Statement: Trade with Yemen

Update on sanctions at the bottom:

With the Houthi movement's attacks on ships in the Red Sea, attention has come to warfair's trade with companies in Yemen.

warfair continues to trade with goods from Yemen because we have good partners who create income and work. The civilian population is in what the UN calls the world's biggest humanitarian crisis. Over 20 million Yemenis are dependent on emergency aid. It is the local families and businesses warfair helps, and we believe trade is a worthy way to help.

The local companies warfair deals with are all located in Houthi controlled areas (northern Yemen) as the primary company we import from is located in the capital Sana'a and it is difficult to operate across the front line. Coffee production also takes place in the mountains, which are now controlled by the Houthi movement. The primary coffee suppliers we buy from belong to the Ismaili ethnic minority, which historically has not been involved in the conflicts in Yemen. The Houthis are Zaydi.

The local companies we do business with, like all other companies and international NGOs and organisations, pay tax to the local administration. It does not conflict with the current UN, EU and US sanctions, which are aimed solely at individuals and the Houthi-movement.

warfair carries out a very thorough due diligence process for all companies we deal with in Yemen, and ensures that they do not have direct links to militant groups and are not subject to sanctions. All companies and products are approved by our Ethics Committee . All information is presented openly on www.warfair.world and we have a complaints mechanism if anyone finds that there are grounds for concern about the companies we do business with. We have not received any complaints about the companies we do business with in Yemen.

If links between the companies we do business with and military actors can be demonstrated, we stop immediately. If the Houthis scale up their attacks both on ships and neighboring countries, or if general sanctions are introduced against the Houthi movement, we will reconsider our trade in goods from Yemen together with our board and Ethics Committee .

The attacks by the Houthis on ships in the Red Sea have made it even more difficult for local businesses. Our local partner, Yemen Journey, which is run by a Danish-Yemenite couple, is scrambling to get our next shipment off. Hope you will continue to support.

We act for peace.

Update:

Effective February 16, 2024, the United States has designated the Houthi movement as a terrorist organization. The guidelines from the US authority (OFAC) on the sanctions confirm that it includes transactions with the Houthi movement as a political actor and emphasize that there is an exception for humanitarian efforts and trade. The ban on transactions also does not apply to the local administration, even if the local administrative authority is under the leadership of a person from the Houthi movement.

The UN and the international NGOs can therefore continue to operate in the Houthi-controlled areas. and so can warfair. The companies we do business with have nothing to do with the Houthi movement. If our trade with Yemen or our partners in Yemen should be subject to sanctions, we will stop immediately. We continuously discuss the situation with our Ethics Committee. The last meeting took place on the 19th of February 2024.

In an answer to warfair on the 26/2 2024 the Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) writes: 

Thank you for your email.  Yemen is not subject to broad, jurisdiction-based sanctions.  As such, trade with Yemeni organizations that does not involve Ansarallah or other blocked individuals or entities is not prohibited.  You may wish to review our recently released guidance on sanctions related to Ansarallah, Guidance for the Provision of Humanitarian-Related Assistance and Critical Commodities to the Yemeni People. Within that guidance you can find information on several general licenses related to humanitarian and commercial trade with Yemen, including General License 26 which authorizes certain transactions involving Ansarallah ordinarily incident and necessary to operations, import/export of goods, or transit of passengers through, ports and airports in Yemen.

Non-U.S. persons generally do not risk exposure to sanctions for engaging in activities or facilitating transactions for activities that would be authorized for U.S. persons.

THE FACTS

The goods we get from Yemen are:

• Coffee and Qishr from coffee farms in Haraz and Sa'ada - see more here at www.warfair.world .
• Beach baskets made by women in the organization All Girls Foundation - see more here at www.warfair.world .
• Historic lanterns made by the renowned silversmith Ahmed Antik in the old city of Sana'a - see more here at www.warfair.world .

warfair imported DKK 337,000 worth of goods from Yemen in 2023. In 2022, the figure was DKK 1,016,907.

warfair is B corp certified and meets high standards for ethics and sustainability.