By The Sana’a Center for Strategic Studies and Columbia Law School Human Rights Clinic
Executive Summary
Yemen is facing a severe environmental crisis, the effects of which, combined with climate change and a decade of conflict, have severely undermined Yemenis’ right to a dignified life. Over the last 50 years, Yemen’s temperatures have increased by 1.8 degrees Celsius. The increase in heavy rains, floods, cyclones, and other environmental degradation have led to extensive displacement and significant losses in lives, livelihoods, land, and infrastructure. Rising temperatures, heat waves, and irregular rainfall have concurrently aggravated water shortages in one of the most water-scarce countries in the world, with approximately 14.5 million Yemenis lacking access to safe drinking water. As water scarcity increases, related conflicts are anticipated to increase.
Against this backdrop, this report argues that environmental redress is crucial for Yemen’s stability. Following two years of research, analysis, and extensive interviews conducted with Yemeni and international environmental and justice experts, the report argues that Yemen’s armed conflict and environmental and climate crises are inextricably linked, and that plans for transitional justice in Yemen must account for past and future environmental and climate harms. To address this, the report proposes a green transitional justice roadmap, which, while novel, can prove to be an essential and attainable step toward sustainable peace and justice in Yemen.
The report lays out four reasons why Yemen should incorporate environmental concerns into its transitional justice process: to secure sustainable peace; provide meaningful justice; strengthen its transitional process; and fulfill its obligations under international law. Drawing lessons from other contexts such as Colombia, Sudan, and Tunisia, it attempts to show the feasibility of addressing environmental issues within transitional justice. Yemen could apply these lessons through a variety of measures. These include the establishment of truth commissions that extend the notion of victims to include those affected by environmental harm, creating reparation schemes that compensate victims of climate change, utilizing art to memorialize and commemorate environmental harm, holding those responsible for environmental damage accountable, and implementing constitutional reforms that address the rights of Yemenis to a healthy environment.
The report aims to persuade stakeholders that future transitional justice processes in Yemen can and should address environmental harms and climate change. To support this, it offers a set of practical and actionable recommendations for implementing green transitional justice in Yemen.
Select Recommendations
- To All Stakeholders: To foster sustainable peace, meaningful justice, and a healthy environment in Yemen, stakeholders should create and support “green transitional justice” mechanisms that address environmental harms and climate change impacts.
- To Civil Society Organizations: Building on the Yemen Declaration for Justice and Reconciliation, Yemeni civil society leaders on transitional justice should establish core principles, elements, and design features for a locally driven transitional justice roadmap for Yemen that incorporates environmental and climate change considerations and is grounded in Yemeni culture and traditions.
- To the Government of Yemen: Publicly commit to support the development and implementation of green transitional justice in Yemen.
- To Donors: Provide funding to support the development and implementation of Yemen’s green transitional justice roadmap. Develop funding models that allow Yemeni organizations to access and allocate resources adaptively, especially for rapid environmental assessments and documentation of degradation.
- To the Office of the UN Special Envoy: Prioritize the inclusion of environmental and climate considerations in Yemen’s peace negotiations and transitional justice processes. Advocate for the adoption of green transitional justice principles that address both environmental harms and climate change impacts.