Since the beginning of 2007, approximately 13,897 refugees have arrived in Yemen after making a boat voyage across the Gulf of Aden, resulting in approximately 356 deaths and 272 missing and presumed dead.
In September 2007 alone, 50 such boats – a 70 percent increase from the same time last year – had reached Yemen carrying over 4,741 mostly Somali and Ethiopian nationals. According to the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), 89 African migrants had died and 154 had gone missing and were presumed dead during the month of September 2007.
If the refugees survive the voyage, most are forced to live without shelter in Aden’s al-Basatin district, where over 15,000 Somali refugees currently reside.
• We believe the conditions for Somali and other African migrants will continue to worsen in Yemen, as the country’s overall economy and standard of living cannot adequately provide for the influx of refugees.
• Despite current living conditions, we anticipate the number of African migrants to Yemen will increase, as the prospects for further conflict continue to rise in the Horn of Africa.
Somalis Escape to No Avail
The conditions on the boats by which persons are transported from Somalia to Yemen often result in severe illness, injury and/or death. For instance, on September 26, 2007, five boats carrying 600 Somalis and Ethiopians arrived in Yemen. During the voyage, one person had died and 22 had gone missing, including four Ethiopians who died on board one of the boats due to asphyxiation, and 18 others who had allegedly been thrown overboard.
According to UNHCR, the smugglers had also beaten passengers with iron bars, belts and plastic tubes and some had been stabbed. The UNHCR also expressed concern about Yemeni coastguards firing at the smugglers’ boats, which had caused some of the deaths among passengers. The incident was reminiscent of the tragic deaths of African migrants in April 2007, when 130 migrants from Somalia and Ethiopia died at sea when their boat capsized off the coast of Yemen after the coast guard opened fire.
The Somali community in Sana’a expressed concern over the deaths among new arrivals fleeing the civil war in their country. According to Somalia’s consul-general in Aden, Hussein Haji Ahmed, aid groups provided new arrivals with basic food and medicines, but many are still in need of shelter and medical attention.
Ventilation and sanitation in al-Basateen, where over 15,000 Somali refugees reside, are poor. The area is not well planned and rubbish is thrown outside houses as there are no refuse sites available. Only two health facilities exist, one of which deals with children and mothers. During the summer, the Yemeni government reduces the water supply and electricity to the area, making living conditions harsher.
Current System Unfit
According to UNHCR, there are about 100,000 refugees in Yemen, most of whom are Somalis. Adding to the plight of refugees in Yemen is the current government’s social and political structure. There are currently 30,000 to 35,000 displaced people in Yemen. The unemployment rate is 35 percent and almost half of the population lives below the poverty line. In addition, Yemen is ranked 131 out of 180 in the Global Corruption Index, which scores the Gulf country a 2.5 out of 10, putting it on the same level as Iran, Libya, Burundi, and the Philippines.
However, while the living conditions of Somalis in Yemen were generally similar to those in Somalia, Somalis lacked peace in their own country. African migrants may not enjoy the living arrangements in Yemen, but they continue to migrate in mass numbers to escape the lawlessness and fear ongoing in their own countries.
On the Horizon
UNHCR recently initiated a training program for the Yemen coastguard and a health program run by non-governmental organizations. Increased staff and vehicles will also be provided to augment support for new arrivals.
With these programs in place, we anticipate the death rate of Somali refugees to decrease slightly in the mid to long-term, depending on their efficiency and effectiveness.
In the near-term, we believe the influx of African migrants from the Horn will continue to increase as the seasonal water conditions currently favor crossing the Gulf of Aden.
