“Many female journalists were jailed, and I expect to be jailed or get beaten at anytime. I think that when someone accuses you of indulging in negative practices, it is far worse than getting beat or even killed. If I had a choice to be beaten or insulted, I would prefer getting beat.”

YP: You said that politicians like Yasser Al-Awadi, Hamid Al-Ahmar, and Abdul Elah Al-Qadhi started criticizing the situation in the country only after they lost President Saleh's support. Don't you think that you have put yourself in the same situation, especially following your meeting with him and announcing to the media that he has a big heart?

RH: Perhaps, you misunderstood what I wrote. I wrote that Al-Awadi, Al-Ahmar, and Al-Qadhi are among the good people because they fight corruption, and I didn't mention that they are corrupt. My point is obvious. I have personal differences with no one. My only difference with President Saleh is that he does not have a modern and developed system to run the country.

YP:  According to Al-Quds Al-Arabi, you said that Saleh was the person who offended you. Days later, you changed your opinion and said that it was a member from the ruling party and not the president?

RH: All I know about what was published in Al-Quds Al-Arabi is that Saleh was to blame for what Al-Bilad newspaper published against me. They accused me of many negative things that I cannot mention. Al-Bilad newspaper is supported by the president, and this is why I criticized him. Frankly, the president is my enemy and I fear no one.

YP: Why do you link the person who wrote the report to the president, though you have no proof? Do you have any evidence that the president is involved, or did you just want to attack him?

RH: The allegations made against me were because what I wrote against the president. All Yemeni people know that our country is ruled by the president, his friends, and his relatives. Consequently, the president is responsible for everything whether small or big, and what happens to me is his responsibility. Furthermore the president invited me and I responded to his invitation. With the presence of Faris Al-Sanabani he told me to withdraw the case, and I refused. My case is still in the court after it took months in the prosecution. The prosecution didn't transfer my case to the court until I went to the United States of America, and they thought I went there to seek refugee status. Saleh also told me to accept Al-Bilad newspaper Editor-in-Chief Abdul Malik Al- Faishani's apology, but I also refused.

YP: Common people are very influenced by bold writings against the President. They consider a writer who dares the president as courageous. Is this what you aim for?

RH: I personally don't like bold writings. One can ask himself what he gets through publishing such bold writings. One could say so to get a car, a house, and good treatment by the government. Why would I provoke a person who has wealth and power, and live in fear and worry. I always write my articles because I believe in a specific project for the sake of our country. Also when I gave up writing I was badly criticized. I didn't only write articles criticizing the president, but I also wrote articles criticizing Islah Party. I criticized Hamid Al- Ahmar in one of my articles. Whenever something goes wrong, we have to criticize it.  

YP: Earlier you charged the ruling party with corruption, and months later you get a reward from the Minister of Culture. Are you With them or against?

RH: I would accept any reward from the Yemeni president, authorities or from the United States. I don't have any problem to be rewarded, either from an enemy or a friend. The Culture Minister is a good person, but I didn't think he was responsible for what happened. 

YP: Do you think that your bold writings against the government will not harm you because you're a female and you wouldn't be jailed or beaten?

RH:  Many female journalists were jailed and I expect to be jailed or get beaten at anytime. I think that when someone accuses you of indulging in major negative practices is far more difficult than getting beaten or even killed. If I had a choice to be beaten or insulted, I would prefer getting beat. Authorities practice different methods to harm women, like destroying the woman's reputation or silencing her in different ways. They do it in other ways and what happened to Aneesah Al-Shaiabi is a good example. When the authority does not succeed in silencing her, they asked her family to do so for them.  

YP: What does the Yemeni Women Media Forum give women in the  field of media?

RH: We have so far conducted more than 36 training courses in the field of human rights and journalism for both males and females. Nearly 70 trainers from around the world participated in those training courses. In comparison to what the Yemen Journalists Syndicate (YJS) did, the difference is far. They did only two training courses during this period of time. For example, we trained journalists through BBC online, and it was considered the first of its kind in Yemen. We trained 25 female journalists on defending women rights, and we trained 25 male journalists in fighting corruption. 

YP:  Do you think that the establishment of the Yemen Women Media Forum would keep women away from participating in their daily life as mother’s or wive’s?

RH: Yemen Women Media Forum is an establishment aiming to unite female efforts for enhancing the freedom of expression and women's rights. The forum also has  males in its activities. We employ both females and males in our office.

YP: You accused men in the media field of taking all the rights away from women. How?  

RH:  When comparing women to men, men enjoy more rights and this is not fair. For example, some important issues like TV directing got its legalizations completed in qat sessions where it is a male session alone. Also, when authorities go outside Yemen, they invite only male journalist to accompany them. From another angle, when the government has work in other   governorates they invite male journalists only. These are just a few of many ways that men enjoy more rights in media than women.

YP:   Are you the only financial sponsor of Yemeni Women Media Forum?

RH: I'm not the only one financing the activities of the forum, as numerous organizations give us projects that we implement. We accept any support. For example, we received financial support from politicians like Sheikh Hamid Al-Ahmar, Yahya Saleh, and others. When visiting our website, you can find a list of names of those who support us. We  like to have things clear for those who have doubts. We list the names of the people who support us to save time for those who want to search.

YP: Who led Al-Jashin locals to camp in the forum's yard, though it is meant for female media specialists, and not a place for locals to protest or camp?

RH: What led Al-Jashen locals to camp in the Forum was that we have an open yard capable of accommodating them. Also, they asked us to launch media attacks on Sheikh Mohammed Ahmed Mansour, who is directly responsible for their sufferings. I want to  say that woman can do more than they expect. Look at the bigger role that women enjoy now in media, and compare it to the past. I want women to expand in all angles, not only in the field of media    

YP: Although you are still young, you have joined at least four different parties in your political life, and now you're an independent, why?