Yemen War

The Yemen war between the Houthi forces and Saudi Arabia backed Hadi government forces has raged for over 3 years and is a very controversial subject regarding UK government involvement. The UK currently has arms deals to Saudi Arabia, worth £4.6bn since 2015. The Saudi government, who back the Hadi government forces in Yemen, are using arms against innocent civilians. Air strikes and drone strikes have been misused and have subsequently taken thousands of lives.

Donald Trump confirmed a new arms deal with Saudi Arabia worth £8.9bn on 20/3/18 which risks more war crimes in Yemen and potentially more civilian casualties.

Below is a protest by amnesty international from 2016. The drone is labelled ‘made in Britain, ruining lives in Yemen’ a protest highlighting the involvement of the UK in the Yemen War. This protest was successful as it created attention and awareness around the issue which extended beyond the houses of parliament into the houses of the public. By choosing the media of paper mache and its weak strength it juxtaposes the death and destruction the real mass destruction weapon can cause.

An Amnesty International campaigner holds a model of a missile in protest at British arms sales to Saudi Arabia. Photograph: Chris Ratcliffe/Getty Images

Amnesty International, No to Drones Protest, Outside the Houses of Parliment,
alamystock.com, 2016.

This issue became the focus of my practical work where I created four posters exploring consequences of this war. A running theme in the work is the lack of media coverage, reflected in the title ‘3 years unreported’. I created the designs to resemble movie posters to attract more attention than the usual charity poster. The ‘credits’ are facts about the war and the Saudi arms deals.

3 Years Unreported, Cholera Outbreak, James Kiely, 2017.

3 Years Unreported, No Access to Food, James Kiely, 2017.

3 Years Unreported, No Access to Education, James Kiely, 2017.

3 Years Unreported, Refugees, James Kiely, 2017.

References

Playing with Words While Yemen Burns: Managing Criticism of UK Arms Sales to Saudi Arabia Source: Global Policy [1758-5880] Stavrianakis, Anna yr:2017 vol:8 iss:4 pg:563 -568

https://www.express.co.uk/news/politics/928303/Saudi-Arabia-Prince-Mohammed-bin-Salman-UK-visit-protests

https://www.rt.com/op-ed/424980-yemen-saudi-strike-media/

http://www.spokesman.com/stories/2017/jun/28/from-destruction-to-cholera-yemen-war-brings-disas/#/0

https://www.gettyimages.co.uk/event/amnesty-protest-against-arms-sales-to-saudi-arabia-611726507#amnesty-international-activists-march-with-homemade-replica-missiles-picture-id516312958