The Southern Transitional Council (STC) de facto authorities in South Yemen “must end their ongoing unlawful and arbitrary restrictions on the work of civil society organizations and human rights defenders in the southern governorate of Aden”, Amnesty International said recently.
In a recent statement Amnesty International added “Since early 2023, the STC has adopted a series of measures that increasingly restrict the work of Yemeni civil society organizations, flouting existing local associations law and international human rights standards.”
Grazia Careccia, Amnesty International’s Deputy Regional Director for the Middle East and North Africa, said “It is shameful to see STC de facto authorities hampering the vital work of civil society organizations and human rights defenders instead of ensuring that they can continue to provide their desperately needed support to civilians who are grappling with the devastating impact of the ongoing armed conflict.”.
Two organizations told Amnesty International that STC prohibited them from conducting their activities between November and December 2023 because they did not apply for a permit.
A representative of an organization working on social development said: “We planned a cultural public event at our office and shared the invitation on social media platforms. Afterwards we immediately received a call from the National Authority for Southern Media saying the event is banned because we did not apply for a permit. […] They are imposing arbitrary restrictions on us that have no legal basis.”