STC Imposes Restrictions on Civil Society Organizations' Activities in Aden
It is no longer possible for civil society organizations in Aden to hold workshops, conferences, or seminars without the approval of the UAE-backed Southern Transitional Council (STC).
The National Authority of Southern Media (NASM), a pro-secession media entity, has recently issued instructions to hotels and halls, ordering them to refrain from accommodating conferences, training sessions, or workshops without the approval of the NASM, which was created in 2021 to be a media umbrella for the pro-secession journalists.
This move comes in line with the southern separatists' continued efforts to crack down on the activities of the civil society organizations in South Yemen.
According to the recent report of the UN Panel of Experts on Yemen, the STC is detaining, forcibly disappearing, or threatening journalists and activists who publicly criticize them and are also forced to sign or deliver confessions.
The report added that the STC-affiliated forces have also abducted and forcibly disappeared many men and women who have been publicly vocal. Panel sources indicate that many of the abductees are held in secret detention facilities.
In February this year, separatist militants broke into the headquarters of the Yemeni Journalists Syndicate in Aden and expelled the night guards and all other persons present at the time. It remains to be controlled by new personnel loyal to the STC.
In July 219, separatist militants attacked the office of the state-owned Saba News Agency in Aden and ransacked its premises.
Though the STC has worked to eliminate any opposition in southern provinces under its control, friction between separatist leaders continues.
Last month, Sheba Intelligence obtained audio recordings revealing the escalation of regional discourse within the members of the STC, which makes Yemenis in the southern provinces recall the civil war between two factions within the Socialist Party in January 1986, in which thousands were killed.
