On
Yemen, Benomar
Says Only Some
from South
Quit Dialogue,
Disappeared
States?
By
Matthew
Russell Lee
UNITED
NATIONS,
November 27 --
Hours before
the Yemen
briefing to
the UN
Security
Council by
envoy Jamal
Benomar,
protesters
across First
Avenue from
the UN called
for
independence
for Southern
Yemen.
This
coincided with
news that
members of the
Southern
Movement or Al
Harak
had pulled out
of the
National
Dialogue
Conference.
When Benomar
came
to speak at
the Security
Council
stakeout,
Inner City
Press asked
him
about the
status of the
Southern
Movement.
Benomar
replied
that yes, some
members had
withdrawn, but
emphasized
that
others had
stayed in and
would be
holding a
press
conference
tomorrow. Of
proposals that
the next
president and
other senior
officials
could not, for
example, have
a foreign
spouse --
echoes of
Myanmar there
-- Benomar
merely said
that many
proposals have
been
considered and
vetted in the
Dialogue.
Click
here for Benomar's
prepared
statement to
the press after
the Security
Council
meeting.
But
will the
National
Dialogue keep
the merged
country
together?
Inner
City Press posed
the question
of what other
countries got
gone from
being UN
member states
to
disappearing
in a merger.
Through the magic
of
Twitter these
answers came
in: South
Vietnam, East
Germany,
Zanzibar. To
these, we'd
add, among
others,
Somaliland.
Among
territories
called
"disappeared"
though never
UN member
states were
Scotland,
Flanders,
Electorate of
Bavaria,
Bohemia &
Moravia,
Muscovite
Duchy,
Catalonia,
Lombardy. Will
any parts of
Yemen join the
list?
Here
is the UN
Security
Council's
Press
Statement:
Security
Council
Press
Statement on
Yemen
The
members
of the
Security
Council
welcomed the
progress made
to date in
Yemen’s
ongoing
political
transition
process and
the Yemeni
Government’s
efforts to
reconstruct
the economy
and safeguard
security,
including the
National
Dialogue
Conference
which has
generated a
peaceful,
inclusive and
meaningful
dialogue about
the
country’s
future amongst
diverse
actors,
including
youth, women,
civil society
representatives,
the Houthi
Movement and
the Hiraak
Southern
Movement.
The
members
of the
Security
Council
expressed
concern,
however, about
the
significant
delays in
concluding the
National
Dialogue
Conference and
emphasised the
importance of
concluding the
National
Dialogue
Conference as
soon as
possible to
move to
constitutional
drafting
and electoral
preparations,
as the next
steps in the
transition.
They called on
all parties to
engage
constructively
in a spirit of
compromise to
address the
remaining
critical
issues
necessary to
conclude the
dialogue, in
particular
those
concerning the
southern
question and
the structure
of the State.
The
members
of the
Security
Council
reiterated
their concern
over
continuing
reports of
interference
by those
intent on
disrupting,
delaying or
derailing the
transition
process and
undermining
the
Yemeni
Government.
The members of
the Security
Council
condemned any
such attempts,
whether by
members of the
former regime
or political
opportunists,
notably by
abstaining
from
participation
in the
National
Dialogue
Conference,
threatening to
do so or
standing in
the
way of a
consensus
agreement to
conclude the
National
Dialogue. The
members of the
Security
Council called
on all parties
to adhere to
the guiding
principles of
the Gulf
Cooperation
Council
Initiative and
Implementation
Mechanism for
the transition
process.
The
members
of the
Security
Council
reaffirmed
their support
to the
Yemeni
Government to
safeguard
security,
promote social
and economic
development
and push
forward
political,
economic and
security
reforms. They
underlined
their
commitment to
follow closely
the
peaceful
political
transition in
Yemen, and
emphasized
that the
conclusion of
the political
transition
should be
based on the
completion of
the steps
contained in
the GCC
Initiative and
its
Implementation
Mechanism.
They
reaffirmed
their
readiness to
consider
further
measures in
response to
any actions by
individuals or
parties
that are aimed
at disrupting
the transition
process.
The
members
of the
Security
Council noted
the
expectation of
the people
of Yemen that
a National
Dialogue and
transition
process will
lead to
outcomes and
actions that
would improve
security,
governance and
delivery of
basic services
to all
Yemenis.
The
members
of the
Security
Council
welcomed the
good offices
of the
Secretary
-General and,
in particular,
reaffirmed
their support
for
the efforts of
Special
Adviser Jamal
Benomar. They
also commended
the
ongoing
efforts of the
Group of 10
Ambassadors in
Sana’a and
other
international
partners to
support
Yemen’s
transition.
The
members
of the
Security
Council
reaffirmed
their
commitment to
the
unity,
sovereignty,
independence
and
territorial
integrity of
Yemen.
New
York,
27 November
2013
, 
