Local charity provides respite break for Yemeni refugee family

Friday 17 August 2018

A Yemeni refugee who’s holidaying in the island thanks to a local charity says he’s overwhelmed with the kindness he’s received and that his week-long visit is “an experience that will remain with me for the rest of my life."

The special trip was made possible thanks to the Jersey Prisoners of Conscience Holiday Fund, a little-known island charity endeavour offering friendship and hospitality to prisoners of conscience and survivors of torture.

This week, they welcomed the family of Ahmed Hussein Al-Kolaibi, who found himself trapped in the UK in 2014 after the bitter civil war in Yemen prevented him from returning to his homeland.

The country is now struggling against starvation, while dozens died in the bombing of a bus full of schoolchildren last week – just one of more than 50 airstrikes against civilian vehicles so far this year.

Express went to meet Ahmed, who shared his story…

An academic and human rights campaigner, Yemeni citizen Ahmed had been in the UK studying at the University of York when fighting flared up in his country again.

Dozens are dead after an airstrike hit a school bus carrying children in northern Yemen, humanitarian group says https://t.co/zIVYgpm5eu pic.twitter.com/iWCfTUZBNN

— CNN Breaking News (@cnnbrk) August 9, 2018

The father, whose own dad was killed when he was young, says he’d love to return home but it’s too dangerous at the moment.

He currently lives with his wife, Ashwak, and two young children, five-year-old Al-Zahra, and four-year-old Esra, in Salford. 

But, it’s been a long journey.

Whilst he was trapped in England, they were trapped in Yemen. Fleeing from town to town to avoid the fighting, they were eventually united in Egypt in June 2016.

“…It was a wonderful day. I felt like I am able to eat, sleep, laugh and enjoy time with my children as all parents do,” Ahmed recalls.

Pictured: Ahmed was born and raised in the Dhamar Governorate, Al Hada District, one of the poor communities that suffered most from Yemeni tribal violence.

The Yemeni civil war between different tribal factions eager to seize power has been going on for more than 30 years and has profoundly affected Ahmed’s life. Ahmed was just seven when his father was killed - an event he says prompted him to get involved in human rights education.

“I suffered a lot because of losing my father when we were too small to face the troubles of life. This experience has really hurt me, but it's also the thing that made me work for the defence of human rights,” he says.

He’s convinced that a lasting peace can only be achieved by getting the warring parties to turn their backs on the past.  

“I have drawn up several campaigns to help young people to leave behind any conflict that was passed down to us, and instead to move in a new direction. Instead of continuing to be involved in a conflict, I encourage them to put their energies into useful directions – such as studying and contributing to the development of tribal societies.”

For eight years, he worked at the Dar Al-Salam Organisation, or DASO, ‘The Peace House in Yemen’, and successfully brokered a deal that ended the fighting where he was living. 

Pictured: Sana’a in Yemen, the country’s largest city. (Yeowatzup/Wiki)

Ahmed believes the war in Yemen receives relatively little coverage in the western media for two reasons. The first is because, unlike Syria, there aren’t thousands of refugees fleeing the country and telling their stories. The other is because of Saudi Arabia’s involvement. He believes western countries are “keen to court” the Saudis and are therefore reluctant to criticise them.

Thanks to the internet, though, Ahmed is occasionally able to keep in touch with friends and colleagues in Yemen, although he stresses it is difficult. They can often only get internet access once a week.  

Although Ahmed has a degree in Shariah Law it isn’t recognised in the UK. This means he’ll either have to retrain so he can pursue a legal career or find an alternative. Another course he’s looking at is a Masters and PhD in peacebuilding. His wife is a maths teacher and is hoping to convert her qualifications so that she can teach in the UK. 

His family is the second of three groups being brought to the island for a period of respite by the Jersey Prisoners of Conscience Holiday Fund this year. In May, a Burmese family was also brought over. The father was an MP who’d been arrested and imprisoned for seven years for dissent. 

And later this month a Pakistani Christian journalist and his partner will be in the island. He was forced to flee his home having made himself ‘unpopular’ as a prominent critic of the country’s blasphemy laws.

Pictured: Ahmed believes only by turning their backs on the past can the warring factions bring peace to Yemen. 

Chair of the charity Jurat Collette Crill says that they would love to arrange even more visits, but that there are unfortunately more potential visitors than there is funding available. The constraints can also be practical.

She explained: “It is regrettably today no problem finding visitors who qualify as former prisoners of conscience and survivors of torture or of official abuse. We thus only bring the visitors here one time. We then also limit ourselves to two or at most three visits a year which our committee and our POCHF supporters can manage. Our committee’s administration in agreeing dates, booking travel tickets and finding suitable accommodation can be time consuming. The passport and immigration matters, such as the right to come to Jersey and to a UK return, must be checked. After all bookings and dates are secure, arranging a roster for our supporters to spend time with the visitors and escort them during their stay can be time consuming, too.”

The charity relies on pledged five-year ‘deeds of covenant’ from Jersey supporters, one-off donations, as well as donations for specific visitors. However, Jurat Crill says they could do with more to help continue their work in helping those who have suffered.

“More supporters are always welcome, either practical or financial!”