Yemen's servant underclass

Yemen's servant underclass

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Poverty is widespread in Yemen, but within this already deprived nation one group suffers the most, forced to cope not just with poor living conditions, but with brutal social prejudice and racism as well. They are commonly known as the Akhdam, meaning 'servants' but they call themselves the Muhamasheen - 'the marginalised people'.

. HOUDIEDA, Yemen. REUTERS/Khaled Abdullah

Distinguished by their African features, and the medial jobs they perform – notably cleaning the streets – the Akhdam have been forced to the bottom of the Yemen's social ladder. The community suffers vicious prejudice from other Yemenis, and are so socially excluded that they have been compared by anthropologists to the "untouchable" caste of India. One proverb advises: “If a dog licks your plate you should clean it, but if it is touched by a Khadim (servant), then break it.”

. SANAA, Yemen. REUTERS/Khaled Abdullah

Yemen's 1962 revolution, which ended a 1,000-year-old Islamic principality and sought to implement a republic based on equality, officially abolished ancient status categories, but the Akhdam retained theirs. Working as house servants, emptying mosque latrines and, more recently, collecting the country's garbage, the Akhdam, most of whom live in fetid slums on the outskirts of the capital, are all but invisible to most Yemenis.

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An elderly woman and her grand daughter stand at the door of their hut.
. HOUDIEDA, Yemen. REUTERS/Khaled Abdullah

An elderly woman and her grand daughter stand at the door of their hut.

Most Akhdam live with with few basic services such as running water, electricity and sewage networks.
. SANAA, Yemen. REUTERS/Khaled Abdullah

Most Akhdam live with with few basic services such as running water, electricity and sewage networks.

They live in small huts haphazardly built out of wood and cloth.
. HOUDIEDA, Yemen. REUTERS/Khaled Abdullah

They live in small huts haphazardly built out of wood and cloth.

A boy stands at the door of his family's hut in a slum.
. HOUDIEDA, Yemen. REUTERS/Khaled Abdullah

A boy stands at the door of his family's hut in a slum.

A boy lies in a baby hammock.
. HOUDIEDA, Yemen. REUTERS/Khaled Abdullah

A boy lies in a baby hammock.

Surrounded by slum houses, a woman from the Akhdam community holds her son.
. TAIZ, Yemen. REUTERS/Khaled Abdullah

Surrounded by slum houses, a woman from the Akhdam community holds her son.

A woman applies a traditional henna dye onto the legs of her daughters.
. SANAA, Yemen. REUTERS/Khaled Abdullah

A woman applies a traditional henna dye onto the legs of her daughters.

A boy stands at the door of his family's hut.
. HOUDIEDA, Yemen. REUTERS/Khaled Abdullah

A boy stands at the door of his family's hut.

Fifteen-year-old Ahlam Salem had her legs amputated by cancer surgeons eight years ago due to malignant cancer tumour.
. TAIZ, Yemen. REUTERS/Khaled Abdullah

Fifteen-year-old Ahlam Salem had her legs amputated by cancer surgeons eight years ago due to malignant cancer tumour.

An Akhdam man cooks a meal of chicken feet.
. HOUDIEDA, Yemen. REUTERS/Khaled Abdullah

An Akhdam man cooks a meal of chicken feet.

A young girl carries a jerry can full of water that she collected from a makeshift well.
. HOUDIEDA, Yemen. REUTERS/Khaled Abdullah

A young girl carries a jerry can full of water that she collected from a makeshift well.

A man from the Akhdam community sleeps by the side of the road.
. HOUDIEDA, Yemen. REUTERS/Khaled Abdullah

A man from the Akhdam community sleeps by the side of the road.

A girl hauls water from a rudimentary well.
. HOUDIEDA, Yemen. REUTERS/Khaled Abdullah

A girl hauls water from a rudimentary well.

Akhdam street cleaners collect garbage, one of the lowest-paid jobs in a poor country.
. TAIZ, Yemen. REUTERS/Khaled Abdullah

Akhdam street cleaners collect garbage, one of the lowest-paid jobs in a poor country.

Houses are jumbled together in an Akhdam slum.
. SANAA, Yemen. REUTERS/Khaled Abdullah

Houses are jumbled together in an Akhdam slum.