From the 5th to the 7th of February 2019, the Tunisian capital Tunis hosted a conference on the horizons of peace in Yemen and the role of civil society organizations. The conference concluded with the Tunis Declaration for the Cessation of War and Aggression, Lifting the Siege and Building Peace in Yemen. Ten human rights organizations from different Arab countries drafted this statement. The countries represented are: Tunisia, Morocco, Algeria, Egypt, Sudan, Iraq, Lebanon, Palestine, Jordan and Yemen. The conference was organized by the Tunisian Center of Press Freedom and the MoroccanAssociation for Human Rights.
For three days, the participants studied and analyzed the disastrous humanitarian situation in Yemen caused by war and aggression, and the possibilities of peace in the country. Yemeni men and women are enduring a tragic humanitarian situation, amid the increase in civilian casualty numbers, the destruction of the country’s infrastructure, and the annihilation of its economy, social fabric and territorial integrity. According to Oxfam, 14 million Yemenis are at risk of famine and 85,000 children have died of starvation. UNICEF adds that every ten minutes, a Yemeni child dies as a result of the war. This has all been happening amidst a black-out by international media. In Yemen, the civil, political, economic, social cultural, environmental and developmental rights are trampled upon. This has warned the entire world. It is of importance to stop a looming humanitarian catastrophe in the country. This is dictated by the international law of human rights, international humanitarian law the refugee convention, the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court, a report by a group of experts in the United Nations Human Rights Council, the principles of peaceful coexistence for the peaceful resolution of conflicts, the right of people to self-determination, and the right of people to sovereignty over their resources and their territorial integrity and unity.
Based on all of the above, the conference adopted the Tunis Declaration for the Cessation of War and Aggression Lifting the Siege, and Building Peace in Yemen. The Declaration constitutes a framework and a reference for the work of civil society on the issue. It entailed the establishment of "The Coalition of Human Rights Groups to Stop the Aggression, Lift the Siege, and Build the Peace in Yemen" as a space for coordination and joint action. The Declaration included the following recommendations:
1. The termination of war and aggression on Yemen and the cessation of all hostilities.
2. Lifting the siege, especially Sana’a Airport and allowing humanitarian aid into the country urgently and without any restrictions.
3. The adoption and the implementation of the report issued by the experts’ committee of the UN Human Rights Council.
4. Application of the Stockholm agreements concerning the port of El hadeida. The release of all war prisoners and disclosing the fate of those missing.
5. Reiterating the right of Yemeni people to self-determination.
6. Adopting transitional justice mechanisms for the establishment of peace.
7. Ending arms sales to all warring parties.
8. The creation of a media platform to monitor and expose all violations resulting from the war on Yemen as a way to overcome misinformation.
9. The establishment of an international commission for investigating the crimes caused by