Chapter
6:
Legal
and
regulatory
framework
of
Water
Law
As
explained
in
the
abovementioned
sections
the
quantity
of
water
exploited
is
regulated
by
a
‘registering
and
licensing
system’.
In
addition,
the
Authority
has
the
power
to
protect
water
resources
for
pollution
and
degradation
of
water
quality.
If
necessary
the
Authority
may
implement
rules
and
standards
for
this
purpose.
6.7.5
Conflict
settlement
procedures
In
dealing
with
water
conflicts
there
are
two
possible
settlement
procedures,
either
via
the
judiciary
or
via
59
arbitration.
Moreover,
there
are
two
types
of
arbitration
systems:
legal
arbitration
and
custom
or
tribal
arbitration.
In
the
event
of
conflict
over
water,
both
parties
may
agree
to
conflict
resolution
through
legal
60
arbitration.
The
custom
arbitration
consists
of
several
levels
through
which
parties
can
proceed,
commencing
with
arbitration
at
the
village
level
and
ending
at
the
level
of
the
tribe.
For
conflict
settlements
according
to
Water
Law,
traditional
arbitration
can
also
be
used.
Parties
can
bring
61
their
case
before
the
village
aqil.
If
there
is
no
settlement
at
this
stage,
the
next
step
would
be
to
bring
the
case
before
the
area
sheikh
or
court.
6.7.6
Enforcement
procedures
Chapter
8
of
the
Water
Law
starting
with
Article
63
formulates
the
enforcement
procedures
and
penalties
applicable
to
the
provisions
of
the
Water
Law.
Article
63
states
that:
‘[t]he
employees
of
the
Authority
and
relevant
bodies,
who
are
charged
with
control
and
inspection,
shall
be
granted
the
capacity
of
judicial
62
enforcement,
(…).’
The
santions
authorized
by
the
Water
Law
include
fines
and
imprisonment.
6.8
Conclusions
The
analysis
illustrates
that
the
legal
and
institutional
framework
for
the
water
sector
in
Yemen
shows
internal
conflict.
Values
and
principles
presented
in
the
legal
sources
are
diverging.
However
with
the
adoption
of
the
Water
Law
an
attempt
has
been
made
towards
conversion.
Nevertheless,
what
can
be
assumed
from
the
review
the
Water
Law,
Civil
Code,
Constitution
and
traditional
customs
and
rules,
is
that
conflicts
will
arise
when
the
law
is
applied
and
when
parties
invoke
these
conflicting
legal
provisions.
A
consequence
of
this
internal
conflict
and
the
availability
of
multiple
legal
sources
and
institutions
to
deal
with
water
issues
could
be
63
that
individuals
may
‘forum
shop’.
They
may
look
at
for
instance
which
institution
is
likely
to
provide
them
64
with
the
outcome
they
prefer
and
approach
this
institution.
These
assumptions
are
assessed
in
the
case
studies,
which
are
presented
in
the
following
chapters.