Yemen: Follow-up to Response to Information Request YEM23999.E of 3 June 1996 on the National Opposition Front (al-Jabha al-Wataniyya lil Muarada, or MOJ, MOG, MOWG, MOWJ, MAWG, MAWJ), especially on the current leaders, membership, legal status and base
| Publisher | Canada: Immigration and Refugee Board of Canada |
| Author | Research Directorate, Immigration and Refugee Board, Canada |
| Publication Date | 1 June 1996 |
| Citation / Document Symbol | YEM24403.E |
| Cite as | Canada: Immigration and Refugee Board of Canada, Yemen: Follow-up to Response to Information Request YEM23999.E of 3 June 1996 on the National Opposition Front (al-Jabha al-Wataniyya lil Muarada, or MOJ, MOG, MOWG, MOWJ, MAWG, MAWJ), especially on the current leaders, membership, legal status and base, 1 June 1996, YEM24403.E, available at: https://www.refworld.org/docid/3ae6aae64.html [accessed 29 May 2023] |
| Disclaimer | This is not a UNHCR publication. UNHCR is not responsible for, nor does it necessarily endorse, its content. Any views expressed are solely those of the author or publisher and do not necessarily reflect those of UNHCR, the United Nations or its Member States. |
Please consult the 9 May 1996 al-Majallah' attachment for an interview with Abd al-Rahman al-Jifri, leader of the Yemeni Nationalist Opposition Front (MAWJ). This attachment also provides information on the Front's membership and goals.
According to sources consulted by the DIRB, the Front is an alliance of opposition parties (Mideast Mirror 30 Sept. 1994; Reuters 30 Sept. 1994; al-Majallah' 9 May 1996) that was formed on 30 September 1994 (Mideast Mirror 30 Sept. 1994; Reuters 30 Sept. 1994). According to the Front's leaders, London would be the Front's "base for their information drive" (Mideast Mirror 30 Sept. 1994), though the Front would primarily operate within Yemen (ibid.; APS Diplomat Strategic Balance in the Middle East 12 Dec. 1994). For additional information on the goals of the Front, please consult the Mideast Mirror and Reuters attachments.
In his interview with al-Majallah', al-Jifri stated that the Front's members were only chosen in October 1995 (al-Majallah' 9 May 1996). Al-Jifri added that the Yemeni Socialist Party (YSP) joined MAWJ; all YSP members abroad are deemed to be MAWJ members, except those who declared publicly that they would not join (ibid.). The date of YSP's joining MAWJ was not provided.
According to al-Majallah', the Front also has its own newspaper called al-Wathiqah' (9 May 1996). Additional information on the newspaper was not provided in the al-Jifri interview.
According to sources consulted by the DIRB, 16 individuals were excluded from the general amnesty that was extended by President Ali Abdullah Saleh to those who participated in the failed secessionist bid in 1994 (Reuters 17 July 1995; APS Diplomat Strategic Balance in the Middle East 12 Dec. 1994; Current History Jan. 1995, 36). Those excluded include Abd al-Rahman al-Jifri, Front leader and former vice president of the breakaway Yemeni Democratic Republic(YDR), Saleh Munassar al-Siyali, former Aden governor, Ali-Salem al-Baidh, former Yemeni vice president and former YSP leader, and Haidar Abu Bakr al-Attas, former southern prime minister (Reuters 17 July 1995; UPI 23 Aug. 1995; APS Diplomat Strategic Balance in the Middle East 12 Dec. 1994). These four men fled the country after the secessionists were defeated in 1994 (UPI 23 Aug. 1995; Reuters 17 July 1995).
According to an official Yemeni source quoted in the Asharq al-Awsat newspaper and reported by the United Press International (UPI), "'the secessionist leaders should not expect a warm welcome, if they decided to return home to stand trial,'" but added that they would have "a fair hearing and the right to choose their own lawyers" (UPI 23 Aug. 1995). According to Reuters, these 16 will be tried in absentia (20 Apr. 1996). The 125-member MOWJ stated at a news conference in Cyprus that it did not "trust the government to give a fair trial to any of its members wanted for their involvement in the civil war" (ibid.).
This Response was prepared after researching publicly accessible information currently available to the DIRB within time constraints. This Response is not, and does not purport to be, conclusive as to the merit of any particular claim to refugee status or asylum.
References
al-Majallah' [London, in Arabic]. 9 May 1996. "Other Reports; Opposition Leader Says Change Must Come From Within Yemen." (BBC Summary 10 May 1996/NEXIS)
APS Diplomatic Strategic Balance in the Middle East. 12 December 1994. "YemenConsolidating UnityThe Internal Perspective." (NEXIS)
Current History [Philadelphia]. January 1995. Chuck Schmitz. "Civil War in Yemen: The Price of Unity?"
Mideast Mirror [London]. 30 September 1994. "Southern Yemeni Exiles Set Up Opposition Alliance." (NEXIS)
Reuters. 20 April 1996. BC Cycle. "Yemen Court to Try 1994 Civil War Separatists." (NEXIS)
_____. 30 September 1995. BC Cycle. Peter Millership. "New Yemeni Opposition Could Order Armed Struggle." (NEXIS)
_____. 17 July 1995. BC Cycle. "Former Aden Governor Alive, Opposition Leader Says." (NEXIS)
United Press International (UPI). 23 August 1995. BC Cycle. "Yemen Promises Secessionists Fair Trial." (NEXIS)
Attachments
al-Majallah' [London, in Arabic]. 9 May 1996. "Other Reports; Opposition Leader Says Change Must Come From Within Yemen." (BBC Summary 10 May 1996/NEXIS)
Mideast Mirror [London]. 30 September 1994. "Southern Yemeni Exiles Set Up Opposition Alliance." (NEXIS)
Reuters. 30 September 1995. BC Cycle. Peter Millership. "New Yemeni Opposition Could Order Armed Struggle." (NEXIS)
United Press International (UPI). 23 August 1995. BC Cycle. "Yemen Promises Secessionists Fair Trial." (NEXIS)
