Arwa Othman is a Yemeni writer, journalist,

human rights activist A human rights defender or human rights activist is a person who, individually or with others, acts to promote or protect human rights. They can be journalists, environmentalists, whistleblowers, trade unionists, lawyers, teachers, housing cam ...

and former Minister of Culture (2014–15) in the cabinet of President

Abdrabbuh Mansur Hadi Abdrabbuh Mansur Hadi ( ar, عبدربه منصور هادي, translit=ʿAbd Rabbih Manṣūr Hādī Yemeni pronunciation: ; born 1 September 1945) is a Yemeni politician and former field marshal of the Yemeni Armed Forces who served as the pres ...

Human Rights Watch Human Rights Watch (HRW) is an international non-governmental organization, headquartered in New York City, that conducts research and advocacy on human rights. The group pressures governments, policy makers, companies, and individual human r ...

has cited Othman as one of the "most outspoken activists calling for human rights and gender equality" during the 2011

Yemeni Revolution The Yemeni Revolution ( intifada), also known as the Yemeni Revolution of Dignity followed the initial stages of the Tunisian Revolution and occurred simultaneously with the Egyptian Revolution of 2011 and other Arab Spring protests in the ...

Career

Arwa Othman has headed the House of Folklore, a museum in

Sana'a Sanaa ( ar, صَنْعَاء, ' , Yemeni Arabic: ; Old South Arabian: 𐩮𐩬𐩲𐩥 ''Ṣnʿw''), also spelled Sana'a or Sana, is the capital and largest city in Yemen and the centre of Sanaa Governorate. The city is not part of the Governo ...

. In 2013 she was appointed to the Yemeni

National Dialogue Conference The National Dialogue Conference (NDC) was a transitional dialogue process held at the Movenpick Hotel in Sanaa, Yemen from March 18, 2013 to January 24, 2014, as part of the Yemeni crisis reconciliation efforts. National Dialogue is a key part o ...

, where she headed the Rights and Freedom Committee. Under her the committee recommended reforms for improving the lives of Yemeni women, making 18 the minimum age for marriage and action against people involved in the forced marriage of a child. In September 2013 she highlighted the case of an eight year old child bride who died of internal bleeding. However, Othman's advocacy also brought her to the notice of orthodox sections of society, from whom she received death threats. Othman was one of the recipients of

(HRW)'s Alison Des Forges Award for Extraordinary Activism in 2014. She was honoured for her activism against child marriage and advocacy for gender equality. She dedicated her award to the Jewish community residing in Yemen, her "brothers and friends from the Jewish community". In November 2014

appointed Arwa Othman to the cabinet as

Minister of Culture A culture minister or a heritage minister is a common cabinet position in governments. The culture minister is typically responsible for cultural policy, which often includes arts policy (direct and indirect support to artists and arts organizati ...

. The cabinet was dissolved in January 2015. In 2017 she was among signatories condemning a wave of arrests of followers of the

Baháʼí Faith The Baháʼí Faith is a religion founded in the 19th century that teaches the Baháʼí Faith and the unity of religion, essential worth of all religions and Baháʼí Faith and the unity of humanity, the unity of all people. Established by ...

in Yemen.Gary Nguyen
Number of Baha'i arrests in Yemen this month are alarming
''World Religion News'', 25 April 2017.

References

Year of birth missing (living people) Living people Yemeni journalists Place of birth missing (living people) Yemeni writers Yemeni human rights activists Government ministers of Yemen Women government ministers of Yemen {{Yemen-bio-stub Culture ministers of Yemen