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Abstract
National narratives offer a fruitful site for examining the processes of collective identity and memory formation. In 1990, the northern Yemen Arab Republic and the southern People's Democratic Republic of Yemen unified, or as described by many Yemeni sources reunified, to form the present Republic of Yemen. This paper looks at national narrative construction in Yemen through the examination of state-issued textbooks. They stress the natural unity of the Yemeni nation and people and have a conspicuous gap in the history between the revolutionary period of the 1960s and the 1990 unification. The omission of such recent and relevant national history can be understood by examining the structure of the narratives produced by the state and the emphasis on the theme of unity and the driving plot of unification.
The 20th century has arguably been one of state building, with the number of independent states nearly tripling by its close. Yemen, along with Germany, is one of the only examples of the unification of existing states and is a particularly interesting case study in the formation of national narratives and collective identities. In 1990, the northern Yemen Arab Republic and the southern Peoples Democratic Republic of Yemen unified, or as described by many Yemeni sources reunified, to form the present Republic of Yemen. However, unification has not been unanimously embraced and there remain competing visions of the configuration and nature of the state. These include the 1994 civil war and two ongoing internal political crises: a secessionist movement in the southern part of the country and a military rebellion in the north. Textbooks often offer a fruitful site for research into national narratives and collective identity. This paper looks at national narrative construction in official state-issued textbooks for primary and secondary school students in order to examine the events that have been included and excluded. Official discourse, even in a weak state system such as Yemen, has the potential to be widely spread given the states financial, education, and infrastructure resources, such as TV and radio.13 Additionally, the paper raises the issue of the role of state-building in both low literacy societies and countries with ongoing political instability.
I. Yemen's Recent History
Before looking at examples of national narrative creation in Yemen, it is necessary to briefly discuss Yemen's history, especially that surrounding unification, in order to be able to accurately understand the narratives that the government is forming.14 While the concept of Yemen as a logically, but loosely bounded geographic region has existed for centuries, the current Yemeni state only came into existence in May 1990 when the northern Yemen Arab Republic (YAR) and the southern People's Democratic Republic of Yemen (PDRY) joined together as the Republic of Yemen (ROY). The merger, driven primarily by economic necessity and political instability, has not brought about undisputed national unity. Historically and culturally North Yemen and South Yemen vary in ways that have made unification difficult to realize.15 The northern identity has been based on traditional tribal affiliations and the southern on modernity and socialism. North Yemen was ruled almost uninterrupted by Zaydi Shi'ites for over a thousand years, although it was incorporated into the Ottoman Empire. With the fall of the Empire in 1918, Zaydi leadership reclaimed autonomy and established a theocratic state in the North until a 1962 Nasserite-inspired coup, the 26 September Revolution, led to the overthrow of the fmamate and the establishment the YAR with its capital in Sanaa. From its founding to 1970, North Yemen was embroiled in a costly civil war between the royalists, supported by Saudi Arabia, who wanted to reestablish the imamate and the republicans who supported the secular YAR and were financially and militarily aided by Egypt. The republicans eventual won, but the government was plagued by internal dissent. The first two presidents were ousted by coups. The third and fourth were assassinated, the later just eight months after taking office, ft was not until Ali Abdullah Saleh, a military officer, became president in 1978 that the country experienced increased stability and development.16
In contrast, Aden, on Yemen's south coast, had been held since 1839 by the East India Company because of its strategic importance to the India trade route and officially became a British Colony in 1937. Nationalist movements rebelled in 1963 during the 14
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13 This is not to say that there is necessarily a single or unified national narrative projected by the Yemeni government nor that the narratives produced are stable overtime. However,
as I will discuss, there are a number of similarities in the periods of history they choose to highlight and those that they omit.
14 The narrative I present below is, of course, only one of the many narratives that can be and is told about Yemen.
15 The terminology YAR/North Yemen and PDRY/South Yemen are frequently used interchangeably. I will use the terms North/South Yemen when referring to the geographic and cultural regions and the official state names when specifically referring the political states, which only exist within bounded temporal eras.
16 For histories of North Yemen see Burrowes, R.D. (1987), 'The Yemen Arab Republic: The Politics of Development, f962-1986', Westview, Bolder; and, Burrowes, R.D. (1988), 'State- Building and Political Construction in the Yemen Arab Republic, 1962-1977', in: Chel- kowski, P.J. and Pranger, R.J. (eds), Ideology and Power in the Middle East: Studies in Honor of George Lenczowski, Duke UP, Durham, pp. 210-38.
October Revolution, won independence from Britain in 1967, and established a state consisting of the areas around Aden and Yemen's eastern Hadramawt region. In 1969, socialist elements gained control of the country, renamed it the PDRY, making it the only socialist country in the Arab world; and establishing close bilateral ties with the Soviet Union. Like the YAR, the PDRY faced major internal political divisions from its inception. Most significantly, in January 1986 the country nearly descended into civil war when the PDRY's President Ali Nasir Muhammad al-Hasani had many of his opponents assassinated, which resulted in 10-days of fighting in Aden's streets, thousands of casualties, and Ali Nasir's flight to the YAR with thousands of his supporters.[1]The YAR and PDRY underwent decades of alternating tension and rapprochement between the states. While the leadership of both states repeatedly invoked the rhetoric of Yemeni nationalism and unification, this did not prevent them from fighting with one another in two border wars in the 1970s. The 1990 unification of the tribal north and socialist south was eventually agreed upon after a series of economic shocks, natural disasters, and changes in global political alliances. Most significantly, the PDRY was on the verge of collapse after the 1986 crisis, the Cold War era was ending, and opposition to unification from northern internal factions and Saudi Arabia had eroded.[2]Rather than carrying out a promised public referendum, the ruling parties of the two states ultimately acted unilaterally to formally unify the states. The Republic of Yemen was initially formed as a power sharing arrangement that split parliamentary seats between the northern General People's Congress (GPC) and southern Yemen Socialist Party (YSP), but the former north retained a majority of the seats on the five member presidential council and its former President, Ali Abdullah Saleh, led the new country. While the YAR and PDRY had been single-party states, the new state allowed for a multi-party system with competitive elections for local councils and the 301-member House of Representatives, one of two national legislative bodies.[3]Further economic difficulties, defeat in the 1993 parliamentary elections, and a gogovernment move to amend the constitution in order to end the power sharing agreements soon led YSP leaders to believe that unification had been a mistake. In May 1994, Vice President Ali Salim al-Beidh, the former president of the PDRY, announced the reconstitution of an independent southern state. The move resulted in a brief civil war that ultimately led to the YSP's defeat and the exile of many of its leaders. The civil war left the south politically weak and the YSP marginalized, a situation that has persisted to the present day. Ali Abdullah Saleh has continued serving as the Republic of Yemen's president.
II. Current Political & Social Conflicts
Societal divisions continue to plague the country's political landscape along religious, geographic, religions, and tribal fault lines. While sectarianism in Yemen does not compare to its manifestations in other parts of the region, it does play a small but significant role in Yemen's internal dynamics and relations with its Gulf neighbors. After Bahrain, Yemen has the largest Shi'ite population in the Gulf.[4] Yemen's Shi'ite-Sunni issues tend to be a reflection of the distribution of government posts and positions of authority throughout the country. The division of Shi'ites (of the Zaydi branch) and Sunnis (of the Shaf'i branch) falls predominantly along the former North-South divide, and although Shi'ites are the minority group, they dominate the country's politics due to the fact that they are located predominantly in the politically stronger North. During the northern Zaydi Imamate and subsequent YAR government the Shaf'i population in northern Yemen was largely excluded from positions of power and after unification the Shaf'i population in the South met a similar fate. Especially in the former Marxist South, the government is pejoratively characterized as Zaydi. During a 1992 visit to Aden, President Saleh and his companions were greeted with jeers from the Adenis of'Go home Zaydis!'[5]
The Sunni-Shi'ite division has been amplified by the ongoing al-Shabab al-Moumin (the Youthful Believers) Shi'ite uprising in the Sa'ada governorate on the Yemeni-Saudi border. Al-Shabab al-Moumin, commonly referred to as the al-Houthi movement after its founder Hussein al-Houthi has fought intermittently with the Yemeni government since 2004. The group represents a minority movement within the Zaydi tradition. The group's motives and goal remain a source of contention and controversy. These range from greater political representation and freedoms for the group to all out calls for the restoration of the Zaydi Imamate headed by a descendent of the Prophet Mohammad's eventual successor and relative Ali.22 Additionally, the movement criticizes the government as being an ally of America and Israel.
The Yemeni government-al-Houthi standoff, which resurfaced in February 2007 for the third time in almost as many years, sparked growing dissent among the Yemeni population over the government's violent suppression of the movement, and led to claims that it is suppressing its Shi'ite minority (despite the fact that the President is himself a Shi'ite and his government has also been accused of discriminating against Sunnis). Shi'ite-dominated Iran has remained a specter in Gulf politics, often greeted with suspicion by the Sunni monarchies and elite. While the form of Shi'ism practiced by al-Houthi's followers is distinct from that in Iran, the Yemeni government has repeatedly accused Iran of supporting the al-Houthi insurgents.[6] Throughout 2007, the government created an effective media blackout as it had done in the past by severely restricting journalist access in the Sa'ada province as government troops and al-Houthi rebels clashed. Since 2007, numerous ceasefire agreements, including a Qatari-bro- kered agreement, have been made and subsequently broken. By late 2008, 130,000 civilian residents of the Sa'ada governorate had been displaced resulting in severe food shortages in the province.[7]
In addition to the al-Houthi conflict, the government faces a renewed secessionist movement in the south. After the 1994 civil war, many soldiers and officers from South Yemen lost their positions, and southerners maintain that the government favors northerners for top government and military posts. 2007 witnessed a series of protests and demonstrations after former army officers started demanding compensation from the government in the spring. Southern protests continued through the summer and culminated on 14 October, the anniversary of the 1963 revolt against British occupation. Despite government orders against public assemblies on that particular day, a crowd protested in the southern town of Radfan, where the 1963 revolt began. Police fired on the crowd, killing four and wounding fifteen. Since the incident, verbal arguments have continued to escalate between opposition leaders and the government. Tensions over distribution of wealth and influence have been further exacerbated by criticism of the government's response to the ongoing al-Houthi revolt in the north of the country. In 2009, leaders of the Southern Movement openly called for the south to breakaway and reestablish and independent southern state, which has resulted in a number of bombings and attacks. As a result of growing political tensions and a failure to make necessary reforms in the electoral system, the parliamentary elections planned for April 2009 have been postponed for two years.
III. Education System
Since 1994, education in Yemen has comprised nine years of compulsory primary education and three years of secondary school. Approximately, 4.3 million students are enrolled in primary schools and nearly 600,000 in secondary school.[8] For a decade after unification, the ROY employed a temporary curriculum combining elements of the YAR and PDRY's curricula. From 2000-2004, the curriculum underwent a revision for grades 1-12 with the major changes being pedagogic and a shift towards a 'dialogic approach to learning rather than rote-learning.'[9] In January 2010, the Ministry of Education announced a comprehensive curricular review. In particular the curricular reform is to address science and technology and strengthening the national and religious values amid students and protecting them from thoughts of extremism and terrorism.'[10]
While it is agreed by all major actors that textbook reform is needed to change the content, grammatical errors, and pedagogic methods, Yemen's educational system faces a number of obstacles at all levels due to its poverty and historic low levels of education. Yemen ranks 140th out of 182 nations on the United Nations Development Programme's Human Development Index.[11] Currently, the World Bank estimates the adult literacy rate to be 59 percent, 77 percent for men and 49 percent for women.[12]Though these figures are low, they represent a substantial improvement over the last twenty years. Immediately prior to unification, total adult literacy rates in the YAR and PDRY were estimated to be 15 and 25 percent, respectively.[13] According to a report published by UNICEF, of Yemeni children ages six to eleven only 45 percent of girls and 68 percent of boys are enrolled in schools.[14] The Yemeni Ministry of Education faces serious obstacles in increasing and improving primary and secondary school completion rates, education for girls, teacher training, and textbook printing and distribution. The government has emphasized its commitment to education and partnered with numerous international organizations including the World Bank, the German Agency for Technical Cooperation (GTZ), the German Development Bank (KfW), and USAID.
IV. National Narratives in Yemen's Textbooks
This study examines approximately two dozen Yemeni social studies textbooks on Yemeni history and national education for primary and secondary school students published between 2000-2007.[15] The textbooks are all written and published by the Yemeni Ministry of Education.[16] The 'National Education and 'Yemeni Society' textbooks include elements of history, geography, civics, health, and other social science topics. The textbooks examined include numerous topics, such as safety (e.g. road signs, how to use a fire extinguisher, etc.); the role of the family; Arab Unity and the Arab League; geography; Yemeni agriculture and industry; the Yemeni constitution; and the role of the United Nations. The history textbooks examined cover various elements of history spanning from ancient civilization to the 1994 Yemeni Civil War. The textbooks focus on the Middle East, but include information on a variety of geographic regions. Topics covered include: the Age of Discovery (e.g. the voyages of Magellan, Cook, Columbus, etc.); ancient civilizations in North and South America, Europe, and Australia; Yemen under the Ottomans; and, Yemen's 20th century history. There is coverage of Islamic history, and religious education is also addressed elsewhere throughout the Yemeni curriculum. The textbooks constantly address the students directly (e.g. 'your country', 'your ancestors', 'dear student', etc.).
Ancient History
Yemen's ancient history plays a major role in the textbooks and in the conceptualization of Yemeni nationalism. In the textbooks, Yemen's history begins approximately 3,000 years ago with references to the ancient empires that existed within the approximate borders of the current Yemeni state. These include the empires of Mayin, Hi- mar, and Saba (Sheba). By initiating the Yemeni narrative so far in the past, these texts lead to primordial claims about the nature of the Yemeni people and nation. One high school textbook discussing Yemeni unity specifically references that one can see that Yemen has existed naturally, geographically, and as a civilization for a significant amount of time due to 'the many ruins and inscriptions that are found today scattered in numerous regions of Yemen.'[17] These ruins, from several ancient empires, are also reproduced on the Republic of Yemen's paper currency. When discussing Yemen's ancient empires, a book for primary school students writes of'your Yemeni ancestors,' creating an explicit link between current Yemeni school children and the inhabitants of the southern Arabian peninsula three millennia ago.
Islamic History
Yemen figures prominently in Islamic history. The ancient character of the Yemeni people is further reinforced by ties to Islamic history. The Quran mentions events that took place within the boundaries of the present day Yemeni state in several places, including the collapse of Ma'rib dam. Most notably, the Quran narrates the story of the Bilqis, the Queen of Saba (located in ancient Yemen), her encounter with the prophet King Solomon, and her conversion to Islam. Yemeni textbooks describe the story of Bilqis and other tales of Yemen from the Quran and Islamic tradition, such as the story of the People of the Elephant, and the attempted destruction of the Kaba. Bilqis figures prominently as an early ruler of Yemen and her story is mentioned under the heading 'Yemen' in one textbook.[18]
Ottoman Era
After the early Islamic period, there is a gap in the Yemeni narrative of nearly a millennium until the Ottomans established jurisdiction over the region in the 16th century. The Ottomans ruled over Yemen, primarily in North Yemen, in two periods, 1538- 1635, andl872 - 1918. Many scholars point to the Yemeni Qassami dynasty, which occurred between the two periods of Ottoman rule as a key point for the development of the concept of a unified state existing prior to 1990, thus enabling 1990 to be a 'reunification.' However, in the textbooks examined, the Qassamis play a passing role, merely a name in a list of chronologies of Ottoman rule.[19] Alongside the history of Yemen under the Ottomans, the textbooks also provide parallel discussions of South Yemen under the British.
The 20th Century
From the turn of the 20th century onwards the textbooks elaborate in some depth on the North under the Imamate and the South under the British leading up to the 1962 and 1963 revolutions that led to the creation of the YAR and PDRY. One high school textbook emphasizes these revolutions as critical historical moments and goes into great depth describing the political, economic, and social goals of the revolutions.[20]One textbook directly asks the students 'why did the 26 September Revolution 1962 happen?' It prompts them with the response 'the 26 September Revolution happened for multiple reasons, most important among them injustice, tyranny, backwardness, and seclusion' that occurred during the Imamate.[21] With respect to the 14 October Revolution, the textbook tells the students that it happened 'in order to expel the colonial British from the south of the nation.
However, while naming them, the textbooks do not actually describe the two states that resulted from the revolutions and their nearly thirty years of independent existence prior to unification. None of the textbooks examined discuss the disputes, interactions, or border wars (1972 and 1979) that occurred during the two-state period. Instead, the narrative jumps immediately from the 26 September (1962) and 14 October (1963) Revolutions to 22 May, 1990, the day YAR and PDRY unified to become the Republic of Yemen. There is no discussion of the political processes involved or the promised referendum on unification, merely that it was the will of the people that, despite long years apart, the country be 'reunified.'[22] From the mid 1960s to 1990, the two-state period, the textbooks are silent.
With the 1990 unification 'the Republic of Yemen entered a new phase of development, construction, and the establishment of development projects in various endeavors' Students are asked to identify the most important achievements resulting from 'the blessed unification?'[23] Many of the texts emphasize the 1990 reunification and it is mentioned repeatedly throughout the curriculum in a variety of contexts.[24]As with the two-state period, the textbooks do not provide a nuanced discussion of the root causes of the 1994 civil war. Two textbooks briefly describe it as being undertaken by members of the Yemeni Socialist Party who were 'secessionist traitors of Yemeni unity.'[25] The textbooks are clear that it was only 'some of the leaders of the socialist party' who had 'separatist plans' and 'fabricated] political crises' that lead to the war and 'separation in 1994.[26] The textbooks are clear that it was only due to 'the people defend [ing] their unity' and acting from 'the greatest heroic bravery' and the efforts of their leaders that the secessionist movement was defeated and 'our precious unity' restored.[27]
V. Analysis and Conclusions
Classical scholars of nationalism have highlighted many methods state actors have taken to create the nation and identification with the nation. For example, Benedict Anderson draws attention to maps, museums, and censuses[28] and Eric Hobsbawm highlights the role of invented traditions in the formation of the nation state.[29] In particular, schools and the educational system play a prominent role in creating and disseminating national ideology and identity in a modern state.[30] National narratives play a particularly influential role and can be deployed by agents of the state to articulate the union between history, identities, and state structures. Historical narratives have become sites of political contestation among existing state bodies and those that would offer alternative visions to the status quo.[31]
Throughout the textbooks examined, two major narrative elements stand out: Yemen's ancient origins and its inherent unity. As previously discussed, Yemen's ancient history figures prominently throughout the textbooks, with frequent references to these civilizations and the ruins they left behind. Benedict Anderson describes the role of archeological work as producing 'an album of [the state's] ancestors' which 'created a historical depth of field.'[32] This constructive process is clearly at play in the case of the Yemeni educational system. The textbooks suggest that the modern Yemeni government and the Yemeni citizens are successors of these states and peoples. In fact, the Ministry of Educations logo features the first letters of the Arabic alphabet (the equivalent of the ABC's) next to characters from the South Arabian alphabet, which was used by the ancient states of Qataban, Hadramawt, Awsan, Saba, and Himyar, and features prominently on many of the ancient ruins in Yemen. In utilizing the two alphabets in its logo, the Ministry of Education is drawing a direct link from these ancient civilizations to the present day. When discussing these ancient civilizations, the textbook refers to the inhabitants of these civilizations as 'your Yemeni ancestors', again drawing a direct link between the students and the inhabitants of the southern Arabian peninsula three millennia prior.[33] In doing so, the textbooks make an argument for the primordial character of the Yemeni people and nation.
This primordial nature is the foundation for the second major narrative element of the Yemeni textbooks, Yemen's inherent unity. As described by social and literary scholars, narratives have a beginning, middle, and end and are characterized by a central plot and themes.[34] In the case of Yemen, unity becomes the major theme and unification the driving narrative plot. This ancient period represents the 'beginning' of the Yemeni national narrative in which the unity of the people and the land is naturalized. Any deviation from this unity is an abnormal state that must be rectified. This is exemplified in the narrative by the Imamate in the North and the British colonial rule in the South, which unnaturally divided the country. The division of the country by the Imamate and the British represents the 'middle' or crisis of Yemen's national narrative as depicted in the textbooks. The division of Yemen results in 'injustice, tyranny, backwardness, [... ] seclusion and colonialism. This crisis is overcome by the 26 September and 14 October Revolutions, which are celebrated in the textbooks. The goal/end' of the national narrative is the 1990 political unification that restores Yemen to its natural unified condition, 'blessed unification.' Though the 1994 civil war presents another threat to unification, the 'secessionist traitors' are defeated by the state and 'the people.' However, this narrative does not map perfectly onto the actual historical events, most importantly with respect to the two-state period. There is no discussion in the textbooks examined of the two-state period, a gap of almost twenty-five years. While the YAR and PDRY are mentioned by names as the states emerging from the 26 September and 14 October Revolutions the political histories of these states are not addressed. Instead the narrative jumps to 22 May, 1990, when the YAR and PDRY unified to form the Republic of Yemen. This omission is glaring, especially given that current students' parents were alive during the two state period.
The omission of the two-state period can be understood by viewing the history presented in the textbooks as representing a larger national narrative being promulgated by the government, which presents a positive and progressive national narrative to serve the purposes of a unified government. The existence of the two-state period and the accompanying chaos, discord, and violence of this period interrupts the unification narrative. It also presents alternative political possibilities (e.g. multiple states, etc.) of disunion rather than union that have been implemented by Yemenis rather than enforced by outsiders.[35]
As Ernst Renan famously invoked, forgetting and historical error are important elements in the creation of the nation.[36] This attitude is exemplified in the omission of the YAR and PDRY. 'Forgetting' the two-state period can be viewed as an effort on the part of the state to move beyond the devastating internal conflicts between Yemenis of the period. Additionally, it presents the possibility of a non-unified state to be omitted from not only the curriculum, but also from the historical knowledge of future generations for Yemenis.
While this appears to be a potential motive on the part of the state, its success is dubious at best. Textbooks have become a site of contention over what group controls the historical record and transmits it to the next generations. Controversies over historical textbooks have figured prominently in inter-state relations (e.g. Israeli-Palestinian, Japanese-Korean, etc.) and intra-state (e.g. Germany, Japan, etc). Given Yemen's contentious history and its current political divisions, one might expect controversy over the historical and national narrative presented in Yemen's textbooks. However, to date, there has not been a major controversy over the narrative presented in these textbooks. Several factors contribute to this situation, including Yemen's semi-authoritarian political atmosphere, the current educational system, and the nature of its internal conflicts. First, the government repeatedly uses the trope of "unity" when discussing any divisions or resistance against the government for events ranging from the al-Houthi rebellion, public demonstrations, terrorist attacks, and negative press about the government. From 1994 until the Southern Movement's statements in 2009, it was taboo to suggest that Yemen should not be unified. This hegemonic atmosphere likely prevented those critical of the textbooks' content from speaking out. Second, as previously discussed, Yemen's educational system remains limited. Many students, especially girls, only spend a few years inside a classroom and are only exposed to the lowest levels of primary school. Low enrollment rates mean that the textbook content is not necessarily widely disseminated, nor can it be known, without further research, to what extent the students internalize the textbook's national narrative nor whether teachers choose to talk about the two-state period. Finally, the current domestic divisions are most immediately concerned with standards of living and survival rather than identity and representation. The grievances of the Southern Movement have not been for a separate identity, though this has increasingly become part of the Movement's rhetoric, but for material compensation. Given that both the conflicts in the North and South have escalated to physical violence and calls for political separation, it is unlikely that the content of the textbooks will become a major issue in the near future. However, with the resolution of these conflicts with either the establishment of additional states or their continued inclusion in the Republic of Yemen, it will be
interesting to see how and if issues of identity and history in the textbooks are raised.
***
On October 14, 2008, the 45th anniversary of the South Yemeni revolt against British occupation, Yemeni President Ali Abdullah Saleh declared that '[Yemeni] Unity is a great national achievement and is well-established like mountains.'[37] While the textbooks issued by the state have attempted to establish a narrative of national unity grounded in Yemen's ancient past, it is clear from recent political event that both state- formation efforts and efforts to create an unquestionable ideology of unity have fallen short. It remains to be seen if and how these events will progress and the ways in which they will be integrated or not integrated into future national narratives and textbooks.
VI. Works Cited
Althusser, L. (1971), 'Ideology and Ideological State Apparatuses: Notes Toward an Investigation', Lenin and Philosophy7, New York: Monthly Review Press, pp. 1-60.
Anderson, B. (1991), Imagined Communities: Reflections on the Origin and Spread of Nationalism, Verson, London.
Burrowes, R.D. (1987), 'The Yemen Arab Republic: The Politics of Development, 1962- 1986', Westview, Bolder.
Burrowes, R.D. (1988), 'State-Building and Political Construction in the Yemen Arab Republic, 1962-1977', in: Chelkowski P.J. and Pranger R.J. (eds), Ideology and Power in the Middle East: Studies in Honor of George Lenczowski, Duke UP, Durham, pp. 210-38.
Dresch, P. (2000), A History of Modern Yemen, Cambridge UP, Oxford.
Dunbar, C. (1992), 'The Unification of Yemen: Process, Politics, and Prospects', The Middle East Journal, 46:3, pp. 456-76.
G6
Halliday, F. (1990), 'Revolution and Foreign Policy: The Case of South Yemen, 1967- 1987', Cambridge UP, Cambridge.
Hobsbawm, E. (1983), 'Introduction: Inventing Tradition' in: Hobsbawm E. and Terence R. (eds), The Invention of Tradition, Cambridge UP, Cambridge, pp. 1-14.
Human Rights Watch (2008) Invisible Civilians The Challenge of Humanitarian Access in Yemen's Forgotten War.
Ministry of Education, Republic of Yemen (2000-2007), Selected textbooks, Sanaa.
Ministry of Education, Republic of Yemen (2005), A review of curriculum and textbook activities planned under World Bank-funded projects, conducted by Andy Smart. Accessed: http://geip-yemen.org/documents/downloads/C5/Textbook%20 Study%20Jun05.pdf.
Philip, S. (2005), 'Cracks in the Yemeni System', The Middle East Report, http://www.merip.org/mero/mero072805.html.
Renan, E. (1882). Qu'est-ce qu'une nation? Accessed: http://ourworld.compuserve.com/homepages/bib_lisieux/nation02.htm.
Saba News, (10 Jan, 2010) 'Education Ministry to revise its educational plan, Accessed: http://www.sabanews.net/en/news202746.htm.
Somers, M.R. and Gibson G.D. (1994), 'Reclaiming the Epistemological "Other": Narrative and the Social Construction of Identity', in: Calhoun C. (ed), Social Theory and the Politics of Identity, Blackwell, Oxford, pp. 37-99.
Steinmetz, G. (1992), 'Reflections on the Role of Social Narrative in Working-Class Formation: Narrative Theory in the Social Sciences', Social Science History 16:3, pp. 489-516.
UNICEF (2005), Assessment of Child Development Project, Yemen: Final Report, conducted by HLSP S.L. Accessed: http://www.unicef.org/evaldatabase/files/ Main_Report_Yemen_CDP_08112005.pdf.
United States Central Intelligence Agency (1989), CIA World Factbook 'Yemen Arab Republic' and 'People's Democratic Republic of Yemen! Accessed: http://www.theodora.com/wfbl989/yemen_arab_republic/yemen_arab_republic_people. html and http://www.theodora.com/wfbl989/yemen_peoples_democratic_re- public_of/yemen_peoples_democratic_republic_of_people.html.
U.S. Department of State (2007), International Religious Freedom Report, http://www.state.gov/g/drl/rls/irf/2007/90224.htm.
World Bank (2008), Project Appraisal Document on a Proposed Credit in the Amount of SDR 12.76 Million (US$20.0 Million Equivalent) to the Republic of Yemen for a Secondary Education Development and Girls Access Project, Accessed: http:// www-wds.worldbank.org/external/default/WDSContentServer/WDSP/IB/200 8/02/28/O00333038_20O8O228234736/Rendered/PDF/417730PADOPO8911ylO IDAlR20081003611.pdf.
Wenner, M. (1988), 'Ideology Versus Pragmatism in South Yemen, 1968-1986', in: Chelkowski P.J. and Pranger R.J. (eds), Ideology and Power in the Middle East: Studies in Honor of George Lenczowski, Duke UP, Durham, pp. 259-73.
World Bank (2009), Education At a Glance: Yemen, Rep. Accessed: http://web.world- bank.org/WBSITE/EXTERNAL/TOPICS/EXTEDUCATION/EXTDATASTA- TISTICS/EXTEDSTATS/0„contentMDK:21605891 ~menuPK:3409559~pageP K:64168445~piPK:64168309~theSitePK:3232764,00.html.
[1] For histories of South Yemen see Halliday, F. (1990), 'Revolution and Foreign Policy: The Case of South Yemen, 1967-1987', Cambridge UP, Cambridge; and, Wenner, M. (1988), 'Ideology Versus Pragmatism in South Yemen, 1968-1986', in: Chelkowski P.J. and Pranger R.J. (eds), Ideology and Power in the Middle East: Studies in Honor of George Lenczowski, Duke UP, Durham, pp. 259-73.
[2] For a discussion of the factors leading to Yemen's unification see Dunbar, C. (1992), "The Unification of Yemen: Process, Politics, and Prospects', The Middle East Journal, 46:3, pp. 456-76.
[3] The 111-member Consultative Council is appointed by the president.
[4] Shi'ites are estimated to comprise as much as 45 percent of the population. While the actual sectarian demographics are of great debate, the Shi'ite populations of other Gulf countries are approximately Bahrain (70 percent); Kuwait (30 percent); Qatar (10 percent); Saudi Arabia (10 percent); and UAE (15 percent). Oman is approximately 75 percent Ibadhi Muslim, a branch of Islam that is considered distinct from both mainstream Sunni and Shi'ite sects. Estimates are from the U.S. Department of State's International Religious Freedom Report 2007. Accessed: http://www.state.gOv/g/drl/rls/irf/2007/90224.htm.
[5] 191. Dresch, P. (2000), A History of Modern Yemen, Cambridge UP, Oxford.
[6] Most significantly, al-Houthi followers, like the rest of mainstream Zaydis in Yemen, reject the principle of Velayat-e Fiqih (Guardianship of the Islamic Jurists), which was used by the Ayatollah Khomeini to justify a theocratic state in Iran. For further discussions of the religious beliefs of the Believing Youth see Sarah Philip's 2005 'Cracks in the Yemeni System', The Middle East Report, http://www.merip.org/mero/mero072805.html.
[7] Human Rights Watch (2008), Invisible Civilians The Challenge of Humanitarian Access in Yemen's Forgotten War.
[8] World Bank (2008), Project Appraisal Document on a Proposed Credit in the Amount of SDR 12.76 Million (US$20.0 Million Equivalent) to the Republic of Yemen for a Secondary Education Development and Girls Access Project, Accessed: http://www-wds.worldbank.org/external/default/WDSContentServer/WDSP/IB/2008/02/28/000333038_20080228234736/ Rendered/PDF/417730PADQP089 llyl0IDAlR20081003611.pdf.
[9] 7. Ministry of Education, Republic of Yemen (2005), A review of curriculum and textbook activities planned under World Bank-funded projects, conducted by Andy Smart. Accessed: http://geip-yemen.org/documents/downloads/C5/Textbook%20Study%20Jun05.pdf.
[10] Saba News, (10 Jan, 2010) 'Education Ministry to revise its educational plan', Accessed: http://www.sabanews.net/en/news202746.htm.
[11] 2009. http://hdr.undp.org/en/statistics/
[12] World Bank (2009), Education At a Glance: Yemen, Rep. Accessed: http://web.worldbank.org/WBSITE/EXTERNAL/TOPICS/EXTEDUCATION/EXTDATASTATISTICS/EXTEDST ATS/0„contentMDK:2160589 l~menuPK:3409559~pagePK:64168445~piPK:64168309~the SitePK:3232764,00.htmL
[13] United States Central Intelligence Agency (1989), CIA World Factbook 'Yemen Arab Republic' and 'People's Democratic Republic of Yemen.' Accessed: http://www.theodora.com/wfbl989/yemen_arab_republic/yemen_arab_republic_people.html and http://www.theodora.com/wfbl989/yemen_peoples_democratic_republic_of/yemen_peoples_demo- cratic_republic_of_people.html.
[14] UNICEF (2005), Assessment of Child Development Project, Yemen: Final Report, conducted by HLSP S.L. Accessed: http://www.unicef.org/evaldatabase/files/Main_Report_Yemen_CDP_08112005.pdf.
[15] This is not a complete inventory of all the available texts, but offers an initial point of departure to look at national narrative formation through textbooks and I believe it is representative of the population of textbooks. Additionally, one textbook from 1996 is included. Though the publication dates of the textbooks occurred during the initial textbook revision, there do not appear to be major discernable differences in the narrative content, with the exception of an addition about the 1994 civil war. The major changes are formatting and pedagogic approach.
[16] This paper does not examine or make a claim on the effectiveness of these texts in disseminating their content. Additionally, it is another matter entirely how effectively the textbooks are distributed to schools, especially those removed from urban centers, and whether or not they are actually used in the classrooms. However, these textbooks are still useful as they are a narrative produced by the government and Ministry of Education and Teaching in hopes of being instilled in the youth of the country.
[17] 93. Ministry of Education (2002) 'Yemeni Society, Secondary 1'. All quotes are translations of the author from Arabic unless otherwise indicated. Of the ruins mentioned in the textbook, three of the most prominent are the Ma'rib Dam, Mahram Bilqis (also known as the Awwam Temple) and 'Arsh Bilqis. The first of these was well known throughout the ancient Arab world and its sixth century CE collapse is believed to be referenced in the Quran (34:15-16). It goes onto mention the existence of a number of ancient centralized states that were situated in the southern Arabian peninsula: Main, Qataban, Hadramawt, Awsan, Saba, and Himyar.
[18] Ministry of Education (1996), 'History, Primary 5.'
[19] Ministry of Education (2004), 'History: Modern Arab and Ancient, Primary 9, Part 1.'
[20] Ministry of Education (2002), 'Yemeni Society, Secondary 1.'
[21] 66. Ministry of Education (2001), 'National Education, Primary 2, Part 2.
[22] The one exception in the lack of discussion of the two-state period is a bulleted list of events leading to the 1990 unification (meetings, summits, ministerial mergers, etc.). These are not described in any detail. See Ministry of Education (2007), 'National History, Primary 6.'
[23] 46. Ministry of Education (2007), 'National Education Primary 6.'
[24] For example, a section on the role of political parties in Yemen, is introduced with a sentence mentioning that the unification brought about the establishment of political parties, however it does not mention the ban on political parties that existed in the two-state period. Ministry of Education (2002), 'National Education, Primary 9, Part 1.'
[25] 97. Ministry of Education (2002), 'Yemeni Society, Secondary 1.'
[26] 47. Ministry of Education (2007), 'National Education, Primary 6.'
[27] Ibid.
[28] Anderson, B. (1991), Imagined Communities: Reflections on the Origin and Spread of Nationalism, Verson, London.
[29] Hobsbawm, E. (1983), 'Introduction: Inventing Tradition in: Hobsbawm E. and Terence R. (eds), The Invention of Tradition, Cambridge UP, Cambridge, pp. 1-14.
[30] Althusser, L. (1971), 'Ideology and Ideological State Apparatuses: Notes Toward an Investigation, Lenin and Philosophy7, New York: Monthly Review Press, pp. 1-60.
[31] Go<;ek, EM. (2008), "Through a Glass Darkly: Consequences of a Politicized Past in Contemporary Turkey', The ANNALS of the American Academy of Political and Social Science 617, pp. 88-106.
[32] 185.
[33] Unless otherwise noted, all textbook quotes in this section have been cited and referenced in previous sections.
[34] Somers, M. R. and Gibson G. D. (1994), 'Reclaiming the Epistemological 'Other': Narrative and the Social Construction of Identity', in: Calhoun C. (ed), Social Theory and the Politics of Identity, Blackwell, Oxford, pp. 37-99 and Steinmetz, G. (1992), 'Reflections on the Role of Social Narrative in Working-Class Formation: Narrative Theory in the Social Sciences', Social Science History 16:3, pp. 489-516.
[35] Even though the Imams of the pre-1962 Imamate were born in Yemen, they are characterized as 'other.'
[36] Renan, E. (1882). Qu'est-ce qu'une nation? Accessed: http://ourworld.compuserve.com/homepages/bib_lisieux/nation02.htm. 'Lbubli, et je dirai même l'erreur historique, sont un facteur essentiel de la création d'une nation.'
[37] Bin Sallam, M. and Al-Halali A. (15 October, 2008), 'Saleh calls on political parties to participate in upcoming elections', The Yemen Times.
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