Human Rights Council Forum on Minority Issues Guaranteeing the Rights of Minority Women Fourth Session Geneva, 29-30 November 2011 Intervention: Item 4 Intervention delivered by Fouad al-Souli – Partners Association for Development – Yemen – Province of Taiz Thank you Madame Chair for granting [us] this opportunity, And thank you, High Commissioner for Human Rights, for accepting us to the Minorities Fellowship Programme, which gave us the opportunity to participate in this valuable forum. Women belonging to the marginalized class – the Al-Akhdam – in Yemen suffer from a significant deficiency in representation and participation in bodies and institutions responsible for political decision-making, whether in government or society with its diverse civil entities. This group of women is also not given the required priority to bring about positive change, effective participation, and the guarantee of complete political rights for women from the Al-Akhdam minority. Recommendations to the Yemeni Government, the United Nations and Civil Society 1. Guaranteeing a certain percentage of seats (quota) during a transitional period for Al-Akhdam women to represent them in legislative institutions and local councils, through legislative measures to that effect. 2. Strengthening the role of civil society, especially organisations working in the field of promoting women’s rights by creating awareness about the importance of the participation of women from the Al-Akhdam group in elections. 3. Their representation in the Supreme Commission for Elections, its various departments as well as other governmental institutions to ensure their interaction in achieving effective political participation.