Current Yemen is the unification of two countries witch had different and conflicting attitudes towards women. It is beyond the scope of this paper to draw any descriptive conclusions about the effect of unification on women in Yemen. However this paper will make conclusions based on a general overview of the impact of unification on women in Yemen.

Before making any suggestions, implications or judgements about any aspect of a developing country the history of that developing country must be uncovered. Discovering the history also gives invaluable insight on why the situation is as it stands and as a result what can be realistically done to improve the situation.

In the late 1960s, the British withdrew from the south of Yemen and the country's economy was on the verge of ruin. The new People's Republic of South Yemen, which came into being on 30 November 1967, relied heavily on economic support from Communist countries. In 1970 the republic's name was changed to the People's Democratic Republic of Yemen. Mutual distrust between the two Yemeni countries led to a series of short border wars in 1972, 1978 and 1979. Under Ali Abdullah Salah in the late seve

The legal rights of Yemeni women are in the Constitution. The personal status law was basically a reproduction of the former YAR law with a few changes. The personal status law setback a woman's right to sue for divorce and legalized polygamy. The personal status law also eliminated the limitation on bride price (mahr), the money families could demand in payment for consenting to the marriage of a daughter. The personal status law does explain that marriage is a partnership between the couple and that "any contract established on the basis of compulsion (ikrah) on the husband or wife is invalid (Article 12)." When defining what constitutes consent by a woman, a difference is made between a woman who has already been married and a woman is getting married for the first time. A woman who has already been married has to give unambiguous consent but for a women who is getting married for the first time silence constitutes consent (Article 23). Following the Islamic injunction a m!

The prevailing tendency during this period was the narrowing of the division between the two political and legal systems -that of the conservative, tribal north and a secular, Marxist south - by the northern code eventually prevailing over the southern.(n3)

Before the unification many women in the southern areas did not cover up but after unification legislation was passed to force the ways of the north onto the liberal south. After unification, unveiled women were harassed (often by women). According to Western diplomats three weddings with co-ed dancing were bombed last year.(n2)

The most conservative areas of the country are the Zaidi areas. The interpretation of shari 'a, in the Zaidi areas is more favorable to women than in the Shafi'i regions. The Shafi'i areas are more orthodox in their interpretations of the shari'a. In other areas the legal practice is done by the traditions of the tribe.

In reaction to the personal status law group of women, supported by lawyers and civil rights activists, held a demonstrations. Yemen's official women's organization the General Union of Yemeni Women (GUYW)

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Approximate Word count = 1415
Approximate Pages = 6 (250 words per page double spaced)