Women Solidarity Network condemns in the strongest terms the fierce campaign waged by some media professionals against our network member, Dr. Nadia Al-Saqqaf, targeting her personally with hate and racist rhetoric to cultivate suspicion in her national positions, and with the aim of assassinating her personality in the media by using information outside the context to misunderstand and incite her, which may endanger her life And her family is at risk.
This comes after her participation in the campaign organized by the feminist movement # NoWomenNoGoverment to protest against the new formation of the legitimate government that is currently being negotiated according to the Riyadh Agreement, which completely excluded women, which will make it the first government in 20 years without women, and this reflects the extent of the fall in the protection and elimination of women's rights Quite out of the current state agenda. Dr. Nadia, in her capacity as deputy of the National Authority for Monitoring the Implementation of the Outcomes of the Dialogue, objected to the formation of the government without the participation of women, through a video she posted on her personal page on Twitter.
This violation coincides with the issuance of the unfair death sentence against Dr. Nadia Al-Saqqaf, where she and 91 people were sentenced to death in discretion and theft of all their money and real estate properties transferred from a court under the administration of the Houthi group (Ansar Allah) last month. This unfair verdict, which we strongly condemn, comes as the first death sentence for a political woman in the history of Yemen, which indicates the deteriorating status of women's rights. This violation is added to the list of grave violations against women that affect women politicians and leaders in particular to silence them, and the arrival of these grave violations against women in general to levels that Yemen has not experienced throughout its history, as women have been targeted, arbitrarily arrested and subjected to physical and psychological abuse, including assault. Sexual and rape, which has been documented by a panel of international experts.
During Dr. Nadia's tenure in 2014 as Minister of Information and because of her standing by the state, condemning practices in violation of the constitution, and defending the hopes of Yemenis and Yemeni women to build a civil state, her life was threatened, and her office at the Ministry of Information in Sana'a was stormed, and the Houthis threatened her with death if she did not respond to their orders. She was able to leave Sana'a with difficulty with her children, and moments after she left her home, it was broken into and everything in it was stolen, and her organization, the 21st Century Forum, was also stormed and stolen.
Despite all the dangers she was exposed to, she continued her work in the government present in Riyadh for a short period, then she resigned and returned to civil and women's work and during the last period, despite all the threats she was exposed to, she did not stop the struggle and participated in many international forums , and she spoke about the violations of a group Al-Houthi and on the importance of restoring the state and stopping the war in Yemen. She has also written for several international media websites and international research centers about the political and human rights situation in Yemen.
The Women Solidarity Network strongly condemns these fierce campaigns and grave violations against all its members and all feminist leaders, including Dr. Nadia Al-Saqqaf, we affirm that we stand together as members of various political, independent and civil backgrounds to demand our rights as women, and that we will not deviate from our path towards achieving our entitlements and our hopes towards Building a just and comprehensive peace and building a civil state that preserves our dignity as women and preserves our rights. We express our great gratitude to those who stand with us today towards this.
Issued by the Women Solidarity Network
