Gangs Of Mukalla?
Across Latin, Central and North America - gangs seem to have taken over the streets. In urban areas. It's the same, in many South Asian and European cities. Gangs and vigilante groups, roam the streets, slums and neighborhoods: intimidating, causing fear, terrorizing, maiming and even killing and assassinating people. At will. And in most cases - with impunity. While in South African urban centers and Nairobi, people - at nights in particular - live in fear of criminals and thugs. What of: 'gangs of Mukalla'? There are non. Al Mukalla is utterly free of gangs, criminals or thugs. Of a violent kind. As are all urban centers in Yemen. But there is a striking likeness between Mukalla and Rio De Janeiro, the Marvelous City. From a distance, out in the sea, Mukalla looks strikingly so; like Rio.
As a boy, I used to dream of Rio and Curitiba. But Rio mesmerized me most. This was the result of my late Dad giving me presents of three geographic encyclopedias on: South America, North America and Asia. I was about ten then. Of the three books, for some reasons that I do not know - South America interested me more. And could be because of: the Amazon or the anaconda; or Pele, Garrincha,Vava, Jairzinho and Rivelino; or Rio and Curitiba - Brazil interested me most. That's how my enormous liking for Rio began. But Rio De Janeiro, River of January, now, is not that dream place I had in mind. Rio is a city under terror. 'Terror' in its real sense. Still, I would love to visit Rio. I would have loved to live in Rio. I would have loved to be a 'Cariocas'. Still, in a way - that dream, of living in Rio has been fulfilled. In a way.
Mukalla's stunning natural setting, like Rio's, is between the mountains and the sea. Beautiful, rolling, hazy mountains and the purest, deep blue sea. Mukalla doesn't have the eleven million plus of people that Rio has, but just a very tiny fraction of that and thus - doesn't have slums. Mukalla doesn't have any thing compared to the very famous Rio carnival and its sambas; but during Ramadhan, for the whole of that month - Mukalla is, indeed, a city celebrating. Mukalla doesn't have the enormous disparities between rich and poor that is in Rio; which could be the root cause of Rio's high crime rate. And instead of Copacabana, Mukalla has Qhalf, Sharae Sitteen and the Khor. But most pleasing and pacifying of all, Al Mukalla's streets, suburbs and neighborhoods are free of fear. Fear of gangs, thugs and criminals. Mukalla is at and in PEACE.
As a boy, I used to dream of Rio and Curitiba. But Rio mesmerized me most. This was the result of my late Dad giving me presents of three geographic encyclopedias on: South America, North America and Asia. I was about ten then. Of the three books, for some reasons that I do not know - South America interested me more. And could be because of: the Amazon or the anaconda; or Pele, Garrincha,Vava, Jairzinho and Rivelino; or Rio and Curitiba - Brazil interested me most. That's how my enormous liking for Rio began. But Rio De Janeiro, River of January, now, is not that dream place I had in mind. Rio is a city under terror. 'Terror' in its real sense. Still, I would love to visit Rio. I would have loved to live in Rio. I would have loved to be a 'Cariocas'. Still, in a way - that dream, of living in Rio has been fulfilled. In a way.
Mukalla's stunning natural setting, like Rio's, is between the mountains and the sea. Beautiful, rolling, hazy mountains and the purest, deep blue sea. Mukalla doesn't have the eleven million plus of people that Rio has, but just a very tiny fraction of that and thus - doesn't have slums. Mukalla doesn't have any thing compared to the very famous Rio carnival and its sambas; but during Ramadhan, for the whole of that month - Mukalla is, indeed, a city celebrating. Mukalla doesn't have the enormous disparities between rich and poor that is in Rio; which could be the root cause of Rio's high crime rate. And instead of Copacabana, Mukalla has Qhalf, Sharae Sitteen and the Khor. But most pleasing and pacifying of all, Al Mukalla's streets, suburbs and neighborhoods are free of fear. Fear of gangs, thugs and criminals. Mukalla is at and in PEACE.
Comments
'Clan warfare' is not in all Yemeni regions; Hadhramout doesn't have that. It's all to do with 'honor' and Islam; it's 'aeeb' to be a criminal or a gangster; it's this aspect of Hadhrami and Yemeni tradition (that of 'honor') that deters people from such. Including prostituition. People can, at times be violent, but that's very rare and has to do with vendettas and revenge killings; and IS ONLY confined to very few regions of Yemen. Hadhramis and most Yemenis consider any man who goes about disturbing people in any way, especially families (women and children in particular) to be the lowest kind of being.
But in Morocco it is very rare for someone to die from fighting. The friends pull them apart, and there are no guns- even the police don't have them. Knives as well are rare. Compare this to the omnipresent tribesman with a jambiyya, and many outside Sana'a with guns, officially 2 for every Yemeni. One would be a fool to not hold their anger in check.
And I don't speak of capitol punishment in general- were that true there would be no crime in America either. Rather, I speak of specifically giving the family the right to decide if the perpetrator lives or dies; and if you attack one, his entire tribe can attack yours. Don't get me wrong- I think capitol punishment is a grevious evil. But I also think it an effective deterrent when used this way, with intimacy and immediacy.
Here, people are armed with 'jambiyas' and guns, mainly as a kind of traditional ornament. As for Hadhramout, that isn't so. Here in Mukalla, people do not have jambiyas or guns in the streets. Yemeni traditions are unique in the region, but they are synonymous and one-and-the-same as Islam.
But I disagree that Yemen is less heavily armed than the U.S. Oh, certainly, and sadly, on a national level that is true, and the U.S. has far too many weapons. But individually, on a per capita basis, Yemen actually has more guns than the U.S. Contrary to the TV shows :-) most Americans actually don't own guns, and have never even touched a gun. There are certain myths of violence that both our cultures have about each other, myths not based in little semblance of reality.
Did you see the news, Omar? Mukalla came up, as did Suqutra- on new protections for endangered sea turtles.
I have written about the turtles twice on this site: here and
here. I do hope this action is not too late, and hopefully - enough will be done to protect the endangered turtles.