Yemen

Wayne David Excerpts

Thursday 24th September 2020 Commons Chamber

[Wayne David (Caerphilly) (Lab)]

I warmly welcome this debate. My congratulations to the hon. Member for East Worthing and Shoreham (Tim Loughton) on his comments and on securing this debate, and my thanks to the House for clearly responding so effectively to public concern.

Yemen is the world’s greatest humanitarian crisis, as many hon. Members, particularly my hon. Friend the Member for Luton South (Rachel Hopkins), have said. We are seeing 2 million acutely malnourished children, 4.3 million people forced from their homes and 80% of the population of Yemen needing humanitarian assistance. We are seeing a terrible civil war made worse by Yemen becoming an arena for international competition between Saudi Arabia and Iran. This terrible situation is now becoming much worse because of covid-19.

Aid is obviously vital to Yemen; we should all share concerns about the disappointing response of the international community and, indeed, our own Government, but now it is important to consider how that money is spent, as well as how much money is allocated, and whether the funds are distributed effectively. I ask the Minister to give clarification on how much British aid is being channelled through Yemeni organisations. That is important, because I know it is difficult in many parts of Yemen, but there is concern among non-governmental organisations about the correct distributive mechanisms not being in place to ensure that the people who need the aid actually receive it.

Yemen is being ripped apart by civil war and many people believe it is unlikely that any side will have an outright victory. What is needed now is a meaningful ceasefire, followed by negotiations leading to a lasting peace. Martin Griffiths, the UN special envoy, is doing a sterling job in our view, but what is needed is for the British Government to be as proactive as possible, as it is a key penholder.

A number of hon. Members have expressed concerns about British arms sales to Saudi Arabia, including my hon. Friend the Member for Coventry South (Zarah Sultana). We should take note that, while the Court of Appeal in this country recently ruled against the Government, our Government started arms sales again the day after 20 Saudi officials were placed on the Foreign Office’s Magnitsky sanctions list. I welcome that ruling—it should have been made—but how obtuse can it be that arms sales to Saudi Arabia began the day after?

It is not just hon. Members who are expressing concern, but many people inside the United Nations. The United Nations group of eminent international and regional experts on Yemen recently published a report stating:

“The Group of Experts repeats its concern about third States transferring arms to parties to the conflict in Yemen in blatant disregard of the documented patterns of serious violations of IHL”—

international humanitarian law—

“and human rights law in the conflict to date.”

We really ought to take note of that, and morally act upon what is an objective statement of truth.

I would like briefly to refer to two other issues, if I may. There are recent reports that the Houthis may be close to seizing Ma’rib, a city of some strategic importance that contains many displaced persons, and there is real concern about their safety. We heard from the hon. Member for Strangford (Jim Shannon) concerns about members of the Baha’i faith being discriminated against and persecuted. The city could well see a whole range of human rights abuses if the situation is not rectified. What diplomatic efforts are the Government making to protect civilians in that city?

Finally, an ageing oil tanker—the FSO Safer—is moored off the Yemeni coast, with 157 tonnes of crude oil aboard. We could well be on the verge of an ecological disaster that will afflict not just the Yemeni coast but much of the Red sea. What representations and co-ordinated work are the Government involved in to ensure that the international response prevents a crisis from materialising?

We have had an important debate. We all agree that the situation in Yemen is terrible. It is the most acute humanitarian crisis that the world has faced for a long time, and it is incumbent on us all to pull together, play our part and find as much common ground as possible, to ensure that the people of Yemen do not suffer anymore.