Barran Press
The National Arab Socialist Ba'ath Party, Marib branch, on Saturday, July 13th, 2023, urged against yielding to international pressure to delay the implementation of the Central Bank's decisions. The party accused the United Nations of siding with the Houthis.
In a statement obtained by Barran Press, the Ba'ath Party expressed full support for the economic reforms issued by the Yemeni Central Bank. They argued that these decisions were necessary to end the monetary division caused by the Houthis, an organization classified as a terrorist group by the international community. The party claimed that the Houthis' actions had severely damaged the national economy.
The party attributed the Houthis' recent appeals to international bodies, which they usually disregard, to their desire to secure a statement from the UN envoy demanding a postponement of the Central Bank's measures until the end of August. The Ba'ath Party mocked the proposed delay, citing the Houthis' history of inflicting suffering on the Yemeni people since their coup against the legitimate government and national consensus. They accused the Houthis of sending the best of Yemen's youth and children into a losing war, seizing public employee salaries, and plundering resources for their benefit and to fuel the conflict.
The party rejected the UN envoy Hans Grundberg's appeal to the Presidential Leadership Council, criticizing it for providing the Houthis with an opportunity to further solidify economic division and the geographical separation they imposed since their coup.
The Ba'ath Party expressed disappointment with the UN's bias towards the Houthis, which they believe has given the Houthis a green light to prolong the war. They argued that the UN's support for the Houthis, a designated terrorist group, positions the organization as a supporter of the militia instead of pressuring them to comply with international agreements and resolutions aimed at restoring the state.
The party considered any engagement with the Houthis an intervention in Yemen's national sovereignty. They reaffirmed their unwavering support for the political leadership, represented by the President of the Presidential Leadership Council, Rashad Al-Alimi, and their support for all national decisions taken by the government to end the Houthi rebellion. They declared their support for any measure aimed at curtailing the Houthis' destructive actions.
On Friday, July 12th, the Yemeni Presidential Leadership Council held an emergency meeting to discuss a UN request for their support in launching a UN-sponsored dialogue to address recent economic developments and find solutions that benefit all Yemenis.
The council, chaired by Rashad Al-Alimi and attended by all members except Faraj Al-Bahsani, responded to the request by UN Special Envoy Hans Grundberg by reiterating their commitment to a clear agenda for participation in any dialogue on economic issues. The council stated their conditions for participation, which include resuming oil exports, unifying the national currency, revoking all arbitrary measures against the banking sector and the business community.
Previously, the UN envoy Hans Grundberg had requested the Presidential Leadership Council to postpone the implementation of recent decisions by the Yemeni Central Bank regarding the suspension of licenses for banks that failed to relocate their headquarters to Aden, the designated temporary capital of Yemen.
In a letter dated July 10th, 2024, Grundberg expressed concern over the Central Bank's decision, numbered 30 of 2024, which suspended the licenses of six banks and the subsequent communication with correspondent banks and the SWIFT system. He argued that this would lead to the cessation of these banks' access to correspondent banks and the SWIFT system.
The UN envoy acknowledged and empathized with the economic grievances endured by the Yemeni government, particularly the halt of crude oil exports, but cautioned that the recent decisions regarding banks would harm the Yemeni economy and negatively impact ordinary Yemenis across the country. He warned that these decisions could escalate the conflict into a military confrontation.
To prevent what he called "further pressure and the risk of the decision on the Yemeni economy," the UN envoy urged the Yemeni government and the Central Bank to postpone the implementation of these decisions until at least the end of August.
He also requested that all banks postpone any actions that could negatively impact the six banks in question. He called for the initiation of a dialogue under UN auspices between Yemeni parties to discuss recent economic developments in Yemen.
In a series of decisions, Governor Ahmed Al-Ma'baki, the Central Bank revoked the licenses of 26 exchange companies in late May and ordered the closure of their branches indefinitely for violating bank regulations.
These decisions followed two previous decisions, one imposing a unified network for domestic remittances and the other prohibiting transactions with 12 unlicensed electronic payment entities. They also halted operations in local financial remittance networks owned by banks, financial institutions, or exchange companies operating in Yemen.
On May 30th, the Yemeni Central Bank in Aden issued a decision to cease transactions with six Yemeni banks and financial institutions after the 60-day deadline for relocating their headquarters to Aden expired.
The Central Bank also issued another decision urging individuals, businesses, companies, other entities, and financial and banking institutions holding pre-2016 banknotes of all denominations to deposit them within 60 days of the announcement.