An Event Bridging Discussions, Protests, and Art Between Sana’a and The Hague
Mwatana for Human Rights organized a human rights event on Friday, November 29, 2024, bringing participants together in The Hague and Sana’a via live streaming. The event focused on addressing the policy of impunity in conflict zones worldwide, including Yemen, Palestine, Syria, Sudan, and Ukraine, with a special focus on addressing war crimes in Gaza. This coincided with the International Day of Solidarity with the Palestinian People. The event brought together a diverse audience, including academics, judges, activists from Yemen’s human rights movement, writers, participants in The Hague, and others joining via Zoom from various Yemeni provinces.
Opening Remarks:
Abdulrasheed Al-Faqih, Vice President of Mwatana for Human Rights, opened the event from The Hague with a speech highlighting the importance of holding the event on the International Day of Solidarity with the Palestinian People. He emphasized the pivotal role of the human rights movement in pressing the International Criminal Court (ICC) to issue rulings against three prominent figures: Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, the Israeli Minister of Defense, and Mohammed Deif, the military commander of Hamas. He emphasized that such actions should have been initiated at the outset of the conflict, but the political protection afforded to perpetrators of crimes obstructed accountability efforts.
Al-Faqih also underlined that ending the policy of impunity is essential to safeguarding the present and future from war crimes and crimes against humanity. He called for full adherence to international laws and human rights conventions, concluding his speech with a firm statement: "If the United Nations and its institutions do not intervene now in what is happening in Gaza, they should remain silent forever."
Key Interventions:
Radhya Al-Mutawakel, Chairperson of Mwatana, stated that the absence of accountability emboldens conflict parties to act with impunity, exacerbating violations. She pointed out that crimes in Yemen, such as airstrikes, ground attacks, and landmine planting, are not militarily necessary but rather a direct result of a lack of accountability.
Al-Mutawakel also addressed the situation in Palestine, stressing that the crimes committed there may amount to war crimes and genocide. She warned that ignoring accountability encourages further crimes against civilians everywhere.
From Sana’a, Dr. Hamoud Al-Awdi emphasized that Palestine is not just the issue of the Palestinian people but a cause for all Arabs and humanity as a whole. He stated, "Arab nations, the Arab world, and humanity must stand for the Palestinian cause against global tyranny masked behind slogans of democracy and human rights." He added that the ongoing violations in Palestine without accountability pose a grave threat to global values of justice and fairness.
The Hague Declaration: A Call to End Impunity
The event culminated in a joint statement, "The Hague Declaration," a powerful call to action urging intensified international efforts to combat impunity. The declaration stressed the importance of prioritizing peoples’ rights and the right to self-determination in human rights work. It also criticized certain governments for retreating from supporting international criminal justice and called for collective action to rebuild trust in justice mechanisms.
Protest in Front of the International Court of Justice and the International Criminal Court
After the opening session, attendees in The Hague marched to the International Court of Justice and the International Criminal Court. They raised demands for expedited handling of urgent human rights cases, including the ongoing genocide in Gaza. They also urged the ICC to double its efforts to hold perpetrators of war crimes accountable in all conflict-affected countries, particularly Yemen, Gaza, Sudan, Syria, and Ukraine.
Art: A Final Message of Solidarity
The event concluded with artistic performances, starting with Yemeni star Maria Qahtan’s singing session live from Sana’a, which received great audience interaction. Yemeni artist Omar Al-Shahari followed with traditional musical performances in The Hague, prompting attendees to join in singing and dancing. The Palestinian dabke troupe "Raje’een" also performed traditional Gazan dabke, while Palestinian artist Abu Jabi closed the event with a moving performance that embodied the event’s artistic and human rights spirit.
A Lasting Impact:
This event combined critical discussions and creative expressions to deliver a unified message: justice and accountability are the only paths to ensuring peace and protecting human rights in Yemen, Palestine, and all conflict zones. It stands as an unequivocal call to the world to end the cycle of impunity before catastrophe becomes the rule rather than the exception.
