates |
|---|---|---|
| Aden |  | Aden, Abyan, Lahij, Dhale |
| Azal |  | Sanaa, 'Amran, Dhamar, Saada |
| Hadhramaut |  | Hadhramaut, Mahra, Shabwah, Socotra Archipelago |
| Janad |  | Taiz, Ibb |
| Sheba |  | Ma'rib, Al Bayda, Al Jawf |
| Tihama |  | Al Hudaydah, Raymah, Al Mahwit, Hajjah |
The history of Yemen describes the cultures, events, and peoples of what is one of the oldest centers of civilization in the Near East. Its relatively fertile land and adequate rainfall in a moister climate helped sustain a stable population, a feature recognized by the ancient Greek geographer Ptolemy, who described Yemen as Eudaimon Arabia meaning "fortunate Arabia" or "Happy Arabia". Yemenis had developed the South Arabian alphabet by the 12th to 8th centuries BC, which explains why most historians date all of the ancient Yemeni kingdoms to that era.
The Politics of Yemen are in an uncertain state due to the Houthi takeover in Yemen. An armed group known as the Houthis or Ansar Allah seized control of the Northern Yemeni government and announced it would dissolve parliament, as well as install a "presidential council", "transitional national council", and "supreme revolutionary council" to govern the country for an interim period. However, the deposed president, Abdrabbuh Mansur Hadi, has declared he is still in office and is working to establish a rival government in Aden.
The Yemeni Armed Forces are the military forces of the Republic of Yemen. They include the Yemeni Army, Yemeni Navy and the Yemeni Air Force. The capital of the country, Sana’a is where the military is headquartered. Per the constitution of Yemen, the President of Yemen serves as the commander-in-chief.
Aden is a port city located in Yemen in the southern part of the Arabian peninsula, positioned near the eastern approach to the Red Sea. It is situated approximately 170 km east of the Bab-el-Mandeb strait and north of the Gulf of Aden. With its strategic location on the coastline, Aden serves as a gateway between the Red Sea and the Arabian Sea, making it a crucial maritime hub connecting Africa, Asia, and the Middle East. As of 2023, Aden City has a population of approximately 1,080,000 residents, making it one of the largest cities in Yemen.
Yemen, officially the Republic of Yemen, is a sovereign state in West Asia. Located in the southern Arabian Peninsula, it borders Saudi Arabia to the north, Oman to the northeast, and the Indian Ocean to the south, sharing maritime borders with Eritrea, Djibouti and Somalia across the Horn of Africa. Covering roughly 528,000 square kilometres, with a coastline of approximately 2,000 kilometres, Yemen is the second largest country on the Arabian Peninsula. Sanaa is its constitutional capital and largest city. Yemen's estimated population is 34.7 million, comprised mostly of Arab Muslims. It is a member of the Arab League, the United Nations, the Non-Aligned Movement and the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation.
The State flag of Yemen was adopted on May 22, 1990, the day that North Yemen and South Yemen were unified. The flag of Yemen is the Arab Liberation Flag of 1952, introduced after the Egyptian Revolution of 1952 in which Arab nationalism was a dominant theme. The Arab Liberation Flag of 1952 served as the inspiration for the flags of both North and South Yemen prior to unification, as well as for the current flags of Egypt, Iraq, Sudan, Palestine and Syria.
The administrative division of Yemen consists of two main divisions. There are 22 governorates, including the capital Sana'a and Socotra Archipelago. The 22 governorates are then divided into 333 districts, subdivided into 2,210 sub-districts, and then into 38,284 villages.
Islam came to Yemen around 630 during Muhammad's lifetime and the rule of the Persian governor Badhan. Thereafter, Yemen was ruled as part of Arab-Islamic caliphates, and became a province in the Islamic empire.
The modern history of Yemen began with the withdrawal of the Ottoman Empire. In 1839 the British set up a protective area around the southern port of Aden and in 1918 the northern Kingdom of Yemen gained independence from the Ottoman Empire. North Yemen became a republic in 1962, but it was not until 1967 that the British Empire withdrew from what became South Yemen. In 1970, the southern government adopted a communist governmental system. The two countries were officially united as the Republic of Yemen on May 22, 1990.
The Saba News Agency, also known as the Yemen News Agency, is the official state news agency of Yemen.
The Southern Movement, sometimes known as the Southern Separatist Movement, or South Yemen Movement, or Aden Movement, and colloquially known as al-Hirak, is a political movement and paramilitary organization active in the south of Yemen since 2007, demanding secession from the Republic of Yemen and a return to the former independent state of South Yemen. At present, its best-known political offshoot, the Southern Transitional Council led by Aidarus al-Zoubaidi, is the de facto leadership across many provinces of the south.
Abdrabbuh Mansur Hadi is a Yemeni politician and former field marshal of the Yemeni Armed Forces who served as the president of Yemen from 2012 until 2022, when he stepped down and transferred executive authority to the Presidential Leadership Council, with Rashad al-Alimi as its chairman. He was the vice president to Ali Abdullah Saleh from 1994 to 2012.
The following is a timeline of the 2011–2012 Yemeni revolution from 3 June through 22 September 2011. The Yemeni revolution was a series of major protests, political tensions, and armed clashes taking place in Yemen, which began in January 2011 and were influenced by concurrent protests in the region. Hundreds of protesters, members of armed groups, army soldiers and security personnel were killed, and many more injured, in the largest protests to take place in the South Arabian country for decades.
Presidential elections were held in Yemen on 21 February 2012. Acting President Abdrabbuh Mansur Hadi was the only candidate, and was subsequently sworn into office on 25 February 2012. As of 2024 this is the last presidential election in Yemen, as the country descended into civil war two years later.
The National Dialogue Conference (NDC) was a transitional dialogue process held at the Movenpick Hotel in Sanaa, Yemen from March 18, 2013 to January 24, 2014, as part of the Yemeni crisis reconciliation efforts.
The Houthi takeover in Yemen, also known as the September 21 Revolution, or 2014–15 coup d'état, was a popular revolution against Yemeni President Abdrabbuh Mansur Hadi led by the Houthis and their supporters that pushed the Yemeni government from power. It had origins in Houthi-led protests that began the previous month, and escalated when the Houthis stormed the Yemeni capital Sanaa on 21 September 2014, causing the resignation of Prime Minister Mohammed Basindawa, and later the resignation of President Abdrabbuh Mansur Hadi and his ministers on 22 January 2015 after Houthi forces seized the presidential palace, residence, and key military installations, and the formation of a ruling council by Houthi militants on 6 February 2015.
The following lists events that happened during 2014 in Yemen.
The aftermath of the Houthi takeover in Yemen refers to developments following the Houthis' takeover of the Yemeni capital of Sana'a and dissolution of the government, which eventually led to a civil war and the Saudi Arabian-led intervention in Yemen.
The following outline is provided as an overview of and topical guide to the Wikipedia articles available about the Yemeni crisis, revolution, and Yemeni civil war (2014–present).
