Chapter
10:
Findings
Table
10.1:
Traditional
water
distribution
rules
(Urf)
Al
Ala
Fala’ala,
or
Al’ala
Bel
Al’ala
Supreme
to
the
High:
Surface
water
flood
flow:
It
stipulates
that
land
upstream
has
the
priority
of
water
use,
then
areas
which
are
situated
lower,
all
the
way
to
the
lowest
level
of
the
stream.
Despite
its
geographical
dimension,
new
users
upstream
do
not
automatically
gain
priority
in
water
use,
as
prior
appropriation
is
also
to
be
respected.
Al
Awal
fa
Al
Awal
Who
settled
first
has
the
first
right
to
irrigate
from
the
flood
despite
the
location
of
his
land.
Ala’awal
be
Al’Awal
The
traditional
rule
stipulates
that
water
goes
to
Ala’awal
be
Al’Awal
(First
then
First).
This
means
that
well
owners
should
irrigate
for
those
who
are
closer
to
them
before
moving
to
those
next
to
the
ones
closer
to
them
and
so
on.
Al-‐Mosha’aa
This
refers
to
land
that
is
respected
by
locals
as
public
space
for
everyone’s
use
including
grazing
and
water
usage.
Alaqrab
bel
Aqrab
The
closer
then
the
close:
which
means
that
those
close
to
the
water
source
have
the
priority.
The
traditional
rule
also
says
the
priority
should
be
given
to
drinking
water
then
irrigation
Mubah
According
to
the
Islamic
cultural
tradition,
water
is
considered
to
be
a
free
natural
resource,
an
open
access
resource
or
''Mubah",
which
means:
permissible,
also
allowable,
free
available
for
all.
But
the
religious
teachings
have
also
repeatedly
emphasized
to
make
judicious
use
of
it.
In
semi-‐arid
zones,
where
water
resources
are,
in
any
case
limited,
it
is,
however,
very
hard
to
convince
people,
that
a
natural
good
perceived
as
God's
"gift"
should
be
restricted.
(http://www.yemenwater.org/wp-‐content/uploads/2013/03/Negenman-‐T.-‐
2000.pdf)
10.2.3
Formal
water
related
legislation
Absence
of
regulation
and
enforcement
Conflicts
over
water
are
one
of
the
main
causes
for
tribal
conflicts
(as
well
as
acts
of
violence,
revenge,
and
tribal
wars).
The
Yemeni
judiciary
has
been
marked
with
an
ineffective
role
in
resolving
such
disputes
over
the
past
three
decades,
that
is,
through
the
weakness
of
the
law’s
authority.
In
addition,
the
lack
of
governmental
power
created
a
state
of
distrust,
which
leads
to
a
stronger
role
of
the
tribal
customs
in
the
regulation
of
agricultural
water,
as
well
as
the
settlement
of
a
large
percentage
of
disputes
in
accordance
with
those
agricultural
norms.
According
to
the
participants
of
the
stakeholder
consultation
meeting,
Islamic
Shari’ah
is
the
source
of
all
legislation,
but
it
provides
only
general
guidelines.
The
Islamic
jurisprudence
is
manmade
so
there
are
differences
of
opinion
between
jurist