Shabwa.. Qat sellers demonstrate against raising rents of their shops in the central market in "Ataq"

Tenants of the central qat market stalls in the Al-Sawda area in the Ataq district, the center of Shabwa Governorate, demonstrated in rejection of the increase in rents imposed on them by the new investor of the market, without intervention from the local authority.

The protesters raised slogans expressing their rejection of handing over the government-owned qat market to an investor who blackmails and exploits them and controls their livelihood, stressing that they pay rents monthly to the Central Bank and pay taxes daily.

The protesters said that the new investor, who operates under the name of Hadramout Foundation, raised rents by 300%, stressing that these measures are arbitrary and unjustified, in light of the deteriorating economic and living conditions.

They explained that the governorate's cleanliness fund approved an amount of 60 thousand riyals per month until last September, noting that the new investor imposed on them 240 thousand monthly rent or paying ten thousand riyals per day for each stall.

The protesters demanded that the local authority in Shabwa Governorate, led by Governor Awad bin Al-Wazir, take a firm and urgent position to protect them from these decisions, which they described as "unjust."

The protesters indicated that after this stand, they will be forced to go on strike and stop supplying qat to the governorate until they are treated fairly and their grievances are addressed by the local authorities.