Yemeni blogger Noon Arabia writes on the ongoing revolution as demonstrations and strikes against corruption hit governmental and public, academic, commercial and medical sectors.
The Revolution in Yemen did not stop with the inking of the GCC deal which was rejected by many Yemenis since the day it was initiated. As the word indicates, it was a deal, “an agreement entered into by two or more parties for their mutual benefit”, in this case it was the the sharing of power between the ruling party GPC (General People’s Congress) and the so called “opposition” JMP (Joint Meeting Parties) while the benefit of the Yemeni people was out of this equation. Gradually people realized that the deal was just a rebranding of the regime and a pretext for it to stay in power.
While the killings are still happening in Sanaa and some other cities, so are the relentless protests and marches.The people in Yemen, the second most armed country in the world are determined to make the change they demanded from the revolution through passive resistance methods. Besides the daily and weekly marches in the cities, they went on a 264 km cross country Life March by foot from Taiz in the south to Sanaa in the north, passing by Ibb, Yarim and Dhamar. Similar marches are taking place in different parts of Yemen. The Dignity March from Aden to Abyan set to draw the world’s attention to the plight of the more than 100,000 IDPs (Internally Displaced People) who fled their homes from Abyan and neighboring cities to Aden to escape the ongoing violence due to the war on the so called “militants” by the government forces. Another march is taking place from the coastal city of Hodeidah to Sanaa.
The ”parallel revolution“ demanded the immediate dismissal of “the untouchables”, the corrupt officials who unlawfully exerted their authority, embezzled and terrorized their subordinates. Some of the institutions affected so far include, the National Airlines “Yemenia”, the State TV in Sanaa and Aden, the Police Headquarters, the Military Economic Institution, the Armed Forces Moral Guidance Department, the Agriculture and Irrigation office, the Coast Guard, the Naval Academy, the Traffic Police, Sanaa University, the Yemen Bank of Reconstruction and Development, the Thawrah Hospital in Taiz, the Central Organization of Control and Audit in both Aden and Taiz, and the Finance Office in Taiz
The following videos show the wave against corruption in many sectors and in different cities:
Government sector: video (posted by Freeoman100001) on December 27, 2011 shows the employees of the Central organization of control and audit preventing their corrupt manager from entering the building.
Military sector: video (posted by taizpress on Dec, 31st, 2011) shows soldiers in Taiz demand sacking of military commanders who were behind the brutal killings of protesters and shelling of the city.
Academic sector: video (posted by ppryemen on January 2nd) shows Sanaa University students protesting demanding the dismissal of the University’s corrupt president.
Banking sector: video (posted by ibrahim55403 on Jan2, 2012) shows the employees of the Yemen Bank of Reconstruction and Development protesting against the corruption in the bank
The “people want the fall of the regime” is no longer a mere slogan in Yemen, it is being translated into a real process starting with little steps. Saleh may still be in power but he seems to be gradually loosing his grip. His henchmen are falling one after the other in a wave against corruption in the military and governmental institutions as well as the public ones. Hopefully the pyramid of tyranny, corruption and injustice will eventually collapse as the administrative base falls apart and moves upwards towards the political one. The change hoped for in Yemen is gradually happening with the admirable perseverance and determination of the people in one of the poorest countries of the Arab world which has been plagued with corruption for decades.
From the blog Noon Arabia
Follow Noon on Twitter: @NoonArabia
