EU steunt Jemenitische protesteerders voorzichtig (en)
EUOBSERVER / BRUSSELS - The EU has said that Yemeni protesters have a "fundamental right" to take to the streets and call for their government to step down so long as they do not use violence.
Maja Kocjancic, a spokeswoman for EU foreign relations chief Catherine Ashton, told EUobserver on Thursday (27 January) in reference to the unfolding situation in the Yemeni capital, Sanaa, that: "freedom of expression and the right to assemble peacefully are fundamental rights and they should be respected."
She added: "We are supporting a democratic, unified and stable Yemen. We believe the Yemeni national dialogue should be revived. This would offer the opportunity to unlock progress on political issues, from the holding of multi-party democratic election, to wider national reconciliation."
Asked if EU institutions are concerned about the security implications of the series of uprisings in the region in recent days, she said that EU foreign ministers will "make an assessment" at a regular meeting in Brussels on Monday.
She added that Ms Ashton is also scheduled to meet with the Yemeni foreign minister next week. "Although we've seen a wave of protests, the situation in each country is specific," Ms Kocjancic noted.
Thousands of Yemenis took the streets of Sanaa on Thursday calling on President Ali Abdullah Saleh, who has led the Muslim country for over 30 years, to step down.
"We gather today to demand the departure of President Saleh and his corrupt government," opposition MP Abdulmalik al-Qasuss said on Thursday in remarks cited by AFP.
For their part, government supporters said the mass demonstrations are a threat to stability. The Yemen already has problems with activity of al-Qaeada-offshoot groups, with a Yemeni woman arrested in October last year for trying to send bombs on a UPS cargo plane to the US.
The Yemeni uprising follows the ousting of another pro-Western but undemocratic Muslim leader, President Zine al-Abidine Ben Ali of Tunisia, earlier this month.
Copycat protests have also erupted in Algeria and Egypt, with a number of protesters and policemen killed in clashes in Egypt this week.
The Egyptian opposition is set to acquire a new figurehead in former UN nuclear weapons inspector and Nobel laureate Mohamed El Baradei, who boarded a plane for Cairo on Thursday. "If [people] want me to lead the transition, I will not let them down," he said in Vienna airport, the BBC reports.
Coupled with deadly clashes in Lebanon after Islamic militant group Hezbollah won an ally as prime minister, increasing tensions between the Arab Fatah and Hamas factions in the Palestinian territories and deadly anti-government clashes in Albania, the EU's immediate neighbourhood has seen a massive increase in tension in recent days.