Socialist Sulking in Yemen

In a decision that surprised virtually no one, leaders of the once powerful Yemen Socialist Party (YSP) announced they will boycott this month's parliamentary elections, in which some nine million voters will chose the 301 members of the country's National Assembly. The April 27 election, the first since 1993, pits members of the ruling General People's Congress (GPC) against several small opposition parties as well as the Islamically oriented Islah party, which is a member of the ruling coalition. Preliminary indications are that GPC candidates will receive an overall majority of the votes, and that their National Assembly representation could increase to as much as 250 seats.

Socialist Complaints

The decision by the YSP to boycott the parliamentary elections comes against the background of mounting complaints by both the party's leadership and most of southern Yemen's four million residents. The general feeling is that the northern dominated government of President Ali Abdullah Saleh is deliberately discriminating against southern economic interests. According to YSP secretary general Salem Saleh Muhammed, President Saleh's policies are a logical continuation of Yemen's 1994 civil war. In that war, northern forces easily beat back a YSP-directed secessionist effort that also enjoyed the covert support of Saudi Arabia.

For its part of course, the ruling GPC rejects the YSP charges outright, claiming that the administration of President Saleh has the interests of all 18 million Yemenis at heart, whether they be northerners or southerners. According to GPC Politburo member Saleh Bathawab, an overwhelming GPC victory could well result in a considerable improvement in southern economic conditions. Indeed, says Bathawab, a GPC victory, "[would] end the existing tug of war between rival decision makers, narrowing the base of decision making, and making it easier to get things done in the south."

The Boycott's Reach

According to reports from the southern Yemeni capital of Aden, as many as 80% of the area's registered voters will likely heed the YSP's call to boycott the forthcoming elections, despite the GPC administration’s recent efforts to implement a far-reaching southern economic development program, significant parts of which are meant to bring real economic benefit to the city of Aden. Arguably the most important element here is the reconstruction of Aden port, under which new foreign investment would help to turn it into the leading maritime shipping center in the Persian gulf area.

In the meantime, the government in Sa'ana is also pressing forward with long-standing attempts to reach an effective modus vivendi with the formerly hostile administration in Saudi Arabia. Following a series of clashes along the two countries' common border in 1995, a joint commission was established to try to solve residual border problems, most of which date back to the 1930s. While some bilateral progress has recently been reported, it is still not considered sufficient to calm the fears of many potential Yemeni investors, who justifiably believe that strong Yemeni-Saudi ties are a necessary element for stable Yemeni economic development.