On 17 November 2011
a number of civil society organizations held a protest
Aden citizens
and civil rights activists
to defend the last sea-
view outlet on the frontal coastline in Aden.
This is the space
between Mercure hotel
and Aden commercial center known as Aden Mall.
We held this protest
influential people to take illegally seize this land for their interests. 0:00:52.240,1193:02:47.295 after we heard of intensive efforts by
Because of this sea-view anyone visiting Aden
can extend their sight across the land to Sirah Fort in an amazing pictorial image that represents Aden and her charm.
These protests resulted in a civil society
making a public statement
demanding and emphasizing the city's right to its sea-view outlet.
Coming back to the concept of demonstrations and civilian protests
we stand against the misuse of land
being sustainable development sources in this part of town.
We created an operating team
that organized three protests per week
and eventually held more than 150 protest.
Simultaneously we held awareness campaigns by several civil society organizations
on the environmental, historic, ecological and cultural values of this outlet.
We also lodged a legal memo to endorse this right.
And held several activities to proclaim local's right to this outlet
such as lectures, youth forums, contests, exhibitions and art shows.
We even took our demands one step further and announced a
competition for the best architectural design for this outlet
as an open space blocking by that any notions by some investors to take it over.
Here are some pictures of the events including a football match for youngsters.
Holding these protests was not easy
But because they were peaceful
logical and organized helped
Of course the large numbers of participants
who believed in the cause was key.
This all stemmed from Adan's locals desire to enjoy their own city,
to be able to see the ocean and smell the sea breeze
Aden is a volcanic semi island
older than 5.5 million years.
There is evidence to confirm that those who lived in this city
efficiently utilized its natural and environmental resources
making it one of the most famous international cities.
Modern images show population concentration in the space between sea line and mountain
and this creates a major imbalance environmentally.
This randomness in habitation and building has blocked sea breeze from reaching the internal areas near the mountains
and during summer time these areas are intensely warm.
Also international standards of landscaping especially for coastal cities
emphasize the need for clear spaces to support the socio-economic properties of the cities.
It is worth mentioning that the most important feature of Aden city
is the volcanic crater of Aden Volcano.
It is useful also to know that Aden is a planned urban city general
and detailed plans were created in participation with international organizations.
One of these is Greater Aden master plan 2005-2025.
This master plan is approved by all official bodies
including the cabinet in December 2006.
And this document could be the main reference used to develop the city economically
provided its land and environmental resources are used properly.
A main characteristic of Aden is that it is a semi island surrounded by water
therefore our ancestors did not abuse this land.
The city has a wealth of wetlands
and I would like to share with you good news that Aden's wetlands
have been announced as world
environmental protected areas as they are an important stop of migrating birds internationally.
[applause]
The salt reservoirs and wetlands have an economic and strategic job
and there are people who unfortunately think they can prepare it to make construction projects on it.
If Aden port is the center of the general economic development plan for the city
any tampering with the wetlands and turning them into dry lands
will greatly affect this economic value.
One of the elegant projects that should be promoted more
are Saharij Aden [water reservoirs].
We believe that this landmark should be the most famous functional historical monument
because despite its age it is still carrying out its functions.
[applause]
When the valley entry points and rain water paths were blocked
problems started
By nature land or earth is fragile and unpredictable,
but when man efficiently utilizes it
land becomes an asset for development
This is a sad image of the 1993 flood disaster,
when Aden International Airport sent an SOS message
to the world after it was submerged by flood water and was
disconnected from international aviation for two weeks.
A representative of World Meteorological Organization came
to the site and said the city's fate is threatened because of the misuse of land
and that he had seen one of the world's wonders in Aden Plateau and the Saharij [water reservoirs].
Unfortunately random illegal land acquisition continues everywhere
and this always hinders investment let alone creating irreversible damage to the environment.
Which is the case for many environmental processes
And when this happens the price is heavy
and could deprive the area from a natural
resource which could serve sustainable development
Unfortunately there are state projects such as restoring dams in the plateau
that distorted the city's identity and changing landmarks and their functions.
This puts the city at great risk
and there are studies now to mitigate such mistakes.
One of the most disastrous examples is the popular market in Al-Shaibiya
This market area is in the middle of a the last flood water path,
yet the state gave licenses to street and popular vendors to set up shops there
Forgetting the popular proverb: "let the flood path be even if floods are scarce".
Indeed this market area was destroyed by floods many times over the years
to the extent that one governor announced that
it should be transferred to a more suitable location
There are also other natural disasters such as landslides.
On another issue the state has started a landmarks
restoration project rehabilitating 12 of the city tourist attractions.
Including restoration of the legislative council building
which is the oldest parliament in the Arabian Peninsula dating back to 1954.
In the same time the state licensed the construction of the insurance authority tower,
this is a state institution that blocks the view of another state project
in addition increasing traffic in an area that cannot contain it
as it is considered the bottle neck for Aden city's traffic
Aden's iconic Sirah Fort is suffering from tempering on its structure because of chaotic land acquisition.
Some other projects damaged the northern edge
of the semi-island which lead to altering wind streams.
This edge naturally blocked the wind and ocean waves
and created a natural protection for the oldest port in Aden which Sirah port.
There are global examples which we can learn from.
There is San Francisco city which was build on an earthquake
nine hundred kilometers line known as the St. Andreas Fault.
This city has been suffering from periodic earthquakes for the last 70 years,
to the extent that the scientist who labeled the Richter scale
said we are living in borrowed time.
When San Francisco city was discussed its founders were blamed for being careless.
Nations learn and try to mitigate their mistakes
so that they don't suffer more.
There are new challenges today because of climate change
such as the Tsunami in Indonesia in 2004.
There is a scientific comparison that a similar Tsunami to that of 2004
can happen again in Aden city waters,
a city which faces a risk of being submersed in the ocean.
The various protests that civil society has held in Aden creates an opportunity for academics
researchers and specialists
who used to talk about these natural outlets in closed circles.
Now these causes can be defended in the public.
The good news regarding is that we managed to get an order from the Public Prosecution
to stop the project [applause] and suspicious deals were exposed.
We took this a step further and
made the blueprint which won the architectural contest official and this is what the area
will look like once it is implemented to make it a better place to live.
The protests will continue,we will not stop
we will not stop, and I invite you to ask more and learn more
about this outlet so that you sympathize and support this city's right to its resources and as a token of love to this city and its people. Thank you.