Southern Yemen faces a pivotal moment akin to November 30, 1967, when the last British soldier exited Aden, leading to a sovereign southern state. This event marked the end of colonial rule and the beginning of a unified southern national identity after years of fragmentation.
In the Arabian Peninsula, a republican state emerged, led by its citizens who built institutions, education, health systems, and national security forces. Despite limited resources and a challenging regional context, the South demonstrated governance capabilities and social cohesion.
A failed unity and an irreversible break
Unification with the North in 1990, touted as historic, quickly became asymmetrical. The 1994 war signaled a definitive rupture, with the military defeat of the South and systematic exclusion of its elites, ending hopes of an equitable partnership. For the South, this war felt like a second, harsher occupation.
Since then, economic marginalization, land confiscation, and political repression fueled a deep sense of injustice, sparking a peaceful movement in 2007 and eventual armed resistance amid state collapse and rising threats.
The return of the southern state project
Post-2015, the liberation of major southern cities began a new era. Local forces secured regions, repelled extremists, and reinstated governance. Southern political organization advanced a clear project for regional and international acknowledgment: restoring an independent and responsible Southern state.
This initiative is based on the notion that lasting solutions require the South to self-determine and manage its resources.
Hadramaut: strategic pillar and future political center
Hadramaut plays a crucial role with its size, resources, maritime access, and stability, making it the geopolitical heart of the South. Effective local administration has curbed extremism.
Choosing Hadramaut as a political center doesn’t marginalize Aden but aims to balance development, decentralize power, and strengthen unity.
A bulwark against terrorism and ideological expansion
A stable southern state is pivotal in combating regional terrorism. Extremists flourish in chaos, but southern order has made them retreat.
The South is essential in securing shipping lanes and countering radical ideologies threatening Yemen and beyond.
Regional ambiguities and political realism
Some regional actors maintain strategic ambiguity, recognizing the South as a key security partner but rejecting political aspirations for short-term gains. Delaying the Southern question only fosters instability.
Peace can’t ignore deep-rooted realities. Two stable entities are preferable to a failing artificial state.
A demand framed by law and dialogue
Supporting southern Yemen’s sovereignty doesn’t mean endorsing conflict but pursuing a negotiated political process grounded in law, consent, and regional guarantees.
Self-determination involves responsible institutions, minority respect, neighbor cooperation, and regional integration. Acknowledging the South’s aspirations is an opportunity to rebuild peace on sustainable terms.
The time for choice
Southern Yemen isn’t making symbolic demands anymore; it’s building political and institutional frameworks. Its people have sacrificed greatly for dignity, security, and future.
Acknowledging this right aids regional stability, with a southern state as a partner against extremism, security guarantor, and stability factor in the Arabian Peninsula. Denying this prolongs a crisis impacting civilians most.
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