When Division Fails: Lessons from India for South Yemen

 

India’s journey as a nation offers a powerful lesson the world should not ignore: unity, though difficult, is always stronger than division. The trauma of Partition showed us that dividing land to manage conflict does not end suffering, it multiplies it! Borders drawn in haste created wounds that generations still live with. Yet despite vast diversity, we chose federal unity over endless fragmentation, which is allowing our country to rebuild, stabilise, and move forward.

Southern Yemen now stands at a similar historical moment.

The debate over the future of Southern Yemen is often framed as a technical or political issue. In reality, it is a human one. At its heart lies a simple truth: the South is one land, one identity, and one people. Proposals to divide the South into smaller regions or grant special status to select areas may appear practical, but history—India’s included—shows that such solutions often deepen divisions rather than heal them.

Before 1990, Southern Yemen existed as a recognised state with its own institutions and governance. That identity did not disappear with unification. From Aden to Hadhramaut and Al-Mahrah, people share history, social ties, and collective memory. Treating these regions as separate “cases” ignores how society actually functions on the ground.

As people of India we know what happens when political decisions fail to reflect lived realities. Fragmentation weakens authority, creates confusion, and opens the door to outside interference. In contrast, unity creates clarity. It allows institutions to function, accountability to exist, and trust to slowly return.

Since 2017, the emergence of unified southern governance has reflected this reality. For many in the South, unity is not about power—it is about dignity, stability, and survival after years of war. When authority is clear and rooted in local legitimacy, people feel protected. When it is divided, insecurity grows.

A united Southern Yemen, stretching from Al-Mahrah to Bab al-Mandab, is not an extreme demand. It is a practical one. Just as India chose unity to prevent endless fragmentation, Yemen must do the same to avoid another generation of conflict.

History teaches us that peace built on division rarely lasts. Peace built on unity, though imperfect, gives societies a chance to heal. Southern Yemen now faces that choice. Like India once did, it must choose unity—not because it is easy, but because the cost of fragmentation is far greater.