A/HRC/42/CRP.1 Historically some women have found ways to empower themselves through these norms. Yemen has a strong tradition of women leaders at all levels of society, including in tribal mediation committees and non-governmental organisations. In January 2014 the National Dialogue Conference, led by both women and men in Yemen, had put recommendations in place to overturn many of these discriminatory customs and laws. This brought new hope to women in Yemen, but due to the conflict commencing shortly thereafter these measures have not been enacted. 959 3. Impact of the conflict on gender norms “We got married the same month he was detained. He was the sole provider for his mother, his sisters and me. The impact of his disappearance has been huge, emotionally and financially. I have to survive and make sure his family survive, so I’ve learnt how to make homemade jewellery with household materials and started selling this on the streets.” Wife of a victim of enforced disappearance, disappeared for over 1 year960 624. From 2014 to 2019, while 82 per cent of direct casualties from fighting have been men and boys, the humanitarian crisis and linked violations impacting health facilities, nutrition and secure housing has disproportionately impacted upon women and girls. Of the 24.1 million Yemenis in need of protection or humanitarian assistance, 18.2 million are women and children.961 Of the 3.3 million people currently displaced, 83 per cent are women and children, with around 53 per cent women and girls.962 As a result in 2019 UNFPA reported that most households are now female-led, with 21 per cent of households led by girls under 18, who, given endemic inequality and lack of economic empowerment, are more isolated and vulnerable to poverty.963 This vulnerability extends to the whole family. Furthermore, polygamy means that a single male casualty can have impacts across multiple families. The Group documented two cases of assassination, in which the two deceased men were survived by seven wives between them, all of whom supported children and were suddenly left economically vulnerable.964 In addition there is a reported refusal by remaining male relatives to work in lower-income work that they consider unbefitting men and boys. The social-normative pressure to remain reliant on male guardians already raises the risk of women and girls remaining in abusive and exploitative relationships, and their increased vulnerability due to the war is likely to raise this further. These factors, particularly displacement and associated vulnerabilities, have placed significant socioeconomic burdens upon women and girls.965 625. Women from less vulnerable backgrounds told the Group that they had been empowered by these new responsibilities, securing work through self-employment, such as selling items in the street or working in agriculture.966 Several more vulnerable women, inline with the results of a number of reliable secondary surveys and focus groups, reported to the Group that there is an increasing reliance on negative coping strategies, including sexual exploitation, child labour and child marriage.967 960 Confidential Sources on File. IOM, UNHCR, OCHA Multi-Cluster Locations Assessment Yemen, 2018. 962 UNFPA, Humanitarian Response in Yemen, 2019; OCHA, Humanitarian Needs Overview, 2019 Page 42 and OCHA-IOM-UNHCR Task Force for Population Movement, 2019. 963 Ibid, UNFPA, Humanitarian Response in Yemen, 2019. Oxfam-CARE-GenCap “Gender and Conflict Analysis in Yemen” 2016. 964 Confidential Sources on File. 965 Confidential Sources on File. Saferworld 2017. Brigitte Rohwerder, “Conflict and Gender Dynamics in Yemen”, Institute of Development Studies, 2017. See also Section 5 below. 966 Confidential Sources on File. 967 Confidential Sources on File. Oxfam-CARE-GenCap 2016. Oxfam “Yemen’s Shattered Food Economy and its Impact on Women” 2019. Marie-Christine Heinze and Sophie Stevens “Women as Peacebuilders in Yemen”, Yemen Polling Centre, 2018, available at: http://www.sddirect.org.uk/ media/1571/sdd_yemenreport_full_v5.pdf. 961 150