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World
The Houthi militia has intensified pressure on Yemen's most vulnerable by imposing fines and illegal penalties on beggars and street vendors in Sanaa under the pretext of combating begging and protecting public decency.
The Houthi militia has escalated restrictions on Yemen’s most fragile groups by enforcing financial fines and unlawful penalties against beggars and street vendors within its controlled territories. This move is justified by the militia as part of efforts to combat begging and preserve public decency, rather than addressing the root causes of poverty and the worsening hunger crisis.
Within this framework, the so-called “National Program for Combating Begging,” affiliated with the militia’s unrecognized authorities, has started distributing warning leaflets to beggars and street vendors in the streets and public squares of the capital, Sanaa.
These leaflets impose a complete ban on the presence of these groups, threatening pursuit, detention, and strict punitive measures against them. This approach reflects the Houthi authorities’ avoidance of tackling the fundamental causes of the economic and humanitarian crisis, instead directly targeting its victims.
According to the circulated leaflets, the Houthi authorities have broadened the definition of begging to include simple activities relied upon by thousands of impoverished individuals as daily income sources. These activities include selling tissues, toothpicks, and light goods on the streets, as well as cleaning car windows at traffic intersections.
The penalties outlined include financial fines starting at 150,000 Yemeni riyals for repeated violations, escalating up to one million riyals in some cases. Additionally, offenders may be referred to the public prosecution and face prison sentences ranging from five to ten years in cases involving the exploitation of women and children in begging activities.
The Houthi campaign claims to target those they describe as "habitual beggars by profession," asserting that the program aims to rehabilitate and train them, providing small loans to help find alternative income sources.
Observers note that the entities controlling public resources, tax revenues, customs, and suspending salaries for hundreds of thousands of employees for years face difficulty convincing the public of their ability to implement effective programs to alleviate poverty or offer genuine economic alternatives. This is especially relevant as the militia currently confronts an unprecedented financial crisis.
Critics argue that these measures address the symptoms of the economic crisis rather than its causes, punishing the most vulnerable groups forced onto the streets by war conditions and economic collapse. They highlight the absence of developmental policies that provide employment opportunities and social protection networks for the poor and unemployed.
Economic analyst Majid Al-Daari stated that the increasing poverty rates and widespread begging are not causes but direct results of economic policies that impoverished communities under Houthi control. These policies have compelled many citizens to seek any means of survival, including begging or engaging in marginal street work to meet their families’ basic needs.
Al-Daari told "Erem News" that the Houthis’ move to impose fines and financial penalties on beggars reveals an attempt to convert the suffering of the poorest into a new financial resource instead of addressing the real causes. He added that the militia does not treat begging as a social or humanitarian crisis requiring intervention but rather as an opportunity to increase revenue.
He emphasized that a serious approach to addressing begging should begin with studying the economic and social conditions of those affected, rehabilitating children exploited in begging, providing job opportunities for those able to work, and establishing support programs for the elderly and those unable to earn. This approach contrasts with the current practice of pursuing and penalizing them with fines.
Al-Daari confirmed that imposing financial burdens on individuals already suffering from extreme poverty will not reduce begging but may push more families into greater vulnerability and deprivation. He described this as exploiting humanitarian needs as an additional funding source amid worsening poverty and food insecurity.
In a country enduring one of the world’s worst humanitarian crises, begging reflects the direct impact of Yemenis’ economic collapse rather than being merely a problem of street organization or urban appearance.
United Nations organizations warn that Yemen could slip into famine within a few months, with one-third of its population requiring humanitarian aid and more than 18 million suffering from severe food insecurity. Additionally, malnutrition affects about 50% of Yemeni women and children due to ongoing conflict and economic deterioration.
The Houthi measures have sparked widespread discontent on social media platforms, where activists shared videos of street vendors expressing surprise at their daily struggle being classified as begging. These vendors emphasized their reliance on such work to meet their families’ minimum living needs amid a lack of employment opportunities.
This campaign coincided with statements by the acting head of the Houthi government, Mohammed Maftah, who urged citizens complaining of hunger and poverty to stop sharing their suffering on social media and to seek any available work, even if unpaid.
Maftah’s remarks provoked angry reactions, with activists viewing them as evidence of the growing gap between the militia’s authority and society. They see this as a continuation of the Houthis’ approach of minimizing citizens’ suffering and disregarding their urgent demands to end the unprecedented spread of hunger, poverty, and unemployment.
