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COUNTRY OF ORIGIN INFORMATION REPORT
ERITREA
8 JUNE 2010
UK Border Agency
COUNTRY OF ORIGIN INFORMATION SERVICE PDF page 2
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ERITREA 8 JUNE 2010
The main text of this COI Report contains the most up- to-date publicly available information as at 8 June 2010. ii
Contents
Preface
Paragraphs
Background Information
1. GEOGRAPHY ......................................................................................... 1.01
Maps .............................................................................................. 1.06
2. ECONOMY ............................................................................................. 2.01
3. HISTORY ............................................................................................... 3.01
Independence and Transitional Government 1991-1993 .......... 3.02
The People’s Front for Democracy and Justice and
constitutional developments 1994-2001 .................................... 3.04
Border conflict with Ethiopia 1998-2000 .................................... 3.07
Border tensions with neighbouring countries, 2005-2009 ....... 3.09
Domestic political developments from September 2001 to
August 2009 .................................................................................. 3.15
4. RECENT DEVELOPMENTS (DECEMBER 2009 - JUNE 2010)...................... 4.01
Useful sources for further information...................................... 4.05
5. CONSTITUTION ...................................................................................... 5.01
6. POLITICAL SYSTEM ................................................................................ 6.01
Human Rights
7. INTRODUCTION ...................................................................................... 7.01
8. SECURITY FORCES................................................................................. 8.01
Overview ....................................................................................... 8.01
Police............................................................................................. 8.02
Armed forces ................................................................................ 8.03
Human rights violations by the security forces ........................ 8.07
Arbitrary arrest and detention .................................................... 8.07
Torture ....................................................................................... 8.09
Extra-judicial killings .................................................................. 8.14
Avenues of complaint .................................................................. 8.15
9. MILITARY AND NATIONAL SERVICE.......................................................... 9.01
Legislative background ............................................................... 9.01
Military and National Service in practice.................................... 9.11
Payment for national service ...................................................... 9.15
Penalties for evading national service ....................................... 9.16
Round-ups (Giffa)......................................................................... 9.24
Authorised leave .......................................................................... 9.29
Conscientious objection.............................................................. 9.30
School leavers and conscription ................................................ 9.32
Exemptions ................................................................................... 9.34
Overview.................................................................................... 9.34
Exemption of women ................................................................. 9.36
Exemptions on medical grounds................................................ 9.44
Exemption of religious clerics.................................................... 9.46
Detention of national service and military service conscripts. 9.50
Demobilisation.............................................................................. 9.51
10. JUDICIARY........................................................................................... 10.01
Organisation ................................................................................. 10.01
Independence ............................................................................... 10.02 PDF page 3
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Fair trial ......................................................................................... 10.03
11. ARREST AND DETENTION – LEGAL RIGHTS............................................ 11.01
12. PRISON CONDITIONS............................................................................ 12.01
Places of detention ...................................................................... 12.07
13. DEATH PENALTY.................................................................................. 13.01
14. POLITICAL AFFILIATION ....................................................................................... 14.01
Freedom of political expression ................................................. 14.02
Freedom of association and assembly ...................................... 14.03
Opposition groups and political activists.................................. 14.04
Opposition groups in exile .......................................................... 14.06
15. FREEDOM OF SPEECH AND MEDIA ........................................................ 15.01
Overview........................................................................................ 15.01
Restrictions on the broadcasting and print media.................... 15.02
Restrictions on the use of the Internet ....................................... 15.07
Treatment of journalists............................................................... 15.09
16. HUMAN RIGHTS INSTITUTIONS, ORGANISATIONS AND ACTIVISTS ............ 16.01
17. CORRUPTION....................................................................................... 17.01
18. FREEDOM OF RELIGION........................................................................ 18.01
Overview ....................................................................................... 18.01
Arrests and detentions ................................................................ 18.05
Muslims ......................................................................................... 18.11
The Orthodox Church of Eritrea.................................................. 18.13
The Roman Catholic Church ....................................................... 18.18
Jehovah’s Witnesses ................................................................... 18.21
‘Evangelical’ Churches ................................................................ 18.23
General information ................................................................... 18.23
Menfesawyan “spirituals” ........................................................... 18.28
Other groups.............................................................................. 18.32
19. ETHNIC GROUPS .................................................................................. 19.01
Overview ....................................................................................... 19.01
Languages .................................................................................... 19.02
Afar/Danakils ................................................................................ 19.06
Baria/Nara ..................................................................................... 19.10
Hedareb/Beja/Beni Amber/Beni Amer ........................................ 19.11
Bilen/Bogos .................................................................................. 19.12
Kunama ......................................................................................... 19.14
Rashaida ....................................................................................... 19.19
Saho............................................................................................... 19.20
Tigrinya ......................................................................................... 19.23
Jiberti/Djiberti/Jeberty ................................................................. 19.24
Tigre/Tegre.................................................................................... 19.26
20. LESBIAN, GAY, BISEXUAL AND TRANSGENDER PERSONS....................... 20.01
21. DISABILITY .......................................................................................... 21.01
22. WOMEN............................................................................................... 22.01
Legal and political rights ............................................................. 22.01
Social and economic rights......................................................... 22.03
Marriage..................................................................................... 22.05
Violence against women.............................................................. 22.07
Trafficking of women.................................................................. 22.11
23. CHILDREN .......................................................................................... 23.01
Overview ....................................................................................... 23.01
Basic legal information ............................................................. 23.03
Legal rights ................................................................................... 23.04
Judicial and penal systems........................................................ 23.05 PDF page 4
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Violence against children ............................................................ 23.06
Female Genital Mutilation (FGM)............................................... 23.07
Trafficking .................................................................................. 23.10
Childcare and protection ............................................................. 23.11
Orphans ..................................................................................... 23.11
Education ...................................................................................... 23.18
Health and welfare........................................................................ 23.21
24. TRAFFICKING....................................................................................... 24.01
Government efforts to tackle trafficking................................... 24.02
Protection and support services............................................... 24.03
25. MEDICAL ISSUES ................................................................................. 25.01
General .......................................................................................... 25.01
Overview of availability of medical treatment and drugs ......... 25.03
HIV/AIDS........................................................................................ 25.05
Kidney dialysis ............................................................................. 25.09
Mental health care ........................................................................ 25.10
26. HUMANITARIAN ISSUES ........................................................................ 26.01
27. FREEDOM OF MOVEMENT ..................................................................... 27.01
28. INTERNALLY DISPLACED PEOPLE (IDPS) .............................................. 28.01
29. FOREIGN REFUGEES ............................................................................ 29.01
30. CITIZENSHIP AND NATIONALITY ............................................................ 30.01
Verification of nationality: three witnesses ............................... 30.04
Mixed marriages and mixed birth ............................................... 30.06
Status of Ethiopians in Eritrea .................................................... 30.10
31. FORGED AND FRAUDULENTLY OBTAINED DOCUMENTS .......................... 31.01
32. EXIT AND RETURN................................................................................ 32.01
Passport applications .................................................................. 32.01
Exit visas....................................................................................... 32.04
Requirement for Eritreans living abroad to pay tax.................. 32.11
Illegal exit from Eritrea................................................................. 32.12
Treatment of returned failed asylum seekers............................ 32.14
33. ERITREAN REFUGEES ABROAD............................................................. 33.01
Overview ....................................................................................... 33.01
Eritrean refugees in Libya ........................................................... 33.02
Eritrean refugees in Israel ........................................................... 33.06
Eritrean refugees in Egypt........................................................... 33.10
Eritean refugees in Ethiopia........................................................ 33.12
Eritrean refugees in Sudan.......................................................... 33.15
34. EMPLOYMENT RIGHTS.......................................................................... 34.01
Forced or compulsory labour...................................................... 34.02
Annexes PDF page 5
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Annex A - Chronology of major events
Annex B - Political organisations
Annex C - Prominent people: past and present
Annex D - List of abbreviations
Annex E - References to source material
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1
Preface
i This Country of Origin Information Report (COI Report) has been produced by
COI Service, United Kingdom Border Agency (UKBA), for use by officials
involved in the asylum/human rights determination process. The Report
provides general background information about the issues most commonly
raised in asylum/human rights claims made in the United Kingdom. The main
body of the report includes information available up to 8 June 2010. The report
was issued on 8 June 2010.
ii The Report is compiled wholly from material produced by a wide range of
recognised external information sources and does not contain any UKBA
opinion or policy. All information in the Report is attributed, throughout the text,
to the original source material, which is made available to those working in the
asylum/human rights determination process.
iii The Report aims to provide a a compilation of extracts of the source material
identified, focusing on the main issues raised in asylum and human rights
applications. It is not intended to be a detailed or comprehensive survey. For a
more detailed account, the relevant source documents should be examined
directly.
iv The structure and format of the COI Report reflects the way it is used by
UKBA decision makers and appeals presenting officers, who require quick
electronic access to information on specific issues and use the contents page
to go directly to the subject required. Key issues are usually covered in some
depth within a dedicated section, but may also be referred to briefly in several
other sections. Some repetition is therefore inherent in the structure of the
Report.
v The information included in this COI Report is limited to that which can be
identified from source documents. While every effort is made to cover all
relevant aspects of a particular topic, it is not always possible to obtain the
information concerned. For this reason, it is important to note that information
included in the Report should not be taken to imply anything beyond what is
actually stated. For example, if it is stated that a particular law has been
passed, this should not be taken to imply that it has been effectively
implemented unless stated.
vi As noted above, the Report is a compilation of extracts produced by a number
of reliable information sources. In compiling the Report, no attempt has been
made to resolve discrepancies between information provided in different
source documents. For example, different source documents often contain
different versions of names and spellings of individuals, places and political
parties, etc. COI Reports do not aim to bring consistency of spelling, but to
reflect faithfully the spellings used in the original source documents. Similarly,
figures given in different source documents sometimes vary and these are
simply quoted as per the original text. The term ‘sic’ has been used in this
document only to denote incorrect spellings or typographical errors in quoted
text; its use is not intended to imply any comment on the content of the
material.
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vii The Report is based substantially upon source documents issued during the
previous two years. However, some older source documents may have been
included because they contain relevant information not available in more
recent documents. All sources contain information considered relevant at the
time this Report was issued.
viii This COI Report and the accompanying source material are public documents.
All COI Reports are published on the RDS section of the Home Office website
and the great majority of the source material for the Report is readily available
in the public domain. Where the source documents identified in the Report are
available in electronic form, the relevant web link has been included, together
with the date that the link was accessed. Copies of less accessible source
documents, such as those provided by government offices or subscription
services, are available from the COI Service upon request.
ix COI Reports are published regularly on the top 20 asylum intake countries.
COI Key Documents are produced on lower asylum intake countries according
to operational need. UKBA officials also have constant access to an
information request service for specific enquiries.
x In producing this COI Report, COI Service has sought to provide an accurate,
balanced summary of the available source material. Any comments regarding
this Report or suggestions for additional source material are very welcome
and should be submitted to UKBA as below.
Country of Origin Information Service
UK Border Agency
Block B, Whitgift Centre
15 Wellesley Road
Croydon CR9 1AT
United Kingdom
Email: cois@homeoffice.gsi.gov.uk
Website: http://www.homeoffice.gov.uk/rds/country_reports.html
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INDEPENDENT ADVISORY GROUP ON COUNTRY INFORMATION
xi The Independent Advisory Group on Country Information (IAGCI) was set up
in March 2009 by the Chief Inspector of the UK Border Agency to make
recommendations to him about the content of the UKBA’s country of origin
information material. The IAGCI welcomes feedback on UKBA’s COI Reports,
COI Key Documents and other country of origin information material.
Information about the IAGCI’s work can be found on the Chief Inspector’s
website at http://www.ociukba.homeoffice.gov.uk
xii In the course of its work, the IAGCI reviews the content of selected UKBA COI
documents and makes recommendations specific to those documents and of
a more general nature. A list of the COI Reports and other documents which
have been reviewed by the IAGCI or the Advisory Panel on Country
Information (the independent organisation which monitored UKBA’s COI
material from September 2003 to October 2008) is available at
http://www.ociukba.homeoffice.gov.uk/
xiii Please note: it is not the function of the IAGCI to endorse any UKBA material
or procedures. Some of the material examined by the Group relates to
countries designated or proposed for designation to the Non-Suspensive
Appeals (NSA) list. In such cases, the Group’s work should not be taken to
imply any endorsement of the decision or proposal to designate a particular
country for NSA, nor of the NSA process itself.
Independent Advisory Group on Country Information contact details:
Office of the Chief Inspector of the UK Border Agency
4 th floor, 8-10 Great George Street,
London, SW1P 3AE
Email: chiefinspectorukba@homeoffice.gsi.gov.uk
Website: http://www.ociukba.homeoffice.gov.uk/
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Background Information
1. GEOGRAPHY
1.01 The State of Eritrea (Permanent Committee on Geographical Names) is a
country in the Horn of Africa, bordered by Sudan to the west, and Ethiopia to
the south. In area the country covers 117,400 sq km (45,300 sq miles). [81].
The capital city is Asmara, other main cities being the port of Massawa, Keren,
and Barentu. [1] (Europa World accessed on 12 May 2010)
1.02 The CIA World Factbook section on Eritrea (27 May 2010 version) gives a July
2010 population estimate of 5,792,984. [28]. According to Ethnologue
(accessed in April 2010), 12 languages are spoken in Eritrea. These are Afar,
Arabic (standard and Hijazi), Bedawiyet, Bilen, English, Geez, Italian,
Kunama, Nara, Saho, Tigre and Tigrigna (also known as Tigrinya). Of these
languages, English, standard Arabic, and Tigrinya are Eritrea’s official
languages. [59]
1.03 According to the Encyclopedia of the Nations (accessed in April 2010), Eritrea
has nine ethnic groups - the Afar, Tigriny, Tigre, Saho, Bilen, Hadareb,
Kunama, Nara and the Rashaida. The Tigrinya (50% of the population), Tigre
and Kunama (40%), Afar (4%), and Saho (3%) are believed to be the most
populous of all the Eritrean ethnic groups. [15]
1.04 According to the Encyclopedia of the Nations (accessed in April 2010), Eritrea
has nine ethnic groups - the Afar, Tigriny, Tigre, Saho, Bilen, Hadareb,
Kunama, Nara and the Rashaida. The Tigrinya (50% of the population), Tigre
and Kunama (40%), Afar (4%), and Saho (3%) are believed to be the most
populous of all the Eritrean ethnic groups. [15]
See Ethnic groups
1.05 According to the World Travel Guide (accessed on 12 April 2010), the
following days in 2010 are public holidays in Eritrea: 1 January - New Year’s
Day; 6 January - Orthodox Epiphany; 10 February - Fenkil Day; 26 February
- Birth of the Prophet (Muhammed); 8 March - Women’s Day; 5 April -
Orthodox Easter Monday; 1 May - May Day; 24 May - Independence Day;
20 June - Martyrs’ Day; 1 September - Anniversary of the Start of the Armed
Struggles; 11 September - Eid al-Fitr (End of Ramadan); 17 November -
Eid ul-Adha (Feast of the Sacrifice); 25 December - Christmas Day. [57]
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MAPS
1.06 Political map of Eritrea, dated Sept ember 2006, from the main United Nations
Human Rights Commission (UNHCR) website:
http://www.unhcr.org/publ/PUBL/45.pdf
http://www.unhcr.org/cgi-
bin/texis/vtx/publ/opendoc.pdf?tbl=PUBL&id=3dee2c620
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1.07 Map of Eritrea including its provinces and main cities from the maps of world
website:
http://www.mapsofworld.com/eritrea/maps/eritrea-political-map.jpg
1.08 Further maps of Eritrea can be found via the Perry-Castaneda collection
website at:
http://www.lib.utexas.edu/maps/eritrea.html
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2. ECONOMY
2.01 Eritrea’s economy is largely based on agriculture, which involves 80 per cent
of the working population, but only contributes 12 per cent to the GDP;
remittances from the Eritrean diaspora account for 32 per cent of GDP. [4a].
(US State Department Background Note on Eritrea, February 2010). Europa
World stated that the national currency is the Nafka. [1]. As of 28 May 2010,
one United States dollar was equivalent to 15 Nafkas; one Euro was
equivalent to 18.6 Nafkas; and one United Kingdom pound was equivalent to
21.8 Nafkas. [34] (XE Universal Currency Converter)
2.02 The CIA World Factbook section on Eritrea (27 May 2010 version) noted that:
“Since independence from Ethiopia in 1993, Eritrea has faced the economic
problems of a small, desperately poor country, accentuated by the recent
implementation of restrictive economic policies. Eritrea has a command
economy under the control of the sole political party, the People’s Front for
Democracy and Justice (PFDJ)…the government strictly controls the use of
foreign currency, limiting access and availability. Few private enterprises
remain in Eritrea. Eritrea’s economy depends heavily on taxes paid by
members of the diaspora.” [28]
2.03 The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees Eligibility Guidelines for
Assessing the International Protection Needs of Asylum Seekers from Eritrea
report, published in April 2009, added:
“The country has practically no exports, while the cost of imports account for
roughly 40 percent of the GDP. The cost of living, particularly in urban areas,
is steadily increasing beyond the reach of most Eritreans. There is a growing
scarcity of basic staples such as bread, sugar and fuel, and, despite
Government programmes designed to ensure food security, two thirds of the
population are still reliant on food aid. Social services in Eritrea remain basic
and poverty is reportedly widespread.” [18c] (p8)
2.04 The CIA World Factbook (27 May 2010 version) cites figures of 40,400
mainline telephones (2008) and 108,600 (2008) mobile telephones in use.
Most mainline telephones are in Asmara. Only about three people out of every
100 has a telephone (fixed line or mobile). [28]
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3. HISTORY
3.01 Prior to independence in 1993, Eritrea was part of a federation with Ethiopia
from 1952, until it was formally annexed as a province by Ethiopia in 1962.
During Ethiopia’s annexation of Eritrea, the Eritrean Liberation Front (ELF)
began an armed struggle, splitting in the mid-1970s with a new group
emerging, the Eritrean People’s Liberation Front (EPLF) in 1977. The EPLF,
after military defeats and reconstitution of its forces, launched an attack in
1989 that culminated in the taking of Asmara in May 1991. [1] (Europa World,
accessed on 12 May 2010)
INDEPENDENCE AND TRANSITIONAL GOVERNMENT 1991-1993
3.02 Europa World (accessed on 12 May 2010) added further:
“Following the liberation of Asmara by the EPLF [in May 1991], and of Addis
Ababa by the Ethiopian People’s Revolutionary Democratic Front (EPRDF), a
conference was convened in London, [at which] the Ethiopian delegation
accepted the EPLF administration as the legitimate provisional Government of
Eritrea, and the EPLF agreed to hold a referendum on independence in 1993.
The provisional government, which was to administer Eritrea during the two
years prior to the referendum, drew most of its members from the EPLF. The
Government struggled to rehabilitate and develop Eritrea’s war-torn economy
and infrastructure, and to feed a population of whom 80% remained
dependent on food aid. The agricultural sector had been severely disrupted by
the war, and urban economic activity was almost non-existent.” [1]
3.03 The UN supervised a referendum on independence in April 1993, with a 99.8
per cent vote of Eritreans in favour of independence; the 24 May was declared
Independence Day and on 28 May 1993, the state of Eritrea was formally
granted international recognition. Three institutions were set up to govern the
state - the Consultative Council, the National Assembly, and the judiciary -
with Isaias Afewerki, the leader of the EPLF, installed as President and Head
of State. [1] (Europa World, accessed on 12 May 2010)
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THE PEOPLE’S FRONT FOR DEMOCRACY AND JUSTICE AND CONSTITUTIONAL
DEVELOPMENTS 1994-2001
3.04 According to Europa World, in February 1994, the EPLF reformed as a
political party, the People’s Front for Democracy and Justice (PFDJ); in
March, the Consultative Council was replaced with a State Council; and the
National Assembly reconstituted to include 75 members of the PFDJ Central
Committee and 75 directly elected members, though no election mechanism
was presented. A Constitutional Committee of 58 members (50 of whom were
government appointees) was established to reorganise the country
administratively. In July 1994 and January 1995, the Constitutional
Committee discussed a draft Constitution, and in May 1995, the Constitutional
Commission brought in a subdivision of six administrative regions, with the
National Assembly approving the regions’ names in November 1995. [1]
(Europa World accessed on 12 May 2010)
3.05 The Europa World account summarises the changes in the National Assembly
and other representative institutions in the late 1990s:
“In early 1997 the Government established a Constituent Assembly,
comprising 527 members (150 from the National Assembly, with the
remainder selected from representatives of Eritreans residing abroad or
elected by regional assemblies), to discuss and ratify the draft constitution.
On 23 May the Constituent Assembly adopted the Constitution, authorizing
‘conditional’ political pluralism and instituting a presidential regime, with a
President elected for a maximum of two five-year terms. The President, as
Head of State, would appoint a Prime Minister and judges of the Supreme
Court; his or her mandate could be revoked should two-thirds of the members
of the National Assembly so demand. The Constituent Assembly was
disbanded, and a Transitional National Assembly (consisting of the 75
members of the PFDJ Central Committee, 60 members of the Constituent
Assembly and 15 representatives of Eritreans residing abroad) was
empowered to act as the legislature until the holding of elections to a new
National Assembly.” [1]
3.06 Europa World added:
“It was initially announced that Eritrea’s first post-independence elections,
which were scheduled to have been held in 1998, but were postponed
indefinitely following the outbreak of hostilities with Ethiopia (see below),
would take place in December 2001. However, during 2001 the likelihood of
elections taking place in that year diminished, as President Afewerki assumed
an increasingly authoritarian position.” [1]
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BORDER CONFLICT WITH ETHIOPIA 1998-2000
3.07 Regarding Eritrea’s border conflict with Ethiopia, the UK Foreign and
Commonwealth Office Country Profile on Eritrea (8 October 2007) stated that:
“A dispute over the ill-defined border with Ethiopia flared into military conflict in
May 1998. There were an estimated 100,000 casualties. Hostilities concluded
with the signing of the Algiers Peace Agreement of December 2000. This
established the Eritrea-Ethiopia Boundary Commission (EEBC) to delimit and
demarcate the border and established a 25km Temporary Security Zone
(TSZ) between the 2 countries. A UN peacekeeping force (UNMEE) has been
deployed along the TSZ since 2001. India, Jordan and Kenya are the major
troop contributors, though the size of the force was reduced from 4,000 to
2,300 in early 2006 following restrictions placed on UNMEE activities and staff
by the Eritrean Government. In April 2007 UNMEE further reduced its
presence from 2,300 to 1,000 military personel. Under the Peace Agreement,
UNMEE is to remain in place until the delimitation and demarcation of the
border had been completed.” [10d]
3.08 The FCO Country Profile added further detail:
“The EEBC announced its decision on the border on 13 April 2002.
Demarcation was due to follow in 2003. However, when it became clear that
the town of Badme (where the hostilities started) had been awarded to Eritrea,
Ethiopia challenged the EEBC's conclusions. In November 2004 Ethiopia
announced its acceptance ‘in principle’ of the EEBC ruling but progress on
demarcation remains stalled.” [10d]
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BORDER TENSIONS WITH NEIGHBOURING COUNTRIES, 2005-2009
3.09 Tensions continued with large numbers of troops massed on the disputed
border in early 2005. An UNMEE spokesperson urged both countries to
remain calm and show restraint. [8h] (BBC News Online, 17 February 2005).
In December 2005, Eritrea ordered out Western UN troops serving in the
UNMEE mission. However, most of UNMEE are from Asian and African
countries and these remained. [8s] (BBC News Online, 16 December 2005)
3.10 On 16 October 2006, 1,500 Eritrean troops and 14 tanks entered the
demilitarised zone, which constituted a breach of the peace deal made in
2000. According to the Eritrean government, they were there to harvest crops,
which otherwise would have been wasted. A spokesman for the Ethiopian
government stated that they would be monitoring the demilitarised zone very
closely. [8e] (BBC New Online, 17 October 2006). In May and June 2008, the
Eritrean Government undertook a similar venture with an incursion over a
disputed area of the Eritrea/Djibouti border, with claims of two Djibouti soldiers
killed and 17 wounded in exchanges. Eritrea denied that it was at war with
Djibouti. [8i] (BBC News Online, 6 May 2008); [8d] (BBC News Online, 11 June
2008)
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3.11 From December 2007, the work of UNMEE in Eritrea became difficult to
maintain, as the Eritrean Government impounded and delayed supplies of fuel
to the force. By mid-February 2008, the situation had reached crisis point as
the Eritrean Government refused to permit the UNMEE force to move its
supplies over to northern Ethiopia. [66] (Agence France Presse, 16 February
2008); [8o] (BBC News Online, 16 February 2008)
3.12 The United Nations Security Council voted unanimously to withdraw the
UNMEE from Eritrea in July 2008, as stated in a UN Security Council news
release of 30 July 2008:
“The Security Council today [30 July 2008] terminated the mandate of the
eight-year-old peacekeeping force monitoring the border dispute between
Ethiopia and Eritrea and requested the UN Secretary-General Ban Ku-moon
to explore further with two Horn of Africa countries the possibility of a United
Nations presence in the area.
“Unanimously adopting resolution 1827 (2008), the Council decided to end the
United Nations Mission in Ethiopia and Eritrea (UNMEE) when its mandate
expires on Thursday, 31 July [2008], and called on the two sides to cooperate
fully with the world body in the process of liquidating the operation.
“…expressing regret that Eritrea’s obstructions towards UNMEE had ‘reached
a level so as to undermine the basis of the Mission’s mandate and compelled
[it] to temporarily relocate from Eritrea’, the Council commended efforts by the
Mission and its military and civilian personnel to accomplish their duties
despite the difficult circumstances, and expressed also its deep appreciation
for the contributions and dedication of troop-contributing countries to
UNMEE’s work.” [35]
3.13 An Awate report dated 19 January 2009 stated that fighting between Djibouti
and Eritrean troops had taken place in June 2008 at the Djibouti-Eritrea
border. The report stated that the “battle came after weeks of complaint by
Djibouti that Eritrea was occupying its territories since January [2008] and
reinforcing its troops, a claim which was dismissed by Eritrea as ‘fabrication’.”
[50h].
3.14 In January 2009, the UN Security Council gave Eritrea an ultimatum to
withdraw its forces from a disputed border region with Djibouti within five
weeks. The UN resolution also called for Eritrea to remove its military
hardware from the Ras Doumeira region and the island of Doumeira. [8b] (BBC
News Online report “UN in Eritrea pull-out ultimatum”, 14 January 2009). The
UN Security Council resolution was rejected by the Eritrean government. In
January 2009, the Eritrean Foreign Ministry issued a statement about the UN
resolution which stated that the resolution was “unbalanced and unnecessary”
and that “Eritrea has not occupied any land that belongs to Djibouti” and
“cannot accept a resolution that demands the ‘withdrawal of its forces’ from its
own territory”. [62a] (Sudan Tribune report “Eritrea rejects UN resolution on
border dispute with Djibouti”, 16 January 2009)
See Internally displaced persons and Foreign refugees
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DOMESTIC POLITICAL DEVELOPMENTS FROM SEPTEMBER 2001 TO AUGUST 2009
3.15 The period around September 2001 was a key crisis point in Eritrean history
after the 1998–2000 war. The US State Department Background Note on
Eritrea, published in February 2010, summarised the situation:
“In September 2001, after several months in which a number of prominent
PFDJ party members had publicly aired grievances against the government
and in which they called for implementation of the constitution and the holding
of elections, the government instituted a crackdown. Eleven prominent
dissidents, members of what had come to be known as the Group of 15, were
arrested and held without charge in an unknown location. At the same time,
the government shut down the independent press and arrested its reporters
and editors, holding them incommunicado and without charge. In subsequent
weeks, the government arrested other individuals, including two Eritrean
employees of the U.S. Embassy.” [4a]
3.16 According to an Open Doors International (NGO) report, published in April
2009:
“In May 2002, the Eritrean government ordered all unregistered religious
communities to close their places of worship and stop practicing their faith
until they were registered. They had to apply for registration with the
Department for Religious Affairs in the Office of the President in accordance
with the 1995 Proclamation regarding legally elucidating and regulating of
religious activities and religions declaration NO 73/1995 [italics in text of
source], the full implementation of which had been delayed.” [21]
See Freedom of religion
3.17 In early 2005, it was reported that the Government was intensifying its efforts
to curb opposition, as referred to in a UNHCR letter dated 11 March 2005,
stating:
“Based on various reports, it appears that the human rights situation in Eritrea
has seriously deteriorated in the past two years [2004-2005]. Human rights
violations continue to be reported, inter alia, with regard to the treatment of
opposition political groups and movements, freedom of expression, freedom of
religion, arbitrary detention and detention conditions (including reports of
torture, ill-treatment and forced labor) and treatment of draft
evaders/deserters.” [18f]
3.18 A Reuters report dated 15 September 2007 stated that the “Eritrean President
Isaias Afwerki has backed a new Somali opposition alliance, saying Ethiopia’s
fight against insurgents in Mogadishu was doomed to fail, state media
reported on Saturday. The formation of the group, including top Islamist
leaders, in Asmara this week generated yet more friction between Ethiopia
and Eritrea after their border war of 1998–2000.” [76a] (Reuters report, 15
September 2007). Responding to American accusations that they abetted
terrorists in the volatile Horn of Africa, Eritrean officials defended their actions
and said that while they would like to have better relations with the United
States, they had no intention of bowing to its pressure. [53] (International
Herald Tribune, 18 September 2007).
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3.19 In June 2009, Awate reported that:
“Following a two-day congress which was held on June 18-19, 2009, the Red
Sea Afar Democratic Organization (RSADO) and the Democratic Movement for
the Liberation of Eritrean Kunama (DMLEK) have announced that they have
created the Democratic Front of Eritrean Nationalities (DFEN).
“…the merger move by DMLEK and RSADO continues a trend that has
emerged in the Eritrean arena recently. Last month [May 2009], four Eritrean
opposition organizations (Eritrean Liberation Front, Islah, AlKhalas and the
Eritrean Federal Democratic Movement) formed the Eritrean Solidarity Front.
Also in May [2009], the Eritrean People’s Party (EPP), which is conducting
merger talks with the Eritrean Democratic Party (EDP), announced that it had
merged with the Democratic Movement of Gash-Setit. The Eritrean opposition
landscape now is aligning into three blocks, with a number of opposition
organizations now being wooed by the three blocks.” [50e]
See Opposition groups in exile
3.20 In August 2009, BBC News reported that an international tribunal in The Hague
had ruled that the Eritrean government had to pay the Ethiopian government the
equivalent of US$174 million dollars as financial compensation for businesses
and goods lost and villages destroyed during the 1998-2000 border war. The
Ethiopian government is also required to pay financial compensation, and will
have to pay the equivalent of US$164 million to the Eritrean government. The
Eritrean government stated that it has accepted the ruling. The BBC report
ended by stating that the border dispute between the two countries is still an
ongoing issue. [8c]
3.21 Assenna reported in August 2009 that President Afewerki had escaped an
assassination attempt on 13 August. According to the report, members of the
Eritrean Defence Forces tried to kill the president while he was travelling in his
car but failed. A former freedom fighter, Daniel Habte Yihdego, who was
involved in the assassination plot, was killed after an exchange of gunfire with
the president’s bodyguards. [16b]
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4. RECENT DEVELOPMENTS (DECEMBER 2009 – JUNE 2010)
This section covers the period December 2009 to June 2010 and provides a
selection of incidents as reported by a number of sources. The section is
organised chronologically, from the oldest to most recent events.
4.01 In December 2009, Awate reported that:
“In a 13-1 vote, with China abstaining, and Libya opposed, the 15-member UN
Security Council voted to impose sanctions on the Eritrean regime. The
government of Eritrea quickly tried to classify this as a US-Ethiopia concocted
punitive measure, but those who voted for the sanctions include the Russian
Federation, France, the United Kingdom, Austria, Burkino Faso, Costa Rica,
Croatia, Japan, Mexico, Turkey, Uganda and Vietnam.
“The sanctions place an arms embargo on Eritrea, an asset freeze on specific
businesses and individuals, as well as a travel ban on political and military
leaders who will be identified by a sanctions committee.
“The bases [sic] for the sanctions are the Eritrean regime’s alleged role in the
destabilization of Somalia and its repeated refusal to deal with encroachment
complaints filed by neighboring Djibouti. (The UN had passed a unanimous
resolution on January 14, 2009 demanding of Eritrea to withdraw from Ras
Doumeira and Doumeira Island and to submit to mediation.) The Eritrean
regime entirely ignored the resolution, as it had ignored appeals by the African
Union, the League of Arab States, and the Islamic Conference.” [50c]
4.02 In February 2010, Assenna reported that:
“An Eritrean rebel group said Tuesday [16 February 2010] [that] it [had] killed
17 [Eritrean] government soldiers and injured more than 20 others in an attack
on military barracks.
" ‘The attack was carried out in Fura in central Dankalia (region) at 5:00 am
(0800 GMT) on February 15,’ Yassin Mohammed, spokesman of the Red Sea
Afars Democratic Organisation (RSADO), told AFP in a phone interview.
“Dankalia is located in Eritrea's desolate south-eastern province mainly
inhabited by the nomadic Afars.
" ‘Seventeen soldiers were killed and at least 20 others wounded,’ he said,
adding that the camp housed members of Eritrea's 28th brigade which he said
was ‘responsible for the incarceration and torture of citizens’.
“…t he little known group has previously told AFP [Agence France-Presse] of
similar operations, most recently being in December [2009] when it claimed to
have killed 25 soldiers in a joint attack with a separate movement.
“…RSADO says the attacks are in response to Asmara's refusal to grant
autonomy to the Afar, whose homeland straddles Eritrea, Ethiopia and Djibouti.”
[16c]
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4.03 In March 2010, France24 News reported that Egyptian police officers had shot
dead two Eritreans on 27 March 2010 who were trying to enter Israel illegally
across the Egyptian/Israeli border. Four other Eritreans were shot and
wounded. Another Eritrean was arrested by the Egyptian police. The Egyptian
government has recently stepped up security controls along the
border with Israel, which is a major trafficking route for migrants from Africa.
[52]
4.04 In April 2010, Y-net news (Israeli) reported that the Israeli Interior Minister had
devised a plan whereby the Israeli Foreign Minister would approach the
Eritrean government to facilitate the repatriation of Eritrean refugees. Both
governments would have to work together to achieve this. There are around
13,000 Eritreans in Israel according to the report. [93]
See Eritreans refugees in Israel
USEFUL SOURCES FOR FURTHER INFORMATION
4.05 A list of sources with weblinks is provided below, which may be useful if
additional up to date information is required to supplement that provided in this
report. The full list of sources used in this report can be found in Annex E -
References to Source Material:
BBC News Online - World Africa
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/africa/default.stm
Awate http://www.awate.com/portal/
Assenna http://assenna.com/
Dehai News http://www.dehai.org/
Walta http://www.waltainfo.com/
allafrica.com - Eritrea http://allafrica.com/eritrea/
United Nations IRIN - Eritrea http://www.irinnews.org/Africa-
Country.aspx?Country=ER
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5. CONSTITUTION
5.01 The US State Department Background Note on Eritrea, published in February
2010, noted that the constitution of Eritrea was ratified on 24 May 1997 but
has not yet been implemented. [4a]
5.02 A translation of the new constitution is available on the EDP opposition
website, http://selfi-
democracy.com/index.php?read=articles/documents/1137696360eritrean_e.ht
m (see also Draft Constitution of Eritrea source [2])
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6. POLITICAL SYSTEM
6.01 The US State Department 2009 Human Rights report on Eritrea, published in
March 2010, noted that:
“The government came to power in a 1993 popular referendum in which voters
chose to have an independent country managed by a transitional government;
however the transitional government did not permit the formation of a
democratic system. The government twice scheduled elections in accordance
with the Constitution but cancelled them without explanation. An official
declaration in 2003, claimed that ‘in accordance with the prevailing wish of the
people it is not the time to establish political parties, and discussion of the
establishment has been postponed.’ Government officials also stated that
implementation of the constitution was not possible until the border
demarcation with Ethiopia was finalized…the country was a one -party state.
Power rested with the PFDJ and its institutions. At times the government
coerced membership in the PFDJ.” [4i] (Section 3)
6.02 The CIA World Factbook section on Eritrea (27 May 2010 version) stated:
“Following a successful referendum on independence for the Autonomous
Region of Eritrea on 23-25 April 1993, a National Assembly, composed
entirely of the People’s Front for Democracy and Justice or PFDJ, was
established as a transitional legislature; a Constitutional Commission was also
established to draft a constitution; ISAIAS Afwerki was elected president by
the transitional legislature; the constitution, ratified in May 1997, did not enter
into effect, pending parliamentary and presidential elections; parliamentary
elections had been scheduled in December 2001, but were postponed
indefinitely; currently the sole legal party is the People’s Front for Democracy
and Justice (PFDJ).” [28]
6.03 Regarding elections other than parliamentary elections, Europa World noted
that local government elections took place in 2003 and regional assembly
elections took place in 2004. [1]
6.04 The Eritrea section in the Freedom in the World 2010 report, published in May
2010, stated that “Eritrea is not an electoral democracy”, and that “instead of
moving toward a democratic [political] system, the PFDJ has taken significant
steps backward since the end of the war with Ethiopia.” [36]
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Human Rights
7. INTRODUCTION
7.01 The Human Rights Watch 2010 World Report, covering events in 2009,
summarised the human rights situation in Eritrea:
“Eritrea remains a country in shackles. Arbitrary arrests and detention, torture,
extrajudicial killings, severe restrictions on freedom of expression and worship,
and forced labor are routine...thousands of people fled the country in 2009 due
to Eritrea’s serious human rights violations and indefinite military conscription.
[29d] (p1)
“Deaths in custody are common as a result of ill-treatment, torture, starvation,
and denial of medical care. Many other detainees have ‘disappeared,’ their
whereabouts unknown. In 2009 a reliable website reported the deaths of four
prisoners held because of their religious beliefs; three died after torture, the
fourth after denial of treatment for malaria. [29d] (p2)
“The Eritrean government is also responsible for extrajudicial killings. Some
deliberate killings occurred during detention, others when prisoners attempted
to escape confinement or flee the country. The government maintains a
‘shoot-to-kill’ policy for anyone caught trying to cross the country’s borders.”
[29d] (p2)
7.02 The US State Department Human Rights report for 2009, published in March
2010, stated:
“Human rights abuses [in 2009] included abridgement of citizens' right to
change their government through a democratic process; unlawful killings by
security forces; torture and beating of prisoners, sometimes resulting in death;
abuse and torture of national service evaders, some of whom reportedly died
of their injuries while in detention; harsh and life-threatening prison conditions;
arbitrary arrest and detention, including of national service evaders and their
family members; executive interference in the judiciary and the use of a
special court system to limit due process; and infringement on privacy rights,
including roundups of young men and women for national service and the
arrest and detention of the family members of service evaders. The
government severely restricted freedoms of speech, press, assembly,
association, and religion. The government also limited freedom of movement
and travel for citizens in the national service, foreign residents, employees of
diplomatic missions, the UN, and humanitarian and development agencies.
Restrictions continued on the activities of nongovernmental organizations
(NGOs) and the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC). Female
genital mutilation (FGM) was widespread, and societal abuse and
discrimination against women, members of the Kunama ethnic group,
homosexuals, and persons with HIV/AIDS were problems. There were
limitations on worker rights including forced labor.” [4i] (Introduction)
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7.03 An Awate report, dated 6 January 2009, provided additional information:
“The control of Eritrea by the ‘tegadelti’ in the ruling PFDJ party is total. All key
ministries, the army, the press, trade unions, schools and even the churches
and mosques are under a centralized hierarchic form of decision-making at
the top of which is a party member, former combatant, or ‘Tegadalai’. Any and
all who resist such control are considered threats to national unity and are
forcefully dissolved, restricted, purged, and neutralised by the regime. Non-
conformist ideas, political beliefs, religious beliefs, artistic and music styles are
considered subversive, and adherents to these are punished accordingly…
the country is divided into several administrative zones run by a group of
generals elevated to the position of a kind of managerial board, answerable to
no one except the president, and running each zone as if it is their fiefdom or
private property.” [50b]
For details about specific human rights abuses, refer to:
Torture; Penalties for evading national service;
Freedom of religion - arrests and detention; Treatment of journalists ; Exit and
return
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8. SECURITY FORCES
OVERVIEW
8.01 The US State Department Human Rights report for 2009 , published in March
2010, stated that the:
“Police were officially responsible for maintaining internal security, and the
army was responsible for external security; however, the government could
call on the armed forces, the reserves, and demobilized soldiers to meet either
domestic or external security requirements. Agents of the National Security
Office, which reports to the Office of the President, were responsible for
detaining persons suspected of threatening national security. The military had
the authority to arrest and detain civilians. Generally [the] police did not have a
role in cases involving national security, but they were heavily involved in
rounding up individuals evading national service.” [4i] (section 1d)
POLICE
8.02 The US State Department Human Rights report for 2009 stated:
“Police, who often were conscripted, were poorly paid, and corruption was a
problem. During the year [2009] there were reports of police and other security
forces committing crimes to supplement their income, including breaking into
homes to confiscate jewelry, money, and food. Police typically used their
influence as government officials to assist friends and family, such as in
facilitating family members’ release from prison. There were reports that [the]
police demanded bribes to release detainees and that military forces accepted
money to smuggle citizens out of the country. There were no mechanisms to
address allegations of official abuse, and impunity was a problem.”
[4i] (section 1d)
ARMED FORCES
8.03 The number of military personnel as regular soldiers is not given in the Central
Intelligence Agency’s World Factbook section on Eritrea (27 May 2010
version), though it estimates that of the 2.2 million military service reservists
and current military conscripts, about 1.7 million are fit for military service. [28].
Europa World (accessed on 12 May 2010) estimated that Eritrea’s armed
forces “were estimated to number 201,750, including an army of about
200,000, a navy of 1,400 and an air force of about 350; reserve forces
numbered about 120,000.” [1]
8.04 The military chain of command is, according to Jane’s Sentinel country risk
assessment of Eritrea (15 N ovember 2007 version), to be one of the most
powerful political structures in Eritrea. President Isaias Afewerki has acted as
the Commander-in-Chief, since 2002, effectively by-passing the Defence
Minister, Sibhat Efrem, and directly controlling operations through three top
generals and the four regional military commanders. The President also has
direct control of the National Security Office (the NSO), the security and
intelligence service of Eritrea. [70b]
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8.05 During the war for independence and for some time after, the armed forces of
the EPLF operated without formal rankings and with improvised military
clothing, equipment and weapons. The armed forces have had a hierarchy
and standardised uniforms since 1995. [78] (International Encyclopedia of
Uniform Insignia Around the World). Jane’s Infantry Weapons 2006 - 2007
gives information about the national inventory of arms, listing AKMs, as types
of assault rifle held [70a]; photographs of Sawa military training camp parades
show squads with older weapons, typically with fixed bayonets. [29c] (Human
Rights Watch, 13 January 2005)
8.06 An article in African Studies Review, April 2003, states that “Tigrinya is the
language of military training and communication.” [74] (p8)
See Languages
HUMAN RIGHTS VIOLATIONS BY THE SECURITY FORCES
ARBITRARY ARREST AND DETENTION
8.07 The US State Department Human Rights report for 2009 stated:
“The law stipulates that detainees must be brought before a judge within 48
hours of their arrest and may not be held more than 28 days without being
charged with a crime. In practice authorities often detained suspects for much
longer periods. The law stipulates that unless there is a ‘crime in progress’,
police must conduct an investigation and obtain a warrant prior to making an
arrest. In cases involving national security, this process may be waived. In
practice very few individuals were arrested with a warrant. Authorities did not
promptly inform detainees of [the] charges against them and often changed
the charges during detention. Detainees in prisons often did not have access
to counsel or appear before a judge. Incommunicado detention was
widespread, although detainees in police stations generally had access to
legal representation and family members. Authorities provided indigent
detainees with counsel on an irregular basis. There was a functioning bail
system, except for persons charged with national security crimes or crimes
that could carry the death penalty.” [4i] (section 1d)
8.08 The main application of police powers to arrest and detain is to enforce
recruitment round-ups (giffa), with the US State Department Human Rights
report for 2009 stating that “security force personnel detained individuals for
evading national service and on other unspecified national security charges. In
practice, most detainees were informally charged with issues relating to
national service, effectively allowing authorities to incarcerate citizens
indefinitely.” The US State Department Human Rights report further stated that
“security forces also continued to detain and arrest the parents and spouses of
individuals who evaded national service or fled the country.” [4i] (section 1d)
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Torture
8.09 The US State Department Human Rights report for 2009 stated:
“The law and ratified but unimplemented constitution prohibit torture; however,
there were numerous reports that security forces resorted to torture and
beatings of prisoners, particularly during interrogations. There were credible
reports that several military conscripts died following such treatment. Security
forces severely mistreated and beat army deserters, draft evaders, persons
attempting to flee the country without travel documents and exit permits, and
members of certain religious groups…no known action was taken during the
year to punish perpetrators of torture and abuse.” [4i] (section 1c)
8.10 The Amnesty International 2010 Annual Report, published in May 2010,
stated:
“The authorities interrogated, tortured and otherwise ill-treated critics of the
government in an attempt to deter dissenting opinion. Prisoners were often
whipped, kicked or tied with ropes in painful positions for prolonged periods.”
“Prison conditions were dire. Many prisoners were held in underground cells
or shipping containers and denied access to daylight. Conditions were
overcrowded, damp and unhygienic.
“Prisoners were frequently exposed to the sun for extended periods of time, or
locked in metal shipping containers, which magnified extremes of heat and
cold.” [5k]
8.11 The Human Rights Watch (HRW) 2009 Service for Life - State Repression and
Indefinite Conscription in Eritrea report, published in April 2009, stated:
“According to eyewitness accounts gathered by Human Rights Watch, torture
and cruel, inhuman, and degrading treatment or punishment by military
officers and commanders are systematic and ‘normal’...in Eritrea, deaths in
custody are common as a result of ill-treatment, torture, and denial of medical
treatment.” [29e] (p29-30)
8.12 The HRW 2009 Service for Life - State Repression and Indefinite Conscription
in Eritrea report describes the various torture methods used on prisoners in
military detention. According to the report, the names of the known different
types of torture are:
‘Helicopter’ - the victim’s hands and feet are tied together behind the back.
The victim is left face down, often outside in the sun. According to former
detainees, this form of torture is practiced in most of the prisons, in particular
in Alla prison.
‘Otto’ (or ‘eight’) - the victim’s hands are tied together behind the back, and
the victim has to lie on his or her stomach. According to former detainees, this
was the most common form of torture, practiced in all the prisons, and also in
Wi’a and Sawa military camps.
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‘Ferro’ - the victim’s hands are placed behind the back and the wrists are
bound together with handcuffs. The victim is made to lie on his or her
stomach. The victim may also be left outside in the sun. According to a former
army officer, ‘ferro’ was often the punishment for individuals suspected of
being army deserters.
‘Jesus Christ’ - the victim is crucified by being tied up with rope to a tree or a
cross and then left to hang in that position. Sometimes the victim is also
beaten while in the hung position.
‘Goma’ - the victim is placed in a radial truck tyre in a double-bent position for
long periods of time.
‘Mock drowning’ - the victim’s head is submerged in water as an act of ‘mock
drowning’.
‘Beating’ - according to former detainees, beatings are a common
punishment and take place on a regular, often daily, basis. Beatings can occur
before or after other forms of torture. [29e] (p30-32)
8.13 The US State Department Human Rights report for 2009 reported that:
“Security forces subjected deserters and draft evaders to such disciplinary
actions as prolonged sun exposure in temperatures of up to 120 degrees
Fahrenheit and the binding of hands, elbows, and feet for extended periods;
and suspension from trees for extended periods. No known action was taken
during the year [2009] to punish perpetrators of torture and abuse.”
[4i] (section 1c)
Extra-judicial killings
8.14 The US State Department Human Rights report for 2009 stated that during
2009:
“The government continued to authorize the use of lethal force against
individuals resisting or attempting to flee during military searches for deserters
and draft evaders, and the practice reportedly resulted in deaths during the
year [2009]. Several persons detained for evading national service died after
harsh treatment by [the] security forces. There were reports that individuals
were severely beaten and killed during roundups of young men and women for
national service.” [4i] (section 1a)
AVENUES OF COMPLAINT
8.15 The US State Department Human Rights report for 2009 stated that during
2008 “there were no mechanisms to address allegations of official abuse, and
impunity was a problem.” [4i] (section 1d)
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9. MILITARY AND NATIONAL SERVICE
LEGISLATIVE BACKGROUND
The information in the “Military and National Service” section has been
obtained from a number of sources which give differing information
about national service and how it is implemented in practice. For example,
the different sources used give different information regarding who is
exempt from national service, how round-ups are organised, and at what
age national service starts and ends for men and women.
9.01 The National Service Proclamation (Proclamation No 82/1995) issued by the
Eritrean Government on 23 October 1995 sets out the national service
requirements in full. Article 2 of the Proclamation defines what national service
is and involves:
“ ‘National Service’ will mean the general service that a citizen will give in
active national service and in reserve military service”. In other words,
“national service” covers both conscripts and reservists.
“ ‘Active National Service’ will mean the training and service that a citizen
[referred to as a “Trainee”] fit for national service under Art.8 of this
proclamation will undergo for 18 months”. [13] (National Service Proclamation
of 23 October 1995)
9.02 The National Service Proclamation also refers to “Reserve Military Service”
and “Reserve Army”. The latter refers to military service in the regular armed
forces in times of mobilization/emergency situations, and the former refers to
further indefinite national service duties in mobilization/emergency situations,
i.e. not necessarily as a combatant or with the armed forces. [13] (National
Service Proclamation of 23 October 1995).
9.03 Article 6 of the Proclamation states:
“Under this Proclamation any Eritrean citizen from 18 to 50 years of age has
the obligation of carrying out national service”, as in “Active National Service”
and/or national service as in “Reserve Military Service”. [13] (National Service
Proclamation of 23 October 1995)
9.04 Article 8 of the Proclamation sets out details of national service:
“Under this Proclamation all Eritrean citizens from the age of 18 to 40 years
have the compulsory duty of performing Active National Service. Active
National Service consists of six months of training in the National Service
Training Center and 12 months of active military service and development
tasks in military forces for a total of 18 months.” [13] (National Service
Proclamation of 23 October 1995)
9.05 Article 9 states that “any Eritrean citizen from the age of 18 to 40 years called
upon to undertake active national service has the compulsory duty of
undertaking military training for six months in the National Service Military
Training Center”. Article 13 (i) adds that anyone declared unfit for military
training may be obliged to undertake 18 months of active national service in PDF page 31
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“any public and Government organ according to their capacity and profession.”
[13] (National Service Proclamation of 23 October 1995)
9.06 Articles 10 and 11 deal with the registration procedures and issuing of
registration cards associated with national service. Citizens have to register at
a registration centre when called upon to do so by the Ministry of Defence.
Youths who are 17 years old are expected to register for national service at a
registration centre without being formally instructed to by the Ministry of
Defence. [13] (National Service Proclamation of 23 October 1995)
9.07 Article 14 cover exemptions that are only valid for a limited period, and mainly
affects students. These provisions have now been superceded by the
restructuring of the education system. Article 15 deals with medical
exemptions. Article 16 simply notes that the Ministry of Defence decides who
is fit to serve as a trainee; where they go to undergo national service, and
what type of national service they have to complete. Article 18 states that the
Ministry of Defence has the responsibility to resolve problems individuals may
have with the length and nature of national service they have to undergo.
Article 15 deals with exemptions that are made on a more permanent basis.
[13] (National Service Proclamation of 23 October 1995)
See Exemptions
9.08 Article 17 sets out the regulations that relate to exit from the country when
either being eligible for the draft or performing national service. According to
this Article, an Eritrean citizen eligible for national service may travel abroad
“upon giving evidence that he is exempted from National Service or that he
has completed his service by producing a Certificate of Service” or,
alternatively, by “producing a registration card and entering into a bond of
60,000 Birr as security that he will return to resume his duty when called upon
to do so.” [13] (National Service Proclamation of 23 October 1995)
See Demobilisation
9.09 Article 21(1) sets out the special obligation under a State of Emergency,
stating:
“During a mobilization or war period anyone in Active National Service is
under the obligation of remaining even beyond the prescribed period unless
the concerned Authority allows him to leave officially.” [13] (National Service
Proclamation of 23 October 1995)
9.10 Articles 33 to 39 relate to “various provisions”, which include:
• Art. 34(12) “The Ministry of Defence in cooperation with the Ministry of
Foreign Affairs ensures the enforcement of the duty of National Service
relating to citizens in foreign countries.” [13] (National Service Proclamation of
23 October 1995)
• Art. 37(3) sets a mandatory five-year imprisonment (or imprisonment to
the age of 50) on national service evaders who escape abroad and do not
return to Eritrea before the age of 40. Other rights relating to exit visas, land
tenure and employment will also be suspended. [13] (National Service
Proclamation of 23 October 1995) PDF page 32
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See Exemptions; Exit and return
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MILITARY AND NATIONAL SERVICE IN PRACTICE
9.11 The US State Department Human Rights report for 2009 stated:
“The government required all men between the ages of 18 and 54 and women
between the ages of 18 and 47 to participate in the national service program,
which included military training and civilian work programs. However, the
criteria for demobilization were unclear, and many were required to work
indefinitely in any location or capacity chosen by the government. Reports
indicated citizens were enlisted in the national service for many years below
minimum-wage rates with no prospective end date, no promotion or salary
increases, and restricted freedom of movement since those employed under
national service were often denied passports or exit visas. The government
justified its open-ended draft on the basis of the undemarcated border with
Ethiopia. Some national service members were assigned to return to their
civilian jobs while nominally kept in the military because their skills were
deemed critical to the functioning of the government or the economy. These
individuals continued to receive only their national service salary; the
government required them to forfeit to the government any money they earned
above and beyond that salary. Government employees generally were unable
to leave their jobs or take new employment. Draft evaders often were used as
laborers on government development projects.” [4i] (section 7)
9.12 The Human Rights Watch (HRW) 2009 Service for Life - State Repression and
Indefinite Conscription in Eritrea report added:
“Although the war with Ethiopia ended in 2000, in May 2002 the government
introduced the Warsai Yekalo Development Campaign (WYDC), a
proclamation that indefinitely extended national service…the WYDC was a
national effort in which the generation that had fought for independence would
join with new recruits to build the nation. In effect, it meant the forced
conscription of every adult male up to the age of 50, although some refugees
claim 55 is now the upper limit, with other sources claiming up to 57 for men
and 47 for women. [29e] (p43)
“…not all national service is military service, since many conscripts are not
deployed in the army but on civilian projects, or are assigned to commercial
enterprises with their salary paid to the Ministry of Defence. However, the
Ministry of Defence is in control of the national service program and if
someone working on a construction project were to abscond they are still be
[sic] regarded as a deserter under military law. [29e] (p43-44)
“Refugees interviewed by Human Rights Watch emphasized that there was no
difference between military and civilian national service - conscripts are
equally at the mercy of the state…military duties are only one of a number of
different assignments that conscripts can be tasked with, although it is the
most common.” [29e] (p44)
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9.13 According to information obtained from the British Embassy in Asmara in April
2010:
“Officially, the Eritrean Ministry of Defence runs the military/national service
programme. However, in practice other ministries are involved in the
assignment of people to national service positions in ministerial
dependencies…when students finish school in the Sawa miltary/school camp,
they are automatically assigned to either military service, another type of
national service or further education, and are given the relevant documents to
that effect at that time. Other Eritreans are forcefully brought into
military/national service as a result of round-ups or house searches. Military
service or national service call-up documents are not issued to these
individuals and they are not informed in advance that they have to undergo
military/national service…in principle, individuals have no choice about their
military/national service assignment though some may be able to influence
where (e.g Asmara). Individuals are generally arbitrarily transferred by their
commanders or supervising officers. There are no standard rules with regard
to such transfers.” [10e]
9.14 The HRW Service for Life report stated further:
“After six months of compulsory military training, national service conscripts
are deployed indefinitely in one of several possible activities. Many conscripts
are simply drafted into military service and are deployed in regular military
units. One refugee interviewed by Human Rights Watch was sent to work as
clerk in a court in Asmara, another was sent to work as a mechanic in a
civilian garage repairing trucks in Asmara. Others described working on farms
or mines owned by the state or the PFDJ ruling party, or building roads and
bridges. Regular military units, conscripted military personnel, and prisoners
are all also engaged in similar activities - building, mining, and farming.”
[29e] (p51-2)
“…the projects on which conscripts are deployed are not just public works for
the national good. They are often sent to work on private construction projects,
building houses for military leaders, and working on private farms. Human
Rights Watch and Amnesty International have both previously documented the
use of conscript labor for the benefit of ranking members of the military and
the government.” [29e] (p54)
“…it is not just conscripts who are providing cheap labor for the benefit of
military leaders. Prisoners are regularly employed and school children are
made to work during their school holidays. The national program for school
children is called Mahtot.” [29e] (p56)
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PAYMENT FOR NATIONAL SERVICE
9.15 The Human Rights Watch (HRW) 2009 Service for Life - State Repression and
Indefinite Conscription in Eritrea report stated:
“According to escaped conscripts, the normal ‘allowance’ during training is 50
Eritrean Nakfa per month (about US$3). After 18 months training while on
national service, this is increased to 150 Nakfa a month ($9). This is the same
amount paid to former soldiers recalled for service during the 1998-2000 war
and still mobilized as well as for the over-50s who have been mobilized to
serve in a reserve militia. Some of those conscripted prior to 1998 appear to
have been incorporated into the regular army and receive salaries accordingly.
Regular soldiers are paid a salary of 330 to 3,000 Nakfa ($20 to $183)
depending on rank.” [29e] (p52)
“…for regular recruits on national service, 150 Nakfa does not constitute a
living wage, nor is their labor given freely. Refugees interviewed by Human
Rights Watch refused to refer to the money they were paid as a salary,
preferring instead to call it ‘pocket money’. All complained that it was
insufficient to live on and completely inadequate to feed a family. Western
diplomats and UN officials confirmed that making ends meet on such amounts
was impossible in Eritrea.” [29e] (p52-53)
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PENALTIES FOR EVADING NATIONAL SERVICE
9.16 Article 37 (Penalties) of the National Service Proclamation lists a range of
sanctions which exist for avoiding national service:
“Any violation of this Proclamation may be punished under more severe
penalties contained in Eritrea’s criminal law. Violations of the Proclamation
can be punished by imprisonment of up to two years or up to 3,000 Nakfa
pecuniary penalty or both. To avoid national service by deceit or self-inflicted
injury the same penalties apply, followed by national service. If the self-
inflicted injury precludes national service, the prison term is extended to three
years. Those who travel abroad to avoid national service who return before
they are 40 years of age must then undertake national service; those who
return after that age, are punished by imprisonment of five years and lose
rights to own a business license or apply for an exit visa, land ownership or a
job. Those who assist others in avoiding national service can receive two
years’ imprisonment and/or a fine.” [13] (National Service Proclamation of 23
October 1995)
9.17 The Oslo Centre for Peace and Human Rights 2009 report, The Lasting
Struggle for Freedom in Eritrea - Human Rights and Political Development,
1991-2009, stated:
“The legal penalty for evading conscription or assisting in it is two years’
imprisonment (as per the National Service Regulations of 1995). Amnesty
International reports, however, that in practice offenders are being punished
by their local commanding officers without any form of trial, legal recourse or PDF page 35
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opportunity to appeal or redress. The forms of punishment may vary, but
usually consist of torture and arbitrary detention for an indefinite period.”
[92] (p94)
9.18 According to a letter from the British Embassy in Asmara, dated 13 June 2008:
“Eritreans will flee the country to avoid military and national service, with [a]
mandatory prison [sentence] awaiting those who try and dodge it. Journalists
and political opponents are especially harshly repressed and sometimes die in
detention camps.
“…people caught fleeing will get at least two years in prison if they have
completed military service. Those who have not done military service will be
imprisoned for up to a month and then sent to military training camps.
“People with no papers for national service can be taken from [the] streets
anytime to military camps with strong punishments. It is not uncommon for
women to be taken from the streets – far more likely if you are male.” [10b]
9.19 Credible reports indicate that draft evaders have been ill-treated in detention
centres, as noted in the US State Department Human Rights report for 2009:
“There were reports that detention center conditions for persons temporarily
held for evading military service were also harsh and life threatening.
Allegations from various sources suggested there may be hundreds of such
detainees. Draft evaders were reportedly sent to the W’ia military camp, where
typically they were beaten. Some were held for as long as two years before
being reassigned to their units. At one detention facility outside Asmara,
authorities continued to hold detainees in an underground hall with no access
to light or ventilation and sometimes in very crowded conditions.”
[4i] (section 1c)
9.20 An Eritrea Daily report, dated 18 December 2008, stated that mutinying
Eritrean army units had freed 618 people from a prison located in the South
administrative zone. The people released were the parents of children subject
to military service. The report explained that:
“The parents were jailed for failing and in many cases even for simply refusing
to pay an arbitrary punitive fine of 50,000 Nafka imposed on them for not
disclosing the whereabouts of their children who were being sought out for
conscription in the military.
“…according to local reports, the mutinying units used military force to free the
jailed parents only after prison guards declined calls to let the prisoners go
free voluntarily.” [38c]
9.21 The HRW 2009 Service for Life - State Repression and Indefinite Conscription
in Eritrea report added:
“There are strict penalties for those who try and escape national service as
well as for any Eritreans who leave the country without government
authorization. Families are collectively punished if their relatives flee national
service, usually by being jailed or forced to pay fines. [29e] (p45)
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“…all of the deserters interviewed by Human Rights Watch were fearful for the
safety of their families and anxious that they would face the crippling 50,000
Nakfa fines, detention, or some other retribution such as the denial of
business permits or the forfeiting of land in lieu of a cash fine. Three former
conscripts said their mothers had been imprisoned for four months, two
months, and two weeks respectively because they could not afford to pay the
50,000 Nakfa fine.” [29e] (p46)
9.22 The Oslo Centre for Peace and Human Rights 2009 report The Lasting
Struggle for Freedom in Eritrea - Human Rights and Political Development,
1991-2009, further stated:
“Since 2005, thousands of mothers and fathers, sisters and brothers, of draft
evaders and escapees have been arrested throughout Eritrea. For instance,
reportedly around 179 women and 26 men were detained on 24 October 2005
in the highland town of Dekemhare. The targets were parents whose children
had fled the country over the last several years. If a parent was not found, the
eldest available brother or the closest adult relative was detained. This wave
of arrests followed earlier clamp-downs in the region. Furthermore, over 500
relatives, mostly parents, of young men and women who have avoided
conscription or deserted the army, were reportedly arrested and held under
harsh conditions in Asmara in late 2006. As the flight of Eritrea’s young men
and women today has reached about 2000 per month, the regime has
reportedly ceased the practice of arresting parents or relatives of the
escapees, as this would have implicated an unmanageably large share of the
population of the country.” [92] (p93)
9.23 The US State Department Human Rights report for 2009 further stated:
“The government deployed military and police throughout the country [in
2009], using roadblocks, street sweeps, and house-to-house searches to find
deserters and draft evaders. Security forces [in 2009] continued to detain and
arrest parents of individuals who evaded national service duties or fled the
country, along with their family members; there were reports that such
parents were fined 50,000 nakfa ($3,333) or forced to turn their children in to
the government.” [4i] (section 1f)
See Human rights violations by the security forces
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ROUND-UPS (GIFFA)
9.24 The enlistment of persons eligible for national service is carried out through
the means of round-ups, which are known in Eritrea as “Giffa”. Round-ups
involve house and workplace searches as well as road blocks, and are
reportedly carried out by the police and the military. [68f] (Canadian IRB,
Response to Information Request, 28 February 2007)
9.25 The HRW 2009 Service for Life - State Repression and Indefinite Conscription
in Eritrea report noted:
“Conscription is generally managed by local councils, the smallest units of
local administration, sometimes referred to as kebelle, sometimes as
memehidar, a general word meaning ‘administration’. These council officials
maintain detailed records on the individual families in their area and ensure
that those of age are conscripted. But in larger towns, the police or military
also try to capture evaders or deserters through ad hoc round-ups. Round-ups
of the population in towns and villages - known as giffa in Tigrinya - are
common and constitute a kind of modern press-ganging. Anyone of age found
without the relevant documents exempting them from national service is taken
to the military camps of Sawa and Wi’a for training. [29e] (p48)
“Even aside from evaders and deserters, any civilian who forgets their
identification or travel documents is at particular risk of being rounded up in a
giffa and arbitrarily detained.” [29e] (p49)
9.26 According to information obtained from the British Embassy in Asmara in April
2010:
“It is important to note that there are no set government policies or standard
procedures regarding how round-ups are organised. Military service
round-ups take place usually around 4 to 5 times a year but can occur more
frequently or less frequently, and usually coincide with public holidays when
large numbers of people are out and about. They can occur in various parts of
Eritrea and are not confined to one particular part of it. Once rounded up,
people are sent from Asmara to the Adi Abeto camp for processing and
onward assignment.” [10e]
9.27 On 22 May 2008, Awate reported that eight military brigades were brought into
Asmara to conduct round-ups. The article states that two types of young
people were being targeted: “the koblelti - those who are registered for
national service but take a leave of absence without permission from their
supervisors - and the lieli Edme - those who are over the age of conscription
but have not voluntarily signed up.” The article also states: “In addition to the
youth, the government of Eritrea is rounding up all Ethiopians, regardless of
their age. Some of the Ethiopian women who were rounded up had to leave
their dependent children unattended at their homes. Women and underage
children are being held at the Enda Seal (TB Center) detention center at
Maytemenay.” [50j]
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9.28 A military round-up took place in May 2009, according to an Awate report,
which stated that:
“In what has become an annual ritual since 2001, Eritrean government has
rounded up thousands of Eritreans, mostly the youth, from the environs of
Asmara. Eyewitnesses report that many youngsters who were fleeing from the
military police (MPs) were beaten cruelly to the extent of being
hospitalised…the odd thing about the annual roundups is that they occur
during the Eritrean tourism season (May-August) and many devoted
government supporters in the Disapora, having witnessed the cruelty of the
roundups and the dire condition of their families, come back disillusioned with
the government they support.” [50d]
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AUTHORISED LEAVE
9.29 According to information obtained from the British Embassy in Asmara in April
2010 regarding the granting of leave from military service:
“There are no standard rules with regard to leave. Individuals have no
entitlement to leave, and cannot request it, but can be given it arbitrarily by
local commanding officers. If a military commander authorises leave for an
individual, documents are issued specifying where that person may travel to
and for how long (usually one month maximum). We do not know whether
leave papers are issued in a printed standard format or are handwritten.”
[10e]
CONSCIENTIOUS OBJECTION
9.30 An Amnesty International press release, dated 13 June 2008, stated that there
is “no limit on [the] length of [national] service. There is no exemption for
conscientious objectors, and no alternative non-military service.” [5f]. The
HRW 2009 Service for Life - State Repression and Indefinite Conscription in
Eritrea report affirms the above by stating that the “National Service
Proclamation of 1995 makes no provision for conscientious objection to
military service.” [29e] (p47)
9.31 Groups such as the Jehovah’s Witnesses and other individuals who refuse to
perform national service, have suffered human rights abuses, as reported in
the US State Department Human Rights report for 2009:
“The government also continued to harass, detain, and discriminate against
Jehovah’s Witnesses because of their refusal, on religious grounds, to vote in
the independence referendum and the refusal of some to perform military
duty. This discrimination persisted even though Jehovah’s Witnesses stated a
willingness to perform non-military national service, such as working in
hospitals.
“Although members of several religious groups, including Muslims, reportedly
were imprisoned in past years for failure to participate in national military
service, the government singled out Jehovah’s Witnesses for harsher
treatment than that received by followers of other faiths for similar actions.”
[4i] (section 2c) PDF page 39
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See also Jehovah’s Witnesses
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SCHOOL LEAVERS AND CONSCRIPTION
9.32 The HRW 2009 Service for Life - State Repression and Indefinite Conscription
in Eritrea report stated:
“The preferred method of the Eritrean government is to conscript students into
national service straight from school, unless they are continuing higher
education. To this end, the final year of secondary school was moved to Sawa
military camp in 2003. This 12th grade takes place only in Sawa, under military
authority, and incorporating military training. Although many 12th grade
students are 18 years old, or less, some are older because they take longer to
finish high school. Each round or intake of students incorporates 8,000 to
9,000 students. [29e] (p50)
“Once they are in the camp, however, military service effectively starts then
and there. A teacher whose national service involved teaching in Sawa told
Human Rights Watch, ‘The students could not study. They were always being
forced to leave the class for some kind of military service.’ A former student
said he did not even enter 12th grade but was ordered straight into national
service in July 2007 even though he was less than 18 years old. [29e] (p50)
“National service is deeply unpopular, especially because new recruits know
that there is no prospect of it ending. Students have started escaping from
Sawa camp during their 12th grade year without completing school. Escape is
no mean feat, because, as described above, Sawa is in effect a huge prison.
Those who made it described braving machine gun fire, barbed wire fences,
and several days of walking through the desert without food and water.
[29e] (p50)
“Some students, aware of their fate once they reach 12th grade have begun to
deliberately fail classes so that they can remain in the lower grades.
Government awareness of this practice has been to simply pull anyone of
military age - 18 and above - out of school altogether, even though it is normal
for some students to take extra years to finish school because they are poor or
work on family farms.” [29e] (p50-51)
9.33 The US State Department Human Rights report for 2009 stated that:
“The government required all students who reached the final year of
secondary school to attend school at a location adjacent to the Sawa military
training facility in the western section of the country. Students who did not
attend this final year did not graduate and could not take examinations that
determined eligibility for advanced education. The remote location of this
boarding school, security concerns, and societal attitudes reportedly resulted
in many female students not enrolling for their final year; however, women
could earn an alternative secondary school certificate by attending night
school after completing national service. Many students elected to repeat
grades or dropped out of high school after the 11th grade to avoid forced
conscription into the Sawa military education. PDF page 40
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“…all students spend their final year of high school at the military training
camp at Sawa. Attendance at Sawa was compulsory and those who do not
attend remain at risk of arrest. Students at Sawa are typically 18 or older,
although a fair percentage are as young as 16. The initial three months of
school were spent undergoing military training. Students who received poor
grades in high school had in the past been sent to the Wi’a Military Training
Camp in lieu of being allowed to complete the academic year.” [4i] (section 6)
See Children
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EXEMPTIONS
OVERVIEW
9.34 An Awate article of 23 October 2007 about national service stated that,
according to the national service proclamation, there are only four classes of
people exempted from national service:
“Only four classes of Eritreans are exempted from National Service: (1) Those
who already gave national service prior to the promulgation of the law and (2)
‘fighters and armed peasants who have proved to have spent all their time in
the liberation struggle’; (3) those who, for health reasons, are unable to
participate in the national service (but are still required to participate in 18
months of public service.) and (4) those participating in an approved
educational programme.” [50v] (Awate, 23 October 2007)
9.35 The Awate article of 23 October 2007 further stated that:
“National Service was presented as a noble duty on all citizens and only
requiring 18 months of sacrifice. But the proclamation has an escape clause:
18 months of service unless [word underlined in text of source] Eritrea is
facing mobilization or a state of emergency. And the nation, mostly due to the
rash decision of its self-declared leaders, has been in an undeclared state of
emergency for more than half of its existence now. Consequently, most of the
National Service members have been pressed into service now for 5, 8 and 10
years.
“…the Proclamation speaks of non-existing institutions like the ‘ministry of
local government’ and ‘board’ that is supposed to have oversight over the
proclamation. But ever since the arrest of Mahmoud Sheriffo, the ministry of
local government has been dissolved and its functions divided up among the
military command zones and their ‘desks.’ The board was supposed to review
applications for exemptions from applicants claiming exemption from the
service. This is now done by the generals who require huge fees and bribes to
bestow the ‘unfit’ certificate on the children of parents with means.” [50v]
(Awate, 23 October 2007)
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EXEMPTION OF WOMEN
9.36 Within the text of the National Service Proclamation, there is no reference to
any gender differences in any of the provisions. [13] (National Service
Proclamation of 23 October 1995).
9.37 The Amnesty International report, You have no right to ask - Government
resists scrutiny on human rights report, published in May 2004, explains
further:
“This [gender equality in recruitment and military obligations] was reflected in
the terms of national service after independence, which was established for
men and women equally, although there is considerable resistance to female
recruitment from Muslim communities, especially among the Afar of Dankalia
region on the Red Sea coast. Resistance on the grounds of religious belief,
cultural traditions of family honour, or protecting women from sexual
harassment and violence in the army, sometimes led to violent confrontations
during conscription round-ups. The government appears to have subsequently
stopped forcible recruitment of young Muslim women in these areas.” [5c] (p21)
9.38 Amnesty International’s Internati onal Annual Report 2008, covering events in
2007, mentioned an age differential between male and female conscripts:
“National military service, in the army or in civilian occupations under military
conditions, was indefinite, and was justified by the government because of the
military threat from Ethiopia. Military service was compulsory for all citizens
aged 18 to 40, with few exemptions allowed. People aged 40 to 50 or who had
been demobilized had reserve duties. Women over the age of 27 were
informally exempted.” [5a]
9.39 More information on this issue comes from an AI report of December 2005:
“Exemptions from national service include provisions for the disabled, for
mothers while they are breast-feeding, on medical grounds, and for a family to
retain a young person to remain to help at home when all other siblings have
been conscripted. In Muslim areas in the east, female recruitment is said to
have ceased on account of substantial opposition on grounds of customary
and religious beliefs.” [5l] (p15)
9.40 The UK Foreign and Commonwealth Office, in a letter dated 13 June 2008,
answered the question of female conscription directly, stating that “the age for
military then national service is from 18 to 57 for men and 18 to 47 for women.
…women do routinely perform active national service over the age of 27.”
Women over the age of 27 are unlikely to have to undergo military training if
they had not done so already. The letter added “married women and mothers
should be exempt from military service and able to leave Eritrea before the
age of 47, although [this] is sometimes not the case.” [10b]
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9.41 According to information obtained from the British Embassy in Asmara in April
2010:
“Generally speaking, single women are not treated very differently to men
(though we have heard that their rations, for example, may be less meagre).
Married women and women with children are exempt from military/national
service. Single women who become formally engaged are also exempt.
Muslims and Christians are treated the same (they are given no special
allowances for prayers, etc) although it is believed that Muslim women in rural
areas are rarely called up. This may be due to early marriages and the fact
that those communities are made up of mostly poor, subsistence-farming
families.” [10e]
9.42 A Meftih newspaper article that was published in the assenna.com website in
March 2010 suggests that Eritreans, in general, do not approve of women
being in the armed services, and also indicates that marriage and becoming a
mother exempts women from national service obligations:
“In most Eritrean ethnic groups recruitment of women into the military is
traditionally not accepted. Women thus recruited are therefore shunned as
suitable wives and mothers. They are maltreated by the army and ostracised
by the rest of Eritrean society. Paradoxically, childbirth provides the only
release from national service into a socially and economically rejecting
society. Some Eritrean women marry early simply to avoid the national
service.” [16d]
9.43 The Canadian Immigration and Refugee Board provided further information
about married women and national service, published in a Response to
Information Request, dated 28 January 2008:
“During a meeting with the Research Directorate at the Eritrean embassy in
Ottawa, a consular officer indicated that women in the military who marry are
discharged (15 Jan. 2008). In such cases, women must provide their marriage
certificate in order to obtain their discharge documents (Eritrea 15 Jan. 2008).”
[68h]
EXEMPTIONS ON MEDICAL GROUNDS
9.44 According to information obtained from the British Embassy in Asmara in April
2010:
“People who are disabled or medically unfit for miltary/national service, and
pregnant women can and have been exempted from military/national service.
To be exempted, these individuals have to be medically certified by a doctor at
a military base as disabled/medically unfit.
“…doctors produce the medical reports needed and then make a
recommendation as to whether a particular individual should be exempted
from military/national service. The military authorities make the decision
regarding exemption and issue the relevant exemption documents.” [10e]
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9.45 The HRW 2009 Service for Life - State Repression and Indefinite Conscription
in Eritrea report added:
“ ‘Psychological derangement’ (article 14, 5.1[National Service Proclamation])
is also a ground for exemption from military service, and this appears to be a
popular way to try and evade service. Recruits who have recently been in
Sawa describe a dramatic increase in the number of people in the camp
showing signs of severe mental illness. Recruits describe a new disease that
has sprung up among young women drafted into Sawa and Wi’a training
camps, called ‘lewt’ and only known in the camps.” [29e] (p48)
EXEMPTION OF RELIGIOUS CLERICS
9.46 Full-time religious clerics are not autom atically exempt from national service,
as noted in a report published by International Christian Concern in April 2008:
“The Eritrean officials are forcefully sending ministers of the Eritrean Orthodox
Church to military training camps. As a consequence, Eritrean Orthodox
churches throughout the country are losing their leaders.
“At the end of 2006, the Eritrean government informed churches of its decision
to rescind a long-standing exemption of clerics from compulsory military
service. The Roman Catholic Church in Eritrea was the only church to express
vehement and public opposition to this unprecedented action. In contrast, the
top leaders of the Eritrean Orthodox Church, who have been hand-picked by
the government, embraced the new policy with open arms.
“Eritrean officials are now forcibly recruiting church ministers into military
service on a wide scale. On March 24, 2008, Eritrean officials issued
replacement identity cards to a limited number of the church’s priests and
deacons, exempting them from military training. The vast majority of the
church’s leaders, however, who did not receive updated identity cards, are
now required to go to military training camps.
“The largest Eritrean Orthodox Church in the country, St. Mary, in the capital
city, Asmara, had 96 ministers, but only 10 of them were issued IDs that
exempted them from military training. Similarly, in rural areas, where most
Orthodox churches are located, the maximum number of priests and deacons
allowed to serve in any church is 10. The rest are expected to report for
military service if they are under the age of 50.
“…the Eritrean government has usually directed its animosity for Christians
against the ‘unregistered churches’, which are mainly evangelical. Over half a
dozen denominations have been closed since May 2002.
“…however, in the last two years [2006-2008], the government has also
turned its attention on the Eritrean Orthodox Church, the oldest and most
established religious institution in Eritrea. Almost 45% of the Eritrean
population belongs to the Eritrean Orthodox Church. Nearly four years ago,
the government began a campaign against the leaders of the Orthodox
Church, especially those who were attracting increasingly larger followings of
young people.” [37]
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9.47 According to information obtained from the British Embassy in Asmara in April
2010:
“Full-time religious clerics/nuns can be required to do military/national service
although in previous years they have been exempt. It is believed that some
churches or mosques are limited to having a minimum of serving religious
members who are exempt from military/national service.” [10e]
9.48 The US State Department 2006 Human Rights report stated:
“The government does not excuse individuals who object to national service
for religious reasons or reasons of conscience, nor does the government allow
for alternative service. In November [2006] the government decreed that
church leaders from the four state-sanctioned religions were required to
perform military and national service; previously, religious leaders such as
priests and clerics were exempt from military and national service.” [4j] (2c)
9.49 The US State Department 2009 Human Rights report stated:
“In May 2008 the government issued religious officials from the four
recognized religious groups a set number of identity cards and exempted them
from military service requirements. Officials who were not awarded a card
were told to report immediately for military training. No such exemptions were
provided during the year [2009].” [4i] (2c)
DETENTION OF NATIONAL SERVICE AND MILITARY SERVICE CONSCRIPTS
9.50 The HRW 2009 Service for Life - State Repression and Indefinite Conscription
in Eritrea report stated:
“Deserting from the army or even expressing dissent over the indefinite
military service is viewed as a political issue by the government. Therefore,
most prisoners held for political reasons are detained without charge or trial for
refusing or questioning national service or for offences punishable under
military law. Even where detainees may have committed a potential crime
under military law, numerous former detainees told Human Rights Watch that
there was no system of military justice, that they were simply imprisoned on
the orders of their commanders without any courts-martial or other procedure.
[29e] (p27)
“Human Rights Watch spoke to over 40 deserters from the national service
and the military who had fled the country, all of whom had been thrown in jail
multiple times without due process. Their alleged offences ranged from
questioning the educational curriculum to being caught in prayer meetings to
being suspected of trying to leave national service. [29e] (p27)
”An officer in charge of a military prison who subsequently fled to Djibouti
explained that sentencing was completely arbitrary and commanders decide
how long people remain in jail. [29e] (p27-28)
“…detention of conscripts who try to practice unregistered religions is
common. Several people who escaped from their military service told Human
Rights Watch that they were arbitrarily thrown in jail for secretly reading the
Bible in Sawa camp or being caught in prayer meetings.” [29e] (p28-29) PDF page 45
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DEMOBILISATION
9.51 The Proclamation on National Service allows for demobilisation. Article 20 of
the Proclamation, which covers discharge from national service stated that:
“Except for cases provided for in ART 21 (1) of this Proclamation citizens who
conclude the Active National Service period are discharged from duty. On the
basis of directives issued by the Ministry of Defence citizens on Active
National Service may be discharged before their term is due. In accordance
with this article the Ministry of Defence provides citizens who are discharged
from Active National Service with discharge certification and their level of
preparation.” [13]
9.52 The Oslo Centre for Peace and Human Rights 2009 report The Lasting
Struggle for Freedom in Eritrea - Human Rights and Political Development,
1991-2009, stated that “since the start of the Eritrea-Ethiopian war in 1998,
national service recruits have been kept in the army for an indefinite period, as
no demobilisation has taken place.” [92] (p94)
9.53 The US State Department Background Note on Eritrea, published in February
2010, stated:
“The government has been slow to demobilize its military after the end of the
conflict [1998-2000 war with Ethiopia], although it formulated an ambitious
demobilization plan with the participation of the World Bank. A pilot
demobilization program involving 5,000 soldiers began in November 2001 and
was to be followed immediately thereafter by a first phase in which some
65,000 soldiers would be demobilized. This was delayed repeatedly. In 2003,
the government began to demobilize some of those slated for the first phase;
however, the government maintains a ‘national service’ program, which
includes most of the male population between 18-40 and the female
population between 18-27.” [4a]
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10. JUDICIARY
ORGANISATION
10.01 The Lasting Struggle for Freedom in Eritrea report, published by the Oslo
Centre for Peace and Human Rights in October 2009, contains information
about the organisation of the judiciary in Eritea:
”In principle, Eritrea has three types of courts, although their separate
jurisdictions may at times be blurred: civil (three levels, including community
and shari’a courts), military (two levels), and the special court. Futhermore,
there are indications that there exists a parallel secret system of extra-judicial
sentencing of political prisoners that is not anchored in any laws or
presidential decrees. [92] (p40)
“The civil court structure in Eritrea has three levels of authority. The
Community Court system was formally established in 2001 to ease the
pressure on the higher courts. It has a single-judge bench system filled by
elected judges who hold jurisdiction over cases relating to minor infractions of
the law, involving sums of less than approximately US$7300 (110,000 nakfa).
The elected judges do not have any formal legal training, but base their
decisions on traditions of customary law in the area in which they serve. It is
reported, however, that magistrates versed in criminal law also hear criminal
cases at the level of the community courts. All decisions made by the
community courts may be appealed to provincial (zoba) courts. Most people’s
only contact with the legal system is with the traditional community courts. As
the higher levels of the Eritrean judiciary are wholly inept and politically
corrupted, the importance of the customary law-based village courts as
providers of justice is increasing. [92] (p41)
“The Zoba court is generally the court of first instance. It has civil, criminal, and
shari’a benches. All first instance cases are heard by a single-judge bench
system, but the Zoba Court has a three-judge appellate bench that hears
cases appealed from determinations made by the Labour Office on employer-
employee relations. The shari’a bench adjudicates matters of personal status
of followers of Islam only. Decisions rendered by any of the benches at the
zoba court can be appealed to the appropriate benches at the High Court.
[92] (p41)
“The High Court, although primarily an appellate court, is the court of first
instance for a significant proportion of cases involving murder, rape, and other
serious felonies. It has a three-judge bench system with jurisdiction in civil,
criminal and commercial cases, and shari’a benches. Eritrea also has a five-
judge bench that hears final appeals in lieu of a Supreme Court. Although at
the same level of all other benches in the High Court, the final appeals panel
functions much as a Supreme Court does and it is the bench of last resort.
The president of this bench is the President of the High Court and four other
judges from the other benches at the High Court. The President of the High
Court functions as Chief Justice. [92] (p41)
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“Although serving the civilian community, civil courts judges include former
senior military officers with no formal legal training. Judges are routinely
appointed and dismissed at the will of the government; despite the
constitutional requirement that such actions are supposed to be based on the
recommendations of an independent Judicial Service Commission (Articles 52
and 53 of the Constitution). Such a commission has yet to be established in
the country. [92] (p41)
“The Military Court has jurisdiction over penal cases brought against members
of the armed forces in addition to crimes committed by and against the
members of the armed forces. The presiding judges in the Military Court are
all senior military officers. The Court is structured in two levels (higher and
lower); the jurisdiction of these two levels depends on the seriousness of the
offences in question. Neither level, however, affords the right of appeal to the
accused. The higher level of the Military Court is part of the Eritrean High
Court. [92] (p41)
“…the Special Court was established in 1996 by President Isaias Afwerki, in
the aftermath of Eritrea’s first publicly known corruption scandal in the mid
1990s, involving officials in the EPLF-owned Red Sea Trading Corporation.
The statute or law for the establishment of the Special Court is not available,
and no published records of its procedures or cases are available, as the court
generally operates in secrecy. [92] (p42)
“…the judges of the Special Court are predominantly senior military officers
and EPLF commanders hand-picked by the President and accountable to his
office only. Their recruitment to the Court is likely to be based on personal
affiliations and loyalty to the President, and their proven ‘toughness’ in
disciplining their troops. There are no formal requirements of judicial training
or competence, and many of the judges have little or no legal training
whatsoever. It is not known how many ‘benches’ operate under the Special
Court. [92] (p42)
“The Special Court is an executive-controlled separate jurisdiction, not under
the authority of the President of the High Court. The Office of the Attorney-
General decides which cases are to be tried by a Special Court. The Court
primarily has jurisdiction over criminal cases involving capital offences, theft,
embezzlement, and corruption, and other unspecified abuses by government,
and party officials. The Special Courts also issues directives to other courts
regarding administrative matters. [92] (p42)
“…individuals arrested under the Special Court are kept in detention
incommunicado, usually in a secret location, and there is no time limit on pre-
trial detention. After the Court has decided upon a case, the detainee is
transferred to an official prison or one of the many detention camps scattered
throughout Eritrea. All decisions passed by the court are final and binding, as
there is no appellate court. However, reportedly, in rare instances, appeals
made to the Office of the President have resulted in Special Courts rehearing
certain cases.” [92] (p43)
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INDEPENDENCE
10.02 The US State Department Human Rights report for 2009 stated that:
“The law and unimplemented constitution provide for an independent judiciary;
however, the judiciary was weak and subject to executive control [during
2009]. Judicial corruption remained a problem. The judicial process was
influenced by patronage of former fighters who in many cases were judges
themselves. Executive control of the judiciary continued; the Office of the
President served as a clearinghouse for citizens' petitions to the courts or
acted for the courts as arbitrators or facilitators in civil matters.” [4i] (section 1e)
FAIR TRIAL
10.03 The US State Department Human Rights report for 2009 stated that:
“The judiciary suffered from a lack of trained personnel, inadequate funding,
and poor infrastructure that limited the government's ability to grant accused
persons a speedy and fair trial. Public trials were held, but no cases involving
individuals detained for national security or political reasons were brought to
trial. The drafting into national service of many civilian court administrators,
defendants, judges, lawyers, and others involved in the legal system continued
to have a significant negative impact on the judiciary. The government has not
issued licenses to lawyers wishing to enter private practice for ten years.”
[4i] (section 1e)
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11. ARREST AND DETENTION – LEGAL RIGHTS
11.01 The US State Department Human Rights report for 2009 stated that:
“The law stipulates that detainees must be brought before a judge within 48
hours of their arrest and may not be held more than 28 days without being
charged with a crime. In practice [the] authorities often detained suspects for
much longer periods. The law stipulates that unless there is a ‘crime in
progress,’ police must conduct an investigation and obtain a warrant prior to
making an arrest. In cases involving national security, this process may be
waived. In practice very few individuals were arrested with a warrant.
Authorities did not promptly inform detainees of charges against them and
often changed the charges during detention. Detainees in prisons often did not
have access to counsel or appear before a judge. Incommunicado detention
was widespread, although detainees in police stations generally had access to
legal representation and family members. Authorities provided indigent
detainees with counsel on an irregular basis. There was a functioning bail
system, except for persons charged with national security crimes or crimes
that could carry the death penalty.” [4i] (section 1d)
See also Arbitrary Arrest and Detention
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12. PRISON CONDITIONS
12.01 The Human Rights Watch 2010 World Report stated that:
“Torture and ill-treatment in detention are routine in Eritrea. Former detainees
told Human Rights Watch that detention almost always included severe
beatings, often leading to permanent physical damage. In addition to beatings,
punishment entailed being hung up by the arms from trees, tied up in the sun
in contorted positions for hours or days, and subjected to mock drowning. [29d]
(p2)
“Poor detention conditions often amount to cruel, inhuman, and degrading
treatment. Prisoners were held in a variety of known and secret detention
facilities. Medical care is minimum at best. In December 2008, 27 political
prisoners, including three journalists arrested in 2001, were moved to the
Dahlak archipelago in the Red Sea where prisoners were held in searing heat
in subterranean isolation cells. In 2009 four prisoners held in underground
cells for five years without access to daylight because they were ‘unrepentant’
for their religious beliefs were reportedly blinded by sudden glare when they
were brought to the surface; over the years there have been similar reports
about other prisoners released from underground cells.” [29d] (p2)
12.02 The Amnesty International report 2008, covering events in 2007, released May
2008, stated that:
“Torture by means of painful tying, known as ‘helicopter’ continued to be a
routine punishment and means of interrogation for religious and political
prisoners. Members of evangelical churches were tortured to try to make them
abandon their faith. Military offenders were tortured. Many were young people
who had tried to flee conscription or who had complained of harsh conditions
and the indefinite extension of their national service. Prison conditions were
extremely harsh and constituted cruel, inhuman and degrading treatment.
Many prisoners were held in shipping containers, which were overcrowded
and unhygienic with no toilet or washing facilities, and varied between
extremes of heat and cold. Medical treatment was rarely provided.” [5a]
12.03 The US State Department Human Rights report for 2009 stated that:
“Prison conditions remained harsh and in some cases life threatening [in
2009]. Severe overcrowding was common. There were reports that prisoners
were held in underground cells or in shipping containers with little or no
ventilation in extreme temperatures. The shipping containers were reportedly
not large enough to allow all of those incarcerated together to lie down at the
same time. Other prisoners were held in cement-lined underground bunkers
with no ventilation. Up to 200 prisoners were held in each bunker, and some
prisoners passed out from the extreme heat.
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“…there were several unofficial detention centers, most located in military
camps and used as overflow detention centers following mass arrests and
roundups. There were reports that detention center conditions for persons
temporarily held for evading military service were also harsh and life
threatening. Allegations from various sources suggested there may be
hundreds of such detainees. Draft evaders were reportedly sent to the Wi'a
military camp, where typically they were beaten. Some were held as long as
two years before being reassigned to their units. At one detention facility
outside Asmara, authorities continued to hold detainees in an underground
hall with no access to light or ventilation and sometimes in very crowded
conditions.” [4i] (section 1c)
12.04 The HRW 2009 Service for Life - State Repression and Indefinite Conscription
in Eritrea, report added:
“The total number of prisons in Eritrea is a mystery. Eritrea has a formidable
network of detention facilities, some of which are well known, and others
secret, some authorized, and others not. Many, if not most political prisoners
and those detained for trying to flee the country or for practising ‘illegal’
religions are held incommunicado in appalling conditions, often underground
or in metal shipping containers. [29e] (p34)
“Keeping track of all the detention facilities is extremely difficult because each
town and administrative district in Eritrea has a jail; wherever there is a police
post [there] is a cell; and each military division has its own prison. In addition,
there are secret facilities about which many rumors exist, such as Eiraeiro,
where members of the G15 are thought to be held. [29e] (p34)
“…apart from torture and routine punishment, detainees in Eritrea’s huge
network of prisons endure terrible conditions, forced labor, and lethal
starvation…the government appears completely unconcerned about detention
facilities and the fate of the people in custody. Deaths in custody are common.
Prison guards are often demoralized and appalled by what they are asked to
do - some of them reportedly escape along with the inmates. [29e] (p35)
“…detainees described poor nutrition and starvation rations in most facilities.
A man detained in Asmara’s Track B prison for a day before he was
transferred said he received a single biscuit. Other told Human Rights Watch
they received one cup of water a day despite hot and overcrowded conditions.
[29e] (p37)
“…detaining people underground appears to be a typical practice of the
Eritrean government - much of the liberation struggle was fought from
underground bunkers, some of which, it appears, have now become jails for
the some of the very people who fought for freedom. Underground facilities
were reported at Sawa, Track B, Mai Serwa, Haddis Ma’asker, Aderser, Alla,
and Dahlak, among others. There are multiple prisons in Camp Sawa,
including several underground cells.” [29e] (p37)
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12.05 The Suwera Centre for Human Rights report, The State of Human Rights in
Eritrea 2008, published in August 2009, added:
“There are no health facilities in Eritrean prisons especially at the secret
locations. Prisoners do not get any medical attention even if they suffered from
serious diseases which caused many deaths which remained secret. The
prisoners are made to sleep on the ground or on small thin mats of woven
palm leaves. Many are not allowed to use a pillow or any cover and this
causes back and muscular ailments and pain for a long time. [22] (p24)
“Provision of food to prisoners consists of two little meals served daily without
meat or vegetables. This makes the prisoners prone to many diseases due to
malnutrition in addition to the physical and mental torture they were
systematically subjected to and the denial to see their families. Some of the
prisoners are detained in solitary confinement which makes it worse, besides
they do not know for how long they will be detained.” [22] (p25)
12.06 The US State Department Human Rights report for 2009 noted:
“During the year [2009] the government did not permit the ICRC [International
Committee of the Red Cross] or any local human rights organizations to
monitor prison conditions. Since the shutdown of the repatriation program
during the year [2009], the government also denied the ICRC access to
Ethiopian prisoners of war detained in the country.
“…authorities generally permitted convicted criminals in prisons three visits
per week by family members; however, persons detained, arrested, or
convicted for reasons of national security or for evading national service were
denied family visits.” [4i] (section 1c)
See Arbitrary arrest and detention; Children in judicial and penal systems
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PLACES OF DETENTION
12.07 The following is a list of places of detention in alphabetical order that have
been mentioned in reports accessed. The list should not be regarded as a
complete or comprehensive list of all the Eritrean detention facilities:
Aderser. Military camp/training centre. Located 25 km from Sawa camp.
[29e] (p93) (Human Rights Watch Service for Life report, April 2009).
Adi Abeto. Main prison for Asmara; also used as a processing centre to send
prisoners elsewhere. 10 to 15 km north east of Asmara, off the road to Keren.
[29e] (p93) (Human Rights Watch Service for Life report, April 2009). AI
reported that Adi Abeto was the initial detention facility for the Maltese returns
of 2002: women, children and those over the military service age of 40 were
detained for several weeks, but the military deserters were held
incommunicado and tortured, before being transferred to Dahlek Kebir.
[5c] (p23). Shipping containers reported as being used as punishment blocks in
this facility. [5c] (p16) (AI, May 2004). In April 2008, Awate reported “The two
story building generally functions as a holding bin, a ‘referral jail.’ Nearly five
hundred prisoners are held there: those who have the resources are able to
buy their freedom by paying the penalty fee, which generally ends up in the
pockets of a colonel or a general. Those who do not have the means are sent
to other prisons, like Track B [Tract B], an underground prison or, if they are in
the military, they are referred to the military units, where they serve their
terms. There is no court hearing, no police case and no documentation.” [50a]
(Awate, 7 April 2008)
Adi Keih town prison. AI has reported this prison was used as an initial
detention facility for draft evaders. [5h] (AI, 28 July 2005)
Adi Quala or Adi Qala. Military prison. Located 40 km north of Ethiopian
border, off main road from Asmara through Mendefera. [29e] (p93) (Human
Rights Watch Service for Life report, April 2009).
Agip, Asmara. The location, according to Reporters without Borders, of eight
of the nine state media journalists arrested in November 2006. “Located
behind the ‘Capitol’ cinema and opposite the presidential palace, this complex
is ‘where the police take detainees to torture them before transferring them to
their final destination,’ a former detainee told Reporters without Borders.” [50s]
(p2) (Awate, 3 December 2006)
Alla or Ala. Located 40 km from Asmara, near Dekemhare town. [29e] (p93)
(Human Rights Watch Service for Life report, April 2009). Shipping containers
reported as being used as punishment blocks in this facility. [5c] (p16) (AI, May
2004)
Assab Front (aka ‘Gimbar’). Military prison in Assab. [29e] (p93) (Human
Rights Watch Service for Life report, April 2009).
Baharia Naval Base. Military facility. Massawa. [29e] (p94) (Human Rights
Watch Service for Life report, April 2009).
Barantu. Barantu. Civilian prison. [29e] (p94) (Human Rights Watch Service for
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Dahlek Kebir. Dahlak islands. Maximum security civilian prison. [29e] (p94)
(Human Rights Watch Service for Life report, April 2009). Detention and
prison facilities built on the main Dahlek island in the Red Sea, with a capacity
for 800 prisoners, and comprising eight large sheet-metal buildings. [5c] (p16)
(AI, May 2004). It is where many of the detainees from the returns by Malta
and Libya are thought to be imprisoned. [29c] (HRW 2005).
Duarwa. Located south of Asmara, on the road to Adi Quala before Adi Ugri.
[29e] (p94) (Human Rights Watch Service for Life report, April 2009).
Eiraeiro, Filfil-Selomuna area north of the Asmara-Massawa road. A
‘secret’ prison for political prisoners. [50m] (Awate, 31 August 2006). It was
purpose built in 2003, receiving the G15/G11 political prisoners from
Embatkala in June 2003. It is reported to be comprised of five main blocks,
with two main cell blocks, and 62 rooms used as cells; the standard cell size is
3 x 3 meters. [50m] (p2). The article claims there are 36 political prisoners, and
names most of them, giving their cell numbers. [50m] (p2,3). Conditions are
basic, and prisoners are chained and in solitary confinement. [50m] (p3-4).
A total of 150 guards and staff operate the prison. The guards are heavily
vetted and monitored. [50m] (p4-5).
Galaalo military camp. Red Sea coast. Deaths of conscripted students
reported in August 2001 while performing forced labour. [5c] (p20) (AI, May
2004)
Gedem prison. 40 km south of Massawa. It is alleged to be the site of forced
labour in 2004, with the construction of a naval base, numbering 400 prisoners
who received minimal food and water, no medical attention after injury and the
use of confinement in shipping containers in excessive temperatures as
punishment. [50f] (Ehrag section, Awate, 16 June 2006)
Ghatelay (Ghatielay). Military labour camp. About 40 to 45 km north west of
Asmara, off main road to Massawa. [29e] (p94) (Human Rights Watch Service
for Life report, April 2009).
Haddis Ma’askar. An army prison equipped with underground cells. [5c] (p16)
(AI, May 2004)
Halhalas. Sub-provincial prison. Located 45 km from Asmara. Specifically for
persons caught trying to cross the border. [29e] (p94) (Human Rights Watch
Service for Life report, April 2009).
Kambo Ndafurstale. Sanafe town. Military jail. [29e] (p94) (Human Rights
Watch Service for Life report, April 2009).
Klima. Near Assab. [29e] (p94) (Human Rights Watch Service for Life report,
April 2009).
Mai Edaga, Decamhare town. Shipping containers reported as being used as
punishment blocks in this facility. [5c] (p16) (AI, May 2004)
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Mai Serwa military camp near Asmara . The camp is used for the detention
of draft evaders, and uses metal shipping containers and underground cells.
[5h] (AI, 28 July 2005). Human Rights without Frontiers locates Mai Serwa as
near Keren, with the initial query stating that it is three storeys high with the
main prison built underground. [68a] (Canadian IRB, 14 July 2003). AI reported
in December 2005 that Helen Berhane, the Rema church gospel singer, “is
held at Mai Serwa military camp near Asmara, in a metal shipping container
with little ventilation that alternates between hot and cold temperature
extremes and has no washing or toilet facilities.” [5l]. A Release Eritrea
briefing, posted on 25 June 2005, adds that Helen Berhane had been caught
listening to a radio and “as punishment she was transferred to an underground
cell, where she was kept chained for two weeks.” Helen Berhane was released
from prison in October 2006. [31g] (Release-Eritrea, 2 November 2006); [5o]
(AI, 3 November 2006); [67b] (CSW, 3 November 2006). The AI report of 3
November 2006 notes that initially, Ms Berhane was hospitalised in Asmara,
where she was confined to a wheelchair “due to the injuries she sustained to
her feet and legs”. [5o]. On 22 October 2007, BBC News reported that Ms
Berhane had been granted asylum in Denmark. [8n]
Mai Temenei. An army prison equipped with underground cells. [5c] (p16) (AI,
May 2004). In May 2008, the camp was mentioned as a detention centre for
Ethiopian women detained circa 21 May 2008, in a facility named as “the Enda
Seal (TB Center)”. [50j] (Awate, 22 May 2008)
Metkelabet. Located between Massawa and Asmara. Military prison
belonging to the 32 division. [29e] (p94) (Human Rights Watch Service for Life
report, April 2009).
Meiter. Awate mentioned Meiter on 10 July 2008 as a detention centre stating:
“Of all the prisons they have designed, Meiter is the most inaccessible locality
so far. Anyone once taken to Meiter will never ever be able either to
communicate with his kin or flee from the place. It is so far from the nearest
towns and too arid that even if you are allowed to go on your own, you will
come back for fear of death due to thirst. These returnees, even if allowed to
meet with their family for a fraction of a second, will move to that place in due
time. The PFDJ will try any means to hoodwink the public till those remaining
in Libya and Egypt come back. After all of them arrive, Meiter will be full to
capacity.” [50l) (Awate, 10 July 2008). Meiter was also mentioned in an Awate
January 2008 report. [50i) (Awate, 3 January 2008)
Nakhura Island. Part of the Dahlak complex of prisons. Maximum security.
[29e] (p95) (Human Rights Watch Service for Life report, April 2009).
Prima 1 +2. Military prison. [29e] (p95) (Human Rights Watch Service for Life
report, April 2009).
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Sawa Military Training Camp. Located along Sawa River, in far western
Eritrea near the border with Sudan, about 10 km south of road midway
between Sebderat and Hawashayt. [29e] (p95) (Human Rights Watch Service
for Life report, April 2009). The complex includes the prison camp of Brigade
Six, comprising temporary barracks built on a hilltop to the right of the main
camp. According to the testimony of an ex-prisoner reproduced by Awate,
“Sawa prison is made entirely of tin material” and thus insufferably hot in the
day and cold at night. It comprises of 12 tin barrack blocks. Malnutrition, poor
hygiene and lack of medical attention reported, with high levels of infections
and diseases associated with poor living conditions. [50g] (Ehrag section,
Awate, 25 April 2006). Photos of Sawa in 2000 and 2004 are found in slide
shows on the website of the National Union of Eritrean Youth Students
(NUEYS) http://www.denden.com/NUEYS/.
Sembel prison. Asmara. An officially designated prison for political prisoners.
[5c] (p16) (AI. May 2004)
Tehadasso. Military prison. Shipping containers reported as being used as
punishment blocks in this facility. [5c] (p16) (AI, May 2004)
Tessenei. Classed as ‘rehabilitation centre’. Military prison. Allegations of
torture, beatings and general abuse reported in this facility. [5c] (p18) (AI, May
2004)
“Tract B”. Asmara. Military prison. It comprises of a former US storage facility
near Asmara airport. [5c] (p16) (AI, May 2004). In late 2002, some EPLF
veterans among the Maltese returnees were separated out at Adi Abeto and
then sent to Tract B prison. [5c] (p23) (AI, May 2004)
Tsererat. Asmara. Military prison. “Mainly for EPLF veterans, held in
underground cells.” [5c] (p16) (AI, May 2004)
Wengel Mermera (Wenjel Mirmera). Sources refer to this centre as being
where most of the detainees of Asmara mass arrests are held, such as,
according to Release Eritrea “…the dungeon-like inner prison in Asmara
where many of Eritrea’s prominent political prisoners are also believed to be
incarcerated.” [31c] (Release Eritrea, 25 June 2005). The AI May 2004 report
adds that it is a special security section in the 2nd police station, Asmara.
[5c] (p16) (AI, May 2004). Compass Direct, April 2006, maintains that the 70
muslims arrested for protesting about the Government’s imposition of a new
chief mufti were detained in Wengel Mermera in one cell. [47a] (Compass
Direct, July 2006)
Wi’ya/W’ia/Wieh. Military camp/training centre. Located on the Red Sea coast
about 40 km south east of Massawa, off the road to Assab. [29e] (p95) (Human
Rights Watch Service for Life report, April 2009). Temperatures in this area
are often over 40 degrees centigrade. One hundred and twenty-one men,
arrested during the mass arrests on 28 May 2005 at the Meserete/Full Gospel
wedding, are still reported as being in detention in Wi’a. [46] (p2). On 10 June
2005, a mass escape was attempted, and the authorities shot and killed 161
youths. [4f] ( section 1a) (USSD report for 2005). In July and August 2007, the
hot season, at least 16 people died from the effects of heat, and many dozens
were hospitalised. [50p] (Awate, 3 October 2007). PDF page 57
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The 3 October 2007 Awate report stated that there is a specific camp for
detained teachers and added the details:
“Wia is not a single camp. It represents a cluster of several camps, including
one used exclusively as a detention center. Among the commanders in Wia
are: Lt. Col. Jemal, Lt. Col. Weddi Haile and Capt. Ramadan…it holds two
large groups of Eritreans protesting unjust laws: military conscription
escapees/evaders and members of banned churches.” [50p]
See also the Annex in the April 2009 HRW report, Service for Life - State
Repression and Indefinite Conscription in Eritrea
http://www.hrw.org/sites/default/files/reports/eritrea0409web_0.pdf
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13. DEATH PENALTY
13.01 As regards the death penalty, the Amnesty International Death Sentences and
Executions 2009 report, published in March 2010, classed Eritrea as one those
“countries which retain the death penalty for ordinary crimes such as murder
but can be considered abolitionist in practice in that they have not executed
anyone during the past 10 years and are believed to have a policy or
established practice of not carrying out executions.” [5n]. In a factfile page
updated in December 2005, the University of Westminster, London, Centre for
Capital Punishment Studies noted that the crimes that attract the death penalty
in Eritrea are murder and acts threatening state security; and that execution is
legally performed by either firing squad or hanging. [64]
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14. POLITICAL AFFILIATION
14.01 The Constitution states that every citizen has the right to form organisations
for political ends. [2]. However, the US State Department Human Rights report
for 2009 stated “the government did not allow the formation of any political
parties other than the PFDJ. It also prohibited the formation of any
associations or private organizations.” [4i] (section 2b)
FREEDOM OF POLITICAL EXPRESSION
14.02 The US State Department Human Rights report for 2009 noted that “the law
and unimplemented constitution provide citizens with the right to change their
government peacefully; however, citizens were not allowed to exercise this
right in practice.” [4i] (section 3)
FREEDOM OF ASSOCIATION AND ASSEMBLY
14.03 The US State Department Human Rights report for 2009 stated “the law and
unimplemented constitution provide for freedom of assembly and association;
however, the government did not permit either. For gatherings of more than
three persons, the government required those assembling to obtain a permit,
although this requirement was enforced sporadically.” [4i] (section 2b)
OPPOSITION GROUPS AND POLITICAL ACTIVISTS
14.04 The US State Department Human Rights report for 2009 reported that:
“There were no confirmed reports of political prisoners; however, several
hundred individuals were detained beginning in 2001 for political reasons.
Many were perceived to have ties to political dissidents or were believed to
have spoken against government actions. Most of these detainees had not
been tried and did not have access to legal counsel. The ICRC was not
authorized to visit these detainees, and no information was available of their
condition or circumstances of detention.” [4i] (section 1e)
14.05 Awate published a report on 31 August 2006, ‘The obscure and tragic end of
the G-15’, that claims to present information about the political prisoners since
their arrest up to 2006. It talks of the prison complex at Eiraeiro, between
Asmara and Massawa, that was completed in June 2003, and houses these
political prisoners. Prior to 2003, the G15/G11 group were held at Embatkala,
a former Ethiopian-era navy facility. The G15/G11 group were listed along with
other prisoners held in Eiraeiro, creating a group of 36 political prisoners. Of
the prisoners and of the G15 group prior to transfer to Eiraeiro, nine people
are mentioned as having died in detention. The article claims food, clothing
and hygiene are basic; the prisoners are held in solitary confinement, in
chains, and totally in communicado. There were slight relaxations in 2006.
[50m]
See Annex C Prominent people – G15/G11 political prisoners
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OPPOSITION GROUPS IN EXILE
14.06 The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees Eligibility Guidelines for
Assessing the International Protection Needs of Asylum Seekers from Eritrea
report, published in April 2009, stated:
“The unimplemented Eritrean Constitution guarantees to every citizen the right
to form organizations for political ends. The People’s Front for Democracy and
Justice (PFDJ), which came to power in 1993 by popular referendum, is
however the only authorized political party. As a result, opposition groups
have been driven out of the country and, since late 2004, operate only in
exile.” [18c] (p20)
14.07 The CIA World Factbook section on Eritrea (27 May 2010 version) lists the
names of various opposition groups:
“Eritrean Democratic Party (EDP) [HAGOS, Mesfin]; Eritrean Islamic Jihad or
EIJ (includes Eritrean Islamic Jihad Movement or EIJM also known as the Abu
Sihel Movement); Eritrean Islamic Salvation or EIS (also known as the Arafa
Movement); Eritrean Liberation Front or ELF [ABDULLAH Muhammed];
Eritrean National Alliance or ENA (a coalition including EIJ, EIS, ELF, and a
number of ELF factions) [HERUY Tedla Biru]; Eritrean Public Forum or EPF
[ARADOM Iyob]”. [28]
14.08 The UNHCR Eligibility Guidelines for Assessing the International Protection
Needs of Asylum Seekers from Eritrea report added:
“Opposition groups abroad, most of which are based in neighbouring Ethiopia
and Sudan, are split into two major affiliations, namely (i) the Democratic
Party, which has agreed a common set of objectives with two older parties
(the Eritrean Liberation Front (ELF) and the Eritrean Liberation Front -
Revolutionary Council (ELF-RC), a splinter group of the ELF); and (ii) the
Eritrean National Alliance (ENA), an umbrella organisation consisting of
several and varied opposition groups. Some of these groups broadcast radio
and television programmes to Eritrea via satellite, and maintain active
websites highly critical of the Eritrean Government.” [18c] (p20-21)
14.09 The United States Library of Congress, Federal Research Division’s country
profile of Eritrea, dated September 2005, adds further detail about the Eritrean
National Alliance:
“The Eritrean National Alliance (ENA) is a 3,000-strong organization of 10
opposition groups. It was established in Khartoum in 1999, in part as an
attempt by Sudan to retaliate against Eritrean support for the National
Democratic Alliance, a Sudanese opposition group. The following groups
belong to the ENA: the Eritrean Liberation Front, the Eritrean People’s
Conference, the Eritrean Islamic Salvation Movement, the Eritrean Liberation
Front – Revolutionary Council, the Eritrean Liberation Front – National
Council, the Eritrean People’s Democratic Liberation Front, the Eritrean
Revolutionary Democratic Front, the Democratic Movement for the Liberation
of Kunama/Eritrea, the Eritrean Democratic Resistance Movement Gash-Setit,
and the Eritrean Initiative Group.” [79] (p16)
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14.10 Reports in 2006 highlighted the way that the opposition parties in exile were
affected by the Eritrean Government’s change in relations with other states,
with Gedab News reporting, via Awate, that the Government of Sudan in June
2006 revoked permission for several Eritrean dissident organisations to host
their congresses in Khartoum. [50w]
14.11 An Awate article of 26 November 2006 stated:
“Within days after the normalization of the Eritrea-Sudan relationship, the
Eritrean regime was given intelligence on the military bases of the armed
opposition group [sic], the Eritrean opposition activists in Eastern Sudan,
particularly the refugee camps and the type of help given to the Eritrean
opposition by the Sudanese government.
“Since then, the political space for Eritrean opposition groups in Sudan has
been getting increasingly restricted [sic]. Sudan first denied them a venue to
conduct their long-scheduled congresses. A few months later, the powerful
opposition radio, Al Sharq, broadcasting from Khartoum, with repeaters in
Kassala, was shut down.” [50r] (p2)
14.12 A Sudan Tribune report, dated 1 June 2008, stated that:
“Sudan has banned the activities of the Eritrean opposition in the country after
years of support. The move indicates the level of good relations between
Asmara and Khartoum.
“The Sudanese government officially notified the representative[s?] of the
Eritrean opposition in the Khartoum to stop political activities against Asmara
government and close their venues.
“According to [the] Islam Today website, which is well informed about Islamist
movements in the Horn of Africa, the Sudanese government also ordered the
Eritrean groups to [sur]render houses and vehicles granted by the Sudanese
security service.” [62b]
14.13 A Dehai article of 9 June 2008 recounted the struggle between 13 Eritrean
opposition groups and the Sudanese authorities after the Government of
Sudan placed a ban on political activities by such groups. [11b]
14.14 The Awate article, ‘EDA will hold its congress’, of 15 February 2007, noted
that the Eritrean Democratic Alliance (EDA) was permitted to hold its congress
in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia on 15 February 2007. [50t]. By December 2007,
Awate was reporting that the EDA had effectively split into two political camps,
splitting on issues of national versus ethnic group representation of interests.
[50aa]
See Annex B Political Organisations
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15. FREEDOM OF SPEECH AND MEDIA
OVERVIEW
15.01 The US State Department Human Rights report for 2009 summarised the
situation regarding freedom of speech and media in Eritrea:
“The law and unimplemented constitution provide for freedom of speech and
of the press; however, the government severely restricted these rights in
practice. Citizens did not have the right to criticize their government in public
or in private, and some who did so were arrested or detained. The private
press remained banned, and most independent journalists remained in
detention or had fled the country, which effectively prevented any public and
media criticism of the government. All journalists practiced self-censorship due
to fear of government reprisal.
“The government attempted to impede criticism and took reprisals against
persons who criticized government officials or policies. During the year [2009]
persons were arrested for publicly complaining about poverty. The
government monitored meetings within the country and abroad. The
government also continued to forbid free speech. In an October [2009]
interview with Reuters, the president stated that he would not allow
independent media to operate in Eritrea.” [4i] (section 2a)
RESTRICTIONS ON THE BROADCASTING AND PRINT MEDIA
15.02 Regarding Eritrea’s broadcasting and print media, the US State Department
Human Rights report for 2009 stated that:
“The government controlled all media, which included three newspapers, three
radio stations, and two television stations. The law does not allow private
ownership of broadcast or other media. The government banned the import of
foreign publications; however, individuals were permitted to purchase satellite
dishes and subscribe to international media. The government had to approve
publications distributed by religious or international organizations before their
release, and the government continued to restrict the right of religious media
to comment on politics or government policies. The press law forbids
reprinting of articles from banned publications. The government also required
diplomatic missions to submit all press releases for approval before their
publication in the government media.
“Unlike in 2008, the government permitted only one reporter representing a
foreign news organization, Reuters, to operate in the country; however, the
government did not grant permission for the reporter to travel outside the
capital. In February 2008 the government created administrative obstacles for
the Agence-France Presse (AFP) international journalist resulting in his forced
departure. AFP had not been allowed to return to the country since. The
president occasionally conducted interviews with foreign news agencies
invited specifically for the interview.” [4i] (section 2a)
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15.03 Most sources point to events on 18 September 2001, when Government
forces arrested journalists and closed all independent newspapers, as a
defining moment of censorship in Eritrea. [30] (CPJ, September 2005); [5d]
(AI, September 2002), [17b] (RWB, 2008)
15.04 The Reporters without Borders 2009 World Report, published in May 2009,
added:
“Eritrea, which has been led since independence by the higly authoritarian
Issaias Afeworki, figures in last place on [the] Reporters Without Borders’
world press freedom index. The country has been cut off from the outside
world since the terrible round-ups of September 2001 and at least four
journalists have died in prison, unknown and forgotten, while the situation
goes from bad to worse.
“…the public media in Eritrea do nothing but relay the regime’s belligerent and
ultra-nationalist discourse…no divergence is tolerated. Like scores of their
fellow citizens who flee the country each month, many journalists working in
the public media can no longer bear the gagging imposed on them by the
government and go into exile. Most leave on foot at risk of being shot dead by
border patrols who have received the order to shoot on sight. The very few
foreign correspondents in the country have slowly been driven out as a result
of harassment or intimidation, or simply through expulsion. Not a single one
now lives in Asmara.” [17a]
15.05 The BBC Eritrea Country Profile, updated on 11 May 2010, lists the state
press agencies as: Hadas Eritrea (published three days a week); Eritrea
Profile (English language weekly paper); Tigirta (party youth weekly) and
Geled (youth weekly); Eri-TV (state television); Dimtsi Hafash - Voice of the
Broad Masses of Eritrea (two radio networks); Radio Zara (FM network); and
Erina (Eritrean news agency). [8a]
15.06 The source Eritrean Media Guide (EMG), dated February 2006 [73], and the
BBC Eritrea Country Profile of May 2010 [8a] list a wide variety of media
agencies, from the official state agencies to the unofficial and opposition news
agencies operating outside Eritrea. Of particular note are mentions of
Dehai.com, a diaspora website that is described by EMG as pro-government
[73] and a site that is the subject of an academic article, ‘Diaspora, cyberspace
and political imagination: the Eritrean diaspora online’ (2006) which follows the
way the Eritrean state has been supported by, and has made use of, its
diaspora links; and how the diaspora has shaped aspects of the nascent state.
[77]
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RESTRICTIONS ON THE USE OF THE INTERNET
15.07 Regarding the use of the Internet, the US State Department Human Rights
report for 2009 stated:
“There were no official restrictions on the use of the Internet; however, the
government monitored Internet communications. The government monitored
e-mail without obtaining warrants as required by law. All Internet service users
were required to use one of the three Internet service providers owned, either
directly or through high-ranking PFDJ party members, by the government.
“The government also discouraged citizens from viewing Web sites known to
be antigovernment by continuously labelling the sites and their developers as
saboteurs of the government. Many citizens expressed fear of arrest if the
government caught them viewing such sites.
“According to International Telecommunications Union statistics for 2008,
approximately 1.8 percent of the country’s inhabitants used the Internet.”
[4i] (section 2a)
15.08 In December 2008, Assenna reported that three youths were arrested in
Asmara on 26 December [2008] by the security forces for looking at websites
run by the diaspora political opposition. After the arrests of the youths, Internet
service providers in Asmara were warned by the authorities not to allow the
public access to websites run by the diaspora political opposition. The report
further stated that the Eritrean government is worried about the information
produced by independent sources, and opposition websites abroad regarding
current developments in Eritrea, and has taken measures to further suppress
freedom of expression. [16a]
TREATMENT OF JOURNALISTS
15.09 The Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) stated in a report of 16 September
2005 that 15 journalists detained in September 2001 were still being held
indefinitely, secretly, without charge, and without access to families or lawyers.
The same report named the detainees (see Annex C). The same CPJ report
adds that three journalists arrested before the 2001 clampdown remain
deprived of their liberty, with two said to be doing extended military service.
Two journalists arrested in 2002 also remain in secret jails. [30]. RWB reported
in February 2008 that there was still no firm news as to what has happened to
the journalists; though, again, “Prison guards, who fled abroad in 2006,
revealed that at least three of the journalists who were arrested in 2001, died
in prison between 2005 and 2006. And on 11 January [2007], Fessehaye
Yohannes, known as ‘Joshua’ one of the most important figures in the
country’s intellectual life, died from the effects of appalling prison conditions in
Eiraeiro in the north-east of the country where the highest profile prisoners are
held.” [17b]
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15.10 The RWB 2008 annual report regarding foreign correspondents added:
“The very few foreign correspondents based in Asmara are directly
accountable to the information minister, Ali Abdu, who has no hesitation in
suspending their work permits at the slightest deviation. Those they interview
are at risk of immediate imprisonment. Journalists wishing to travel to Eritrea
have to wait for months, during which time they have to convince the Eritrean
ambassadors in their home countries that the reporting they plan will be
favourable to the government. Any who refer in their articles to the lamentable
state of civil and political liberties in the country are expelled.” [17b]
15.11 In March 2009, Reporters without Borders reported that the:
“The [Eritrean] authorities on 22 February 2009, ordered a raid on the
premises of Radio Bana, a small station in the heart of the capital that puts out
educational programmes under the sponsorship of the education ministry. Its
entire staff of around 50 journalists were arrested and taken without
explanation to the Dobozito detention centre on the edge of the city. Some of
the staff were released but several of them remain in custody. Among them
are Bereket Misghina, aka Wedi Misghina, a famous actor and playwright;
journalist and essayist Yirgalem Asfha, former art critic for the newspaper
Zemen; teacher Basilios Zemo, aka Wedi Zemo, and a young teacher Senait
Habtu, working in the radio's production studio. Unconfirmed reports
suggested they had been transferred to the military prison in Adi Abeito, north-
west of Asmara on the road to Keren.” [17c]
15.12 A Reporters without Borders report dated 12 May 2010 stated:
“As World Press Freedom Day was being celebrated on 3 May [2010], Eritrea
continued to be the world’s worst country for journalists with around 30
currently held incommunicado in the most inhumane conditions and more
arrests still being made, such as that of Said Abdulhai, one of the country’s
most famous journalists, in the last week of March [2010].
“…Eyob Bahta Habtemariam, a man who credibly claims to have been a
guard at the notorious Eiraeiro prison camp in the desert of Northern Red Sea
province, in northeastern Eritrea, fled the country last month [April 2010] and
found refuge in neighbouring Ethiopia.
“According to him, Dawit Isaac, a journalist with Swedish and Eritrean dual
citizenship who was arrested in 2001, is in Eiraeiro. He says Dawit is being
kept in solitary confinement in a 12-square-metre windowless cell and is in
very poor physical and mental health.
“This is the first time that a prison guard has claimed to know with such
certainty where Dawit, the founder of the now closed daily Setit, is being held.
Dawit has been transferred several times since his arrest. The authorities took
him to the air force hospital in Asmara at one point last year [2009]. He was
also admitted to Asmara’s Kedeste Mariam (St. Mary) Hospital, a psychiatric
clinic, twice in 2009.
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“At least three other journalists who were arrested in the September 2001
round-ups are currently held in Eiraeiro. There are Amanuel Asrat, the editor
of the privately-owned weekly Zemen, who is prisoner No. 25, freelance
journalist Seyoum Tsehaye, who is prisoner No. 10 and Dawit Habtemichael,
the deputy editor and co-founder of the newspaper Meqaleh, who is prisoner
No. 12.” [17d]
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16. HUMAN RIGHTS INSTITUTIONS, ORGANISATIONS AND ACTIVISTS
16.01 The Eritrea section of Freedom House’s Freedom in the World 2010 report,
published in May 2010, stated:
“The government maintains a hostile attitude toward civil society; independent
NGOs are not allowed, and the legitimate role of human rights defenders is
not recognized. In 2005, Eritrea enacted legislation to regulate the operations
of all NGOs, requiring them to pay taxes on imported materials, submit project
reports every three months, renew their licenses annually, and meet
government-established target levels of financial resources. International
human rights NGOs are barred from the country, and the government expelled
three remaining development NGOs in 2006.” [36]
16.02 The US State Department Human Rights report for 2009 noted:
“No domestic human rights groups and only four international humanitarian
NGOs (Oxfam, Lutheran World Federation, Catholic Relief Services, and
Norwegian Church Aid) operated in the country [in 2009]; the government
interfered with and restricted their work. Catholic Relief Services began the
process of shutting down its office during the year [2009] after receiving
notification it was not in compliance with government regulations.
“The government allowed three ruling party-aligned domestic rights NGOs -
Citizens for Peace in Eritrea, Eritrea War Disabled Fighters Association, and
Vision Eritrea, Inc - to operate [in 2009]. All NGOs were required to register
with the Ministry of Labor and Human Welfare, but international NGOs were
required to maintain 30 million nakfa ($2 million) in a local bank. Many failed to
receive government approval under the registration process and were required
to leave the country.
“In 2008 the international NGOs CARE and Dutch Interchurch Aid closed
operations and departed the country, citing obstruction and government
harassment. In 2006 the government asked five NGOs - Mercy Corps,
ACCORD, Samaritan’s Purse, International Rescue Committee, and Concern
- to close operations and depart the country, which they did.
“In previous years the government permitted only the ICRC to operate
effectively, although it limited ICRC operations to repatriation, providing shelter
to approximately 500 families displaced by the conflict with Ethiopia, visiting
prisons and detention centers where Ethiopians were held, and providing
assistance to IDPs. However, during the year [2009] the government severely
restricted ICRC operations and prevented the organization from repatriating
Ethiopians to Ethiopia and from monitoring the conditions of Ethiopian
prisoners of war.” [4i] (section 5)
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17. CORRUPTION
17.01 The US State Department Human Rights report for 2009 noted that:
“The law does not provide criminal penalties for official corruption; however,
the government often arrested many individuals it unofficially charged with
corruption. Those arrested under these charges were never tried in court. The
World Bank’s 2008 governance indicators reflected that corruption was a
problem.
“There were reports of petty corruption within the executive branch, largely
based on family connections. Judicial corruption was a problem. There were
allegations of corruption among military leaders involving illicit trade, the
appropriation of houses, and the black market selling of goods such as diesel
and cement. Corruption was rife in the passport office, and individuals
requesting exit visas or passports had to pay bribes.
“Public officials were not subject to financial disclosure laws, and there was no
government agency responsible for combating government corruption.”
[4i] (section 4)
17.02 Transparency International’s 2009 Corruption Perceptions Index (CPI) of 180
countries, published in November 2009, ranks Eritrea as the 126th most
corrupt country, with a CPI score of 2.6. (Somalia, which is number 180 in the
2009 CPI, is the worst country in terms of perceived corruption.) The CPI
defines corruption as the abuse of public office for private gain, and measures
the degree to which corruption is perceived to exist among a country’s public
officials and politicians. The CPI is a composite index that draws on multiple
expert opinion surveys. The CPI scores range from 10 (low level of corruption)
to 0 (high level of corruption). [44]
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18. FREEDOM OF RELIGION
OVERVIEW
18.01 As regards the religious make-up of the Eritrean population, the US State
Department 2009 International Religious Freedom report, published in
October 2009, stated that:
“Although reliable statistics are not available, it is estimated that 50 percent of
the population is Sunni Muslim, 30 percent is Orthodox Christian, and 13
percent is Roman Catholic. Groups that constitute less than 5 percent of the
population include Protestants, Seventh-day Adventists, Jehovah’s Witnesses,
Buddhists, Hindus, and Baha’is. Approximately 2 percent of the population
practices traditional indigenous religions.” [4g] (p1)
18.02 The US State Department 2009 International Religious Freedom report added
that:
“The Constitution, ratified by the National Assembly in 1997, provides for
religious freedom; however, the Government has yet to implement the
Constitution. Although the Government requires religious groups to register,
since 2002 it has not approved any registrations beyond the country’s four
principal religious groups: the Eritrean Orthodox Church, the Evangelical
(Lutheran) Church of Eritrea, Islam, and the Roman Catholic Church.
“The Government’s record on religious freedom remained poor. The
Government continued to harass and detain thousands of members of
unapproved religious groups and retained substantial control over the four
approved religious groups. The Government failed to approve religious groups
that fulfilled the registration requirements and arrested persons during
religious gatherings. The Government held religious prisoners in harsh
conditions for long periods and without due process. There continued to be
reports of forced recantations of faith and torture of religious detainees.
“Citizens generally were tolerant of one another in the practice of their religion,
with the exception of societal attitudes towards Jehovah’s Witnesses and
Pentecostal groups. Some individuals viewed failure to perform the required
military service as a sign of disloyalty and encouraged harassment of religious
groups, such as Jehovah’s Witnesses.” [4g] (p1)
18.03 There are two other main Christian groups - the Roman Catholic Church and
the Evangelical Church (Lutheran) - that are accepted by the Government. [1]
(Europa World); Besides the accepted Christian denominations are other
Christian groupings (as well as minority non-Christian groupings) that are not
accepted, and not tolerated, by the Government.
[4g] (p1) (US State Department IRF report, 2009)
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18.04 The US State Department 2009 International Religious Freedom report added:
“Following a 2002 government decree that all religious groups must register or
cease all religious activities, religious facilities not belonging to the four
officially recognized religious groups were forced to close. Some local
authorities allowed unregistered groups to worship in homes or rented spaces,
whereas others did not allow them to meet at all. The Government continued
to disrupt home-based worship and arrested those who hosted home prayer
meetings, particularly if the gatherings consisted of more than five persons.”
[4g] (p2)
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ARRESTS AND DETENTIONS
18.05 The Human Rights Watch 2009 Service for Life - State Repression and
Indefinite Conscription in Eritrea report stated:
“Human Rights Watch interviewed 13 Evangelical Christian refugees, all of
whom had been imprisoned - and some tortured - for their faith. Evangelical
Christians wishing to practice their faith must do so clandestinely. Even then
they are not safe from government abuse. Several Christians described
holding prayer meetings in private houses during 2006 and 2007 in Asmara,
Tesseny, and Senafe. Police or military, possibly acting on information given
by informers, disrupted the meetings and arrested those present. One elderly
woman who has been a Pentecostal Christian for over 40 years said that
because of the threat of informers she has taken to praying with different
people, in different places, and different times. [29e] (p60)
“…according to Christian Solidarity Worldwide (CSW) by June 2007 over
2,000 Christians were in detention in Eritrea. In late 2008, CSW reported
house to house searches and a wave of arrests in numerous Eritrean towns,
including Asmara. According to the organization 100 people were arrested in
the period leading up to December 12, 2008, and detained in military facilities,
some of them dying in custody. Compass Direct, a Christian rights
organization, estimated that by late 2008 nearly 3,000 Christians were in
detention. Compass Direct reported that three Christians had died in custody
in the latter part of 2008, and that in June eight others were transferred to
medical facilities because they had been tortured in custody.” [29e] (p61)
18.06 A Voice of the Martyrs (VOM) news report, dated 5 January 2009, stated that:
“Since late November [2008], about 100 Christians, men, women and children,
have been arrested by Eritrean authorities, VOM Canada reported. The wave
of house arrests began in northern Eritrean cities and moved to southern
regions before reaching the capital, Asmara, on Dec. 12 [2008]. Some of the
detained Christians were reportedly transferred to a military facility and were
severely mistreated. Local sources indicate that an unspecified number may
have died due to untreated injuries sustained in detention.
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“The Eritrean government persecutes Christians, often placing believers in
metal containers that are extremely hot during the day and cold during the
night. Nearly 1,800 Eritrean Christians are believed to be under arrest
because of their religious beliefs. They are being held in police stations,
military camps and prisons in 12 known locations across Eritrea. It is believed
more than 28 clergymen are being held.
“Jailed Christians are routinely subjected to physical beatings and severe
psychological pressure to deny their religious beliefs. Police and military
authorities continue to demand the prisoners return to one of the three ‘official’
Christian denominations recognized by the government. But even the legally
recognized denominations - the nation's historic Orthodox, Catholic and
Lutheran churches - have come under government disfavor in recent years,
incurring threats and even imprisonment.” [87c]
18.07 The US State Department Human Rights report for 2009 added:
“During the year [2009] there continued to be reports that security forces used
extreme physical abuse such as bondage, heat exposure, and beatings to
punish those detained for their religious beliefs. Numerous detainees were
reportedly required to sign statements repudiating their faith or agreeing not to
practice it as a condition for release. There also continued to be reports that
relatives were asked to sign for detainees who refused to sign such
documents.
“Authorities continued to detain, harass, and abuse hundreds of followers of
various unregistered churches (mostly Protestant) during the year [2009].
Many of those detained were held in military prisons for not having performed
required national military service. Some were held for refusing to belong to a
specific religious group. Several pastors and dozens of women were among
the imprisoned.” [4i] (section 2c)
18.08 Compass Direct News reported in July 2009:
“Another Christian imprisoned for his faith in Eritrea has died from authorities
denying him medical treatment, according to a Christian support organization.
“Sources told Netherlands-based Open Doors that Yemane Kahasay Andom,
43, died Thursday (July 23) at Mitire Military Confinement Center.
“A member of the Kale-Hiwot church in Mendefera, Andom was said to be
secretly buried in the camp.
“Weakened by continuous torture, Andom was suffering from a severe case of
malaria, Open Doors reported in a statement today.
“ ‘He was allegedly further weakened by continuous physical torture and
solitary confinement in an underground cell the two weeks prior to his death
for his refusal to sign a recantation form,’ the organization said. ‘It is not clear
what the contents of the recantation form were, but most Christians interpret
the signing of such a form as the denouncement of their faith in Christ.’ PDF page 71
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“Andom is the third known Christian to die this year at the Mitire camp, located
in northeastern Eritrea.” [47b]
18.09 The US State Department 2009 International Religious Freedom report noted
that:
“During the reporting period, there were reliable reports that [the] authorities
detained several hundred members of unregistered groups without charges.
Some were released after detentions of several days or less, while others
spent longer periods in confinement without charge and without access to
legal counsel. Government restrictions made it difficult to determine the
precise number of religious prisoners at any one time, and releases
sometimes went unreported; however, the number of long-term religious
prisoners continued to grow. At the end of the reporting period, reports
indicated there were more than 3,000 Christians from unregistered groups
detained in prison. These reports included nearly 40 leaders and pastors of
Pentecostal churches in detention, some for more than three years without
due process.
“It is unknown how many of the 300 individuals detained during the previous
reporting period remained incarcerated. Many of them were held in military
prisons for not having performed [the] required national military service but
most for simply belonging to unregistered religious groups. Many were held for
not belonging to any specific religious group and were told they would be
released after joining one of the four approved religious groups. Several
pastors and dozens of women were among those imprisoned. Many refused to
recant their faith and continued to be detained in civilian and military detention
facilities across the country; however, some were released after recanting
their faith. There were reports that some religious prisoners died due to lack of
medical treatment.
“During the reporting period, the Government reportedly built a new camp in
the desert town of Meiter specifically for religious detainees. The prison is
isolated and does not allow visitors. The prison reportedly holds 150 to 200
prisoners, all held either for belonging to an unapproved religious group or for
not belonging to a specific religious group.” [4g] (p3)
18.10 BBC News reported in December 2009 that:
“Thirty elderly women have been arrested in Eritrea while praying together,
one of their relatives living in the United States has told the BBC.
“Requesting anonymity, she said she only found out about her mother when
she phoned to speak to her this week.
“Most of the women belonged to an outlawed evangelical group.” [8r]
See Arbitrary arrest and detention
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MUSLIMS
18.11 According to Oxford Islamic Studies Online (accessed April 2010):
“Islam has been linked to Eritrea since the seventh century, when followers of
the Prophet Muhammad sought refuge in the Aksumite Empire because of
Meccan persecution. Today almost half of the population is Muslim, and
Muslims have been central to recent Eritrean developments, including the
1961– 91 independence movement. Islam developed indigenously after the
arrival of Arabs in the ninth century and under Imam Ahmed Gran in the
sixteenth century. Nineteenth-century reformers changed Islamic practices
and founded the first Islamic schools and courts in Eritrea.” [83]
18.12 Eritrean Muslims accept and abide by Shari’a law, as noted in the Lasting
Struggle for Freedom in Eritrea report, published by the Oslo Centre for Peace
and Human Rights in October 2009:
”The Muslim groups in Eritrea also follow Shari’a law. Shari’a law is
recognised in Muslim areas of the country to regulate certain civil and family
law matters, which are enforced through separate Shari’a chambers in the civil
court system. Eritrean Muslims are Sunnis and overwhelmingly Sufis. Three
out of the four Sunni schools are present in the country. Shari’a law has also
been influenced by customary law and traditions, and the adherence to the
religious law varies considerably between the Eritrean groups.” [92] (p31)
THE ORTHODOX CHURCH OF ERITREA
18.13 The BBC reported on 7 December 2005 that the campaign group Christian
Solidarity Worldwide had stated that ‘permitted’ churches were facing
repression from the Eritrean Government. [8k]. The statement crystallises the
finding of various reports from 2004 and 2005 which have noted that Medhane
Alem, a group inside the Orthodox church has been targeted by the
Government.
18.14 The Release Eritrea report, dated 25 June 2005, added more detail about
Medhane Alem:
“In December 2004 reports began to circulate indicating that three Orthodox
priests had been detained during the third week of November 2004. Rev. Dr
Futsum Gebrenegus, Eritrea’s only psychiatrist, Rev. Dr Tekleab
Menghisteab, a highly respected physician, and Rev. Gebremedhin
Gebregiorgis, an expert theologian, are all reported to have been involved in
the renewal movement within the Orthodox Church, which was recently
criticized by President Afwerki during his Independence Day speech on May
24 2005. According to local sources, the Patriarch of the Eritrean Orthodox
Church objected to these arrests and accused the government of ‘interfering’
in church affairs. Following this intervention, for the first time ever the
traditional Christmas message by the Patriarch was not aired on national
media.” [31d]
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18.15 The US State Department 2008 International Religious Freedom report stated:
“The Government continued to maintain a high degree of control over the
operations of the Eritrean Orthodox Church, highlighting concerns regarding
the independence and freedom of religious practice permitted within the
Church by the Government. In August 2005, the Government appointed a lay
administrator to manage and oversee church operations, in contravention to
the Orthodox Church Constitution. Shortly after this appointment, the Holy
Synod voted to remove church Patriarch Abune Antonios on putative charges
that he had committed heresy and was no longer following church doctrine. A
new patriarch, Abune Dioscoros, was selected by the synod. The deposed
patriarch continued to be able to serve as a priest; however, he was forbidden
to conduct church services. In January 2006, the deposed patriarch objected
to his removal through a letter sent, and made public, to the Holy Synod. In
the letter he denied the charges against him and excommunicated several
synod members, as well as the lay administrator, stating that their actions, and
those of the Government, violated the Constitution and bylaws of the Eritrean
Orthodox Church.” [4e] (p5)
18.16 The US State Department 2009 International Religious Freedom report added:
“The Government continued its involvement in the affairs of the four approved
religious groups and required them to provide a list of religious leaders for
enrollment in military/national service. The Government maintained control
over the operations of the Eritrea Orthodox Chruch; a government-appointed
lay administrator managed church operations and controlled all church
donations.” [4g] (p3)
18.17 According to a Christian Solidarity Worldwide May 2009 report, Demonstrators
call for release of Eritrean Prisoners of Conscience, a demonstration took
place outside the Eritrean Embassy in London in May 2009. The CSW report
stated that “over 80 supporters of Christian Solidarity Worldwide (CSW),
Release Eritrea (RE), Church in Chains (Ireland), Open Doors and Release
International took part in the demonstration, which culminated in the
presentation of a letter calling for the release of all prisoners held without
charge or trial, including up to 3000 Christians.” The report further stated that
“as the protest took place, news emerged from Eritrea that Abune Antonios,
the ordained patriarch of the Orthodox Church, had been briefly released from
stringent house arrest for medical treatment.” Also concerning Antonious, the
report stated that he had been deposed in 2006 from his position within the
Orthodox Church and has been detained in a secret location since then. [67a]
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THE ROMAN CATHOLIC CHURCH
18.18 On 20 June 2006, the AllAfrica.com website carried a report, “Church fights
military service for priests, seminarians”, which noted that the Roman Catholic
Church was in dispute with the Eritrean Government about the Government’s
insistence that priests under the age of 40 should do military service. [42]
18.19 Amnesty International reported in an article entitled Pastor and churchgoers
held in detention at risk of torture, dated 8 September 2007, that:
“The Roman Catholic Church in Eritrea is currently appealing against an order
to hand over all its social welfare organisations - schools, medical clinics,
orphanages and women’s training centres - to the Ministry of Social Welfare
and Labour. It has also made repeated requests for exemption for priests from
military service, which is compulsory and indefinite.” [5m]
18.20 Concerning national service, the US State Department 2009 International
Religious Freedom report stated that the “Governent continued to provide the
Catholic Church with limited duration national service exemption cards for all
religious workers and seminarians.” [4g] (p3)
JEHOVAH’S WITNESSES
18.21 A Jehovah’s Witnesses Office of Public Information news release, dated 18
August 2008, reported on police arrests of Jehovah’s Witnesses that had
taken place in July and August 2008. The news release stated that:
“In what is the most open attempt in recent history to shut down a minority
religion in Eritrea, police have systematically arrested 15 of Jehovah's
Witnesses during July [2008] and August [2008]. Some of them are presently
confirmed to be imprisoned, but the whereabouts of others have not been
disclosed.
“On Tuesday, July 8, 2008, authorities began conducting raids on the local
residences of Jehovah's Witnesses. Long-time members of the congregations,
men in their 50's, 60's and even 70's (sic), were subsequently rounded up in
their homes or places of work. In most cases these are the breadwinners for
their families.” [63]
18.22 The US State Department 2009 International Religious Freedom report added:
“Although members of several religious groups were imprisoned in past years
for failure to participate in required national military service, the Government
singled out Jehovah’s Witnesses for harsher treatment than that given to
followers of other religious groups for similar actions. (Jehovah’s Witnesses
are normally willing to perform nonmilitary national service). At least three
Jehovah’s witnesses were detained for 15 years, reportedly for evading
compulsory military service, far beyond the maximum legal penalty of two
years for refusing to perform national service. In addition, Jehovah’s
Witnesses who did not participate in national military service were subject to
dismissal from the civil service, revocation of business licenses, eviction from
government-owned housing, and denial of passports, identity cards, and exit
visas. They were also prohibited from having civil authorities legalize their
marriages.” [4g] (p6) PDF page 75
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‘EVANGELICAL’ CHURCHES
GENERAL INFORMATION
18.23 According to the African Christianity website (accessed on 6 May 2010), the
term ‘Pentes’ originates in Ethiopia, and is held to be a pejorative term
originating from the Ethiopian Orthodox Church’s distrust of Pentecostal
churches and their practices (African Christianity), and in African Christianity’s
account, “a testimony to the influence of the Pentecostal movement on
Ethiopian Protestantism.” [82] (p2)
18.24 The African Christianity website further stated:
“The Mulu Wengel (Full Gospel) church grew out of the Heavenly Sunshine
Bible study, begun by a group of high school students learning English and a
Mennonite doctor, though it was also decisively influenced by the teachings of
the Finnish Pentecostal Mission, and has never had formal connections with
any western mission. Meserete Kristos [another church] followed Mulu
Wengel’s lead in cultivating the charismatic gifts of the Holy Spirit... both
Meserete Kristos and Mulu Wengel churches practice faith healing, exorcism
of demons, and glossolalia.” [82] (p2)
18.25 There is no information that these practices are practised in the churches of
the same names in Eritrea, though Abbebe Kileyesus’s article below claims
there are similaries. Information from the AI December 2005 report shows
similar societal prejudices against evangelical churches:
“Since then [May 2002], there has been a rapid growth of evangelical
churches in Eritrea. This has often been a source of tension between them
and the three main Christian churches, which were losing members to them.
They had different doctrines, forms of worship and weddings, and ‘fellowship’
for prayer and study. They often proselytized (sought converts) or expressed
their faith in new, ‘charismatic’ ways in public places, which attracted some
disapproval from members of the main religious groups – Orthodox, Catholic,
Lutheran and Islam.” [5l] (p8)
18.26 An article by Abbebe Kileyesus, entitled Cosmologies in collision: Pentecostal
conversion and Christian cults in Asmara, that was published in the April 2006
edition of African Studies Review, examined Eritrean Pentecostalism as a
religious phenomenon. [89]. Kileyesus notes that the Asmara Pentecostal
community displays similar traits to the Ethiopian churches, stating:
“Although the nature of Asmara Pentecostal public space is increasingly
defined by Bible reading and group networking on a mass scale, Pentecostal
evangelism in Asmara is also navigated increasingly through audio and
videotapes as well as printed tracts…the media, both print and electronic, and
usually in the Tigrinya language, play a central role in this new wave of
Pentecostal proselytization or evangelization, in the consolidation of the
congregation, and in the creation of a distinct group of born-again who are
different from all others.” [89] (p81) PDF page 76
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18.27 Kileyesus argues in the article that “aims to contribute to a better
understanding of the popularity of Pentecostalism and the formation of
religious identity in an Eritrean city”, that Asmara has seen the growth of
Pentecostal movements as being in competition with traditional Christian
groups in Eritrea, particularly the Eritrean Orthodox Church, against a
background of “rapid socioeconomic change”. [89] (p75). Pentecostal Christians
are characterised as young, ambitious urbanites who seek prosperity over
adherance to the traditional controls of the Orthodox Church. Difficulties with
secular authorities are restricted in the article to Pentecostal opposition to the
Ethiopian Derg rule prior to Eritrea’s independence in 1993. The date of the
actual research is unclear from the article, possibly reflecting practice prior to
September 2001. [89] (p91, footnotes 1, 3; p92, footnote 12)
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MENFESAWYAN “SPIRITUALS”
18.28 One article, posted on the Mission Network News website in November 2007,
talks of evangelical Christians targeted by the Eritrean authorities as
‘menfesawyan’ which translates into English as ‘spirituals’ and equates to
practitioners identified as charismatic Christians. The term menfesawyan more
accurately describes targeted Christians than Pentes, encompassing revival
movements that span all Christian denominations, including accepted,
registered, unregistered and banned groups. [75]
18.29 With regards to the number of unregistered Pentecostal and charismatic
churches in Eritrea, Human Rights Without Frontiers stated in a 26 November
2003 report that there were 12 independent churches so regarded by the
Government in 2002 [61] (p2); by 2005, “at least 36 evangelical and
Pentecostal churches” was the AI December 2005 estimate. [5l] (p1).
Kileyesus, in “Cosmologies in collision”, April 2006, estimates that there are
six main different ‘branches’ operating in Asmara - Mulu Wangel [Mulu
Wengel], Kale Hiwat, Meserete Kristos, Rhema, Charisma, and Hallelujah -
and that “Today there are around twelve thousand active participants, another
two or three thousand Sunday service worshippers, and some two thousand
Otābā (Orthodox Tāwahdo Bétākərəstiyan) church members who take part in
Pentecostal services occasionally.” [89] (p78)
18.30 Release Eritrea noted in a 17 December 2004 posting that:
“Some of these churches [all evangelical and Pentecostal required by the
Government to re-register their churches in May 2002] are historically linked
with the worldwide Protestant denominations, such as the Presbyterians,
Pentecostals, Baptists, Mennonites, Methodists. Others are indigenous
churches, which are not linked to international Protestant denominations,
including the Rhema church, the Hallelujah church, the New Covenant church,
the Philadelphia church, etc.” [31b]
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18.31 A BBC News report, dated 27 September 2007, stated that “during the past
five years [2002-2007], a brutal campaign has been waged in Eritrea against
Christian minorities, focusing mainly on the evangelical and Pentecostal
movements. Weddings, baptisms, church services and prayer meetings have
been raided by security forces. Guests or congregation members have [been]
rounded up and detained en masse.” [8l]. The more recent US State
Department 2009 International Religious Freedom report stated that “at the
end of the reporting period [2008-09], reports indicated there were more than
3,000 Christians from unregistered groups detained in prison. These reports
included nearly 40 leaders and pastors of Pentecostal churches in detention,
some for more than three years without due process.” [4g] (p3)
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OTHER GROUPS
18.32 Church of the Living God
Members have been named in arrest reports: Semere Zaid, an agriculture
lecturer at the University of Asmara (AI December 2005 report) [5l] (p12); and
‘Pastor Simon’ – “Originally from one of the Medhane Alem revival groups
within the [Eritrean] Orthodox Church, Pastor Simon is a minister in the
Church of the Living God” (Voice of the Martyrs) [87a]. Pastor Simon was
arrested on 26 December 2005, but later reported as having escaped from
detention and was in hiding, as of 6 January 2006 (Voice of the Martyrs). [87a]
18.33 Dubre Bethel Church
No information other than the church was located in Asmara in September
2003, when members were arrested, and then released unharmed after
several days’ detention. (AI report, December 2005) [5l] (p10)
18.34 Faith of Christ Church
Arrest reports noted that members of the Faith of Christ Church were arrested
in Adi-Kehey in December 2003 (AI report, December 2005). [5l] (p10)
18.35 Hallelujah Church/Hallelujah Pentecostal Church
Arrests reported include a March 2004 report of Pastor Teweldemedhin and
55 members of the church arrested in Asmara on 12 February 2004. (Amnesty
International) [5b]. In September 2005 after the Hallelujah and Philadelphia
churches arranged a wedding party in Asmara, 20 people were arrested and
detained for one month. (USSD report for 2005) Pastors are included in arrest
lists: Pastor Mengist Teweldemedhin. [4f] (section 2c)
18.36 Kale Hiwœt (Word of Life)
The AI report Eritrea - Religious Persecution, dated 7 December 2005, stated
that the church is “a long-established Baptist church affiliated to the SIM,
formerly the Sudan Interior Mission.” [5l] (p5) (also, African Christianity)
[82] (p1). On 13 October 2005, the operational headquarters of its development
project were closed down by the Government (Release-Eritrea). [31e].
Release-Eritrea reported on 25 August 2006 that Kale Hiwot had had its NGO
status revoked by the Government, and all charitable ventures sequestrated
by the state. [31f] (p2-4)
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Members named - In January 2005, Pastor Ogbamichael Haimanot of the
Kale Hiwœt church was detained in Asmara along with 115 evangelical church
members. [5l] (p12) (AI December 2005 report). Twenty (other) members’
whereabouts are still unknown at the end of 2005 after their arrest in March
2004. [4f] (section 2c) (USSD Religious Freedom report for 2005). Amnesty
International reported the release of ten members over October and
November 2005 in an update dated 29 November 2005. [5g]
Pastors mentioned in arrest reports – Pastor Isaac Mehari; Pastor
Ogbamichael Haimanot (released January 2005 after becoming mentally ill);
Pastor Issa Mekonnen (Release Eritrea) [31d]. Pastor Simon Tsegay and Mr
Gebremichael Yohaness were arrested in March 2006 and “are believed to be
in the crime investigation prison in the centre of Asmara.”
(Release-Eritrea, 25 August 2006) [31f] (p2)
18.37 “ Mensfesawyan”
This may be a spiritual movement rather than the name of an individual church
or denomination: the only known mention of this ‘church’ is that it was located
in Barentu town in January 2005, and that some of its members were arrested
at a wedding on 9 January 2005, along with Mullu Wongel (Full Gospel)
church members. [5l] (p12) (AI December 2005 report); [86] (Indian Ocean
Newsletter).
18.38 Meserete Kristos (Christ is the Foundation)
The AI report of December 2005 stated that Meserete Kristos is “affiliated to
the worldwide Mennonite Church, established for several decades.” [5l] (p5). A
key arrest report was reported by Amnesty International in March 2006, of 200
guests being detained at a Meserete Kristos wedding ceremony on 28 May
2005; most were held for one month’s detention, but as many as 70 were
detained for longer in Serwa army camp. [5j] (p3)
18.39 Mulu Wengel/Mullu Wongel/Muluwœngel (Full Gospel)
The main church building complex in Gaza Banda district, Asmara was seized
by the Government on 15 October 2003 (HRWF, 3 November 2003). [61].
African Christianity’s account of the church’s Ethiopian roots, however,
identifies it as a breakaway Mennonite church that has “insisted on
maintaining its independence from western ties.” [82] (p1)
Mr. Kidane Gebremeskel; Pastor Abraham Belay; Pastor Fanuel Mihreteab;
Pastor Hagos Abraha; Rev. Haile Naizghe; Rev Dr. Kuflu Gebremeskel;
Pastor Kidane Weldou; Pastor Tewelde Gebreab are all listed as arrested in
June 2005 (Release Eritrea). [31d]. Further arrests were made in December
2005 (Voice of the Martyrs), including Pastor Jorjo Gebreab. [87a]
18.40 New Covenant Church
Pastor Yohannes Tesfamichael has been listed as having been arrested in
June 2005 (Release Eritrea). [31d]
18.41 Philadelphia Church
Philadelphia church members were among those arrested at the September
2005 wedding party incident in Asmara, when 20 people were arrested and
detained for one month. [4f] (section 2c) (USSD Human Rights report for 2005)
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18.42 Rema/Rhema
Pastors of the church, from lists of arrests, include Pastor Habteab
Ogbamichael; Pastor Tesfasion Hagos. [8e]. The case of Helen Berhane was
widely reported in 2005 and 2006 (Amnesty International, Release-Eritrea,
USSD report for 2005). A gospel singer from the Rema Church, Helen Behane
was arrested on 13 May 2004. [5l] (p11) (AI December 2005 report). The
Release Eritrea posting of 25 June 2005 goes into the detail of Helen
Berhane’s detention. [31d] (p3). In November 2006, there were reports of Helen
Berhane’s removal to a hospital in Asmara in October 2006, and then of her
full release from prison. [31g] (Release-Eritrea, 2 November 2006). In October
2007, the BBC reported that Ms Berhane was granted asylum in Denmark. [8n]
The Kileyesus “cosmologies in collision” article, April 2006, noted that the
Rhema church, prior to September 2001, was involved in exorcist practices
collectively known as “deliverance”. It was portrayed by Kileyesus’s informants
as a “long-term process” that involved “the need to continuously confront the
devil by means of public prayer sessions and deliverance meetings.” [89] (p82).
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19. ETHNIC GROUPS
OVERVIEW
19.01 Information published in the Encyclopedia of the Nations website (accessed in
April 2010) stated that:
“Ethnologists classify Eritreans into nine language groups. The Afar live in the
southeast, the Tigrinya in south central Eritrea, and the Tigre in the north. The
Saho live in the south central/southeast. The Bilen live in central Eritrea, the
Hadareb in the northwest, and the Kunama and Nara in the southwest. The
ninth group, the Rashaida, inhabit the northwest. The Tigrinya (50% of the
population), Tigre and Kunama (40%), Afar (4%), and Saho (3%) are believed
to be the most populous ethnic groups.” [15]
LANGUAGES
19.02 The Languages of the World 2005 edition, by Kevin Katzner, stated that “the
two main languages…[in Eritrea] are Tigrinya, with about 2 million speakers,
and Tigre, with about one million. Others include Afar (150,000) and Beja
(125,000).” [60]. Lonely Planet in its guide to Ethiopia, Eritrea and Djibouti,
published in November 2000, stated:
“In theory Tigrinya, Arabic and English are all the official languages of Eritrea.
In practice Tigrinya is mainly confined to the highlands, Arabic to the coastal
regions and along the Sudanese border and English to the educated urban
populations (particularly in Asmara)…each of the nine ethnic groups speaks
its own language: Afar, Arabic, Bilen, To Bedawi, Kunama, Nara, Saho, Tigre
and Tigrinya. Amharic, a legacy of Ethiopian rule is still widely spoken.”
[32] (p334)
19.03 An article published in the Independent (UK) newspaper in July 2000 stated
that “there are so far no official languages in Eritrea but the two main working
languages are Arabic and Tigrinya, with various other languages spoken, such
as Afar, Bilien, Beja, Kunama, Nara, Saho and Tigre. English is commonly
spoken as a foreign language, as is Italian.” [58]
19.04 Amharic, the main language of Ethiopia, is not an accepted language in post-
independence Eritrea. The BBC reported on 6 January 2003 that the Eritrean
Government had banned Amharic-language songs. The report held that this
was problematic for part of the population, stating “During the war [the 1998–
2000 border war with Ethiopia] thousands of people of Eritrean origin were
deported from Ethiopia and many speak Amharic as their first language.” [8m].
The Ethnologue entry for Amharic states that the number of speakers of
Amharic according to the 1998 census, i.e. before the border war
displacements, were: “17,372,913 in Ethiopia (1998 census). 14,743,556
monolinguals. Population total all countries: 17,417,913. Ethnic population:
16,007,933 (1998 census).” [59] (Ethnologue, 15th edition, 2005)
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19.05 In the April 2003 African Studies Review, in the article ‘Language, education,
and public policy’, Tekle M Woldemikael has studied the Eritrean
government’s promotion of one national language as a lingua franca, while
also strengthening the use of the main indigenous languages as a medium of
education in order to promote ‘unity through cultural diversity’. [74] (p3). The
article notes that English, Arabic, and Tigrinya were privileged over other
languages for purposes of education, business and administration; and that
the policy of ‘mother-tongue education’ has been only partially successful, with
the integration of Tigre as the most successful of the projects. [74] (p4, 5).
Tekle M Woldemikael concludes that the policy of giving instruction in all
Eritrean languages may be abandoned by the government as resources grow
scarce. [74] (p12)
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AFAR/DANAKILS
19.06 The Oslo Centre for Peace and Human Rights 2009 report The Lasting
Struggle for Freedom in Eritrea - Human Rights and Political
Development, 1991-2009, stated:
“The Afar [italics in text of source] is the largest of the Cushitic speaking
groups in Eritrea, inhabiting the lowland coastal strip of Dankalia and they are
also to be found in Ethiopia and Djibouti. The Afar are agro-pastoralists and
are organised on a clan basis.” [92] (p112)
19.07 The Orville Jenkins website also explained that:
“The Afar are a distinct Eastern Cushite people, whose language and culture
are related to the Somali and Oromo. They are very traditional in culture and
belief; retaining many ancient Cushite animistic practices…they are a dark
brown or black people with Caucasian features, similar to the darker Somali
and Oromo. They are likewise distantly related to the ancient Beja group of
peoples, who are Southern Cushites, and related in turn to the ancient
Egyptian race.” [85]
19.08 The Orville Jenkins website also stated that:
“They are referred to by some sources as the Danakil, from the Arabic name
of the Danakil Depression, or Desert, near the Red Sea in Ethiopia and
Eritrea. The Amharic name for them is Adal. Adal was the name of an ancient
Muslim empire that almost defeated the old Abyssinian Empire at one time.
They call themselves Afar, which means in their language ‘The Best’ or ‘First.’”
[85]
19.09 Information in the Africa Guide, published in 2003, provided further
information:
“The Afar nomads have a very unique culture. Their daily life consists of
tending to livestock including goats, camels, and a few cattle located in this
region. The Afar people are very dependent on the livestock for the economy.
Religion is also a part of the Afar way of life. The majority studies the Muslim
religion. There is a small percentage that practices Orthodoxy.” [65] PDF page 82
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BARIA/NARA
19.10 The Lonely Planet Guide to Eritrea (2000 edition) stated that “The Nara, also
known as the Baria, tribes make up 1.5% of the population and inhabit the
Barka Valley near the Sudanese border.” [32] (p333). The Encyclopedia of the
Peoples of the World adds “they speak Nara, a Nilotic language. The Baria are
Sunni Muslims. They are sedentary agriculturalists. The academic ethnic label
‘Baria’ (Bareya) has in Amharic the literal meaning of ‘slave’, denoting the
status of the Baria (and the adjacent Kunamas) in the eyes of their dominant
neighbours.” [56] (p97)
HEDAREB/BEJA/BENI AMBER/BENI AMER
19.11 The Lonely Planet Guide to Eritrea stated that:
“The Hedareb, along with their ‘brother’ tribes the Beni Amer and Beja, make
up 2.5% of the population, and inhabit the north-western valleys of Eritrea,
straddling the border with Sudan…most Hedareb are nomadic and travel great
distances in search of pasture. The people are Cushitic in origin (probably
directly descended from the ancient Beja tribe) and speak mainly Tigre and an
ancient Beja language. The Beni Amer are a strongly patriarchal, socially
stratified, almost feudal people. Their skills as camel drivers and in raising
camels are legendary. Many of the men scarify their cheeks with three short,
vertical strokes – the Italians called them the ‘111 tribe’.” [32] (p331-32)
BILEN/BOGOS
19.12 The Lonely Planet Guide stated that “the Bilen inhabit the environs of Keren
and make up 2.1% of the population. Cushitic in origin, the Bilen are either
sedentary Christian farmers or Muslim cattle rearers.” [32] (p332). The World
Directory of Minorities adds “the mostly agricultural people comprise two main
tribes of about 15,000 each: Bet Teqwe and the Gebre Terqe.” [6]. The
Encyclopedia of the Peoples of the World notes “they speak Bilin and Tigre,
members of the central Cushitic language group. Until the second half of the
nineteenth century, they were Ethiopian Orthodox Christians, but since then
have shifted to Sunni Islam with a smaller number becoming Roman
Catholics.” [56] (p112)
19.13 The Lonely Planet Guide stated that:
“Bilen traditional society is organised into kinship groups. The women are
known for their brightly coloured clothes and their gold, silver or copper nose-
rings which indicate their means and social status. Like the Beja language,
Bilen is slowly being replaced by Tigre, Tigrinya and Arabic, due to
intermarriage, economic interactions and because Arabic is taught in local
schools.” [32] (p332)
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KUNAMA
19.14 The Lasting Struggle for Freedom in Eritrea report, published by the Oslo
Centre for Peace and Human Rights in 2009, stated that:
“The Kunama is one of the smallest ethnic groups in Eritrea, and is estimated
to number between 50,000 and 140,000 people. They live in small scattered
communities in the areas around the Setit and Gash river basin (western
lowlands), which extends up to and along the Eritrean and Sudanese border in
Eritrea and the adjacent districts of Humera and Adi Abo in the Tigray regional
state in north-western Ethiopia. The town of Barentu in the Gash-Setit area
has traditionally been viewed as the Kunama ‘capital’. [92] (p119)
“…the Kunama people are today nominally divided into four main groups:
Kunama Aimasa, living in the western part of the provincial capital town of
Barentu; Kunama Barka, living along the river Gash in the south-eastern part
of Barentu; Kunama Marda, residing in the north-eastern part of Barentu; and
Kunama Tika, living along the river Gash in the southern part of Barentu. The
traditional political structure was territorially defined, dividing the Kunama into
six political divisions, which are divided in turn into three to four sections
corresponding to well-defined localities.” [92] (p119)
19.15 The UK fact-finding mission reported in April 2003 that:
“The Kunama has traditionally relied on the Ethiopian Army when larger and
more powerful ethnic neighbours attacked them. For historic reasons,
although the majority of the Eritrean population strongly supported Eritrean
independence, the Kunama still maintained their support for the Ethiopian
army, although there was also support for independence and a number of
Kunama fought on the side of the Eritrean Liberation Front (ELF). ‘the Kunama
people were in fact divided in opinion and had a great respect for the
Ethiopians as well as many believed in Eritrea as a separate and independent
nation. In the absence of a unifying Kunama political figure all conflicting
opinions were heard’, stated Gilkes [a consultant on the Horn of Africa].”
[3] (p42)
19.16 The UK fact-finding mission report noted that “land disputes between the
government and the Kunama, whereby the Kunama are pushed into ever-
diminishing tribal lands, as the non-Eritrean population expands to relieve
pressure in the more densely populated parts of Eritrea. This is further
complicated by a history of conflict between the Kunama and the EPLF/PFDJ
(the ruling Eritrean party and its armed force precursor). 1994 Land
Proclamation (Law No. 58/1994): This is the principal piece of legislation
regulating land ownership, and stipulates that all land is the property of the
state.” [3] (p42). Dr Patrick Gilkes, a consultant on the Horn of Africa gave
information to the UK fact-finding mission in its report on the 1991–1997
Tigrean migration in Barentu and other Kunama areas, their subsequent flight
after the arrival of Ethiopian troops in 2000, and later return. [3] (p44)
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19.17 A UNHCR report, dated 5 July 2007, stated that:
“The UN refugee agency has begun the resettlement in the United States of
some 700 ethnic Kunama refugees from Eritrea, flying out a first group of 29
from Addis Ababa after years of exile in northern Ethiopia.
“…the 700 due for resettlement in the United States were displaced by the
1998-2000 border war between their native Eritrea and Ethiopia. The UNHCR-
assisted operation is due to last until September [2007] and the Kunamas will
be flown to several US cities, including Atlanta, Orlando, Seattle and Las
Vegas.
“The refugees are members of a largely rural ethnic group of about 100,000
people who reside on the disputed Ethiopia-Eritrea border. They crossed into
Ethiopia complaining of alleged persecution and harassment by the Eritrean
government.
“…today, almost 1,300 Kunama refugees are in Ethiopia, but not all of them
want to be resettled in the United States.
“Several hundred withdrew their applications for resettlement, apparently due
to their strong sense of kinship and a desire to remain close to their ancestral
lands. They hope that one day a lasting political solution will be found and they
will be able to return home.” [18a]
19.18 The US State Department Human Rights report for 2009 added that “there
were reports of government and societal discrimination against the Kunama,
one of nine ethnic groups, residing primarily in the west.” [4i] (section 6)
RASHAIDA
19.19 The Lonely Planet Guide to Eritrea stated:
“The Rashaida are the only true Eritrean nomads. Making up just 0.5% of the
population, they roam the northern coasts of Eritrea and Sudan, as well as the
southern reaches of the Nubian desert. Like their neighbours the Beja (related
to the Hedareb) they live by raising cattle and are Muslim…their language is
Arabic…the Rashaida people are known for their great pride; marriage is only
permitted within their own clan. The people are expert goat rearers, as well as
merchants and traders along the Red Sea coasts.” [32] (p333)
SAHO
19.20 Information published in 2007 in the World Directory of Minorities website
indicates that “sandwiched between Afar and Tigre are Saho nomads and
semi-nomads…Saho speak local languages but have also used Arabic in
commercial dealings and have long been exposed to foreign influence in the
form of trade with expanding empires.” [6].
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19.21 The Oslo Centre for Peace and Human Rights 2009 report The Lasting
Struggle for Freedom in Eritrea - Human Rights and Political Development,
1991-2009, stated that the:
“Saho [italics in source of text] is more like a linguistic category, based on a
shared East Cushitic language, than an ethnic group. The Saho inhabit the
escarpment region between the eastern lowlands and the kebessa [italics in
source of text]. They are clustered in small pastoral nomadic and semi-
nomadic groups. It is believed that the origins of the diverse groups speaking
Saho are mixed, including elements from the Afar, Tigrinya, Tigre, and others.”
[92] (p112)
19.22 The Lonely Planet Guide added that:
“Many Saho children (up to the age of 16) wear little leather pouches around
their neck, which are full of herbs and spices to ward off evil spirits…The Saho
are organised in patrilineal descent groups. The leaders, elected by the male
assembly, are known as ‘rezantos’, and were formerly military chiefs in times
of war.” [32] (p331)
TIGRINYA
19.23 The Oslo Centre for Peace and Human Rights 2009 report The Lasting
Struggle for Freedom in Eritrea - Human Rights and Political
Development, 1991-2009, stated:
“Tigrinya [italics in text of source] is the language of the highland population,
which is the largest population group in the country, possibly constituting
around 50 per cent of the total population. They usually refer to themselves as
‘highlanders’ (kebessa) [italics in text of source], but the term describing their
language (Tigrinya) is generally used to denote the ethnic group also. The
Tigrinya speakers are also to be found in the urban centres of the lowlands
and the ports of Massawa and Assab, and in [the] neighbouring Tigray
regional state of Ethiopia. They are mostly sedentary agriculturists, and share
a common tradition of Orthodox Christianity, but include also groups of Roman
Catholics and a small minority of Jeberti [italics in text of source], Tigrinya-
speaking Muslims. Muslims have traditionally been denied access to land in
the Christian Orthodox highlands, thus today the Jeberti are mostly merchants
and urban dwellers.” [92] (p111)
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JIBERTI/DJIBERTI/JEBERTY
19.24 A Canadian Immigration and Refugee Board (IRB) Response to Information
Request, dated 7 December 2005, stated:
“In 26 November 2005 correspondence sent to the Research Directorate, a
professor at the Department of History of the University of Durham, who
conducted research on the recent conflict between Ethiopia and Eritrea, stated
that the Eritrea Jiberti community is ‘small’ but ‘complex’. Without clarifying
this statement, the professor of history described the relationship between the
Jiberti community and the Eritrean government authorities as ‘uneasy’ (26
Nov. 2005).” [68b] PDF page 86
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19.25 The UNHCR Writenet report, published in October 2006, ‘Eritrea: challenges
and crises of a new state’, adds, regarding the Jiberti, “a Muslim Tigrigna-
speaking group, which claims unique historical-religious antecedents, has
been calling for recognition of the group as an ‘ethnic’ group,…pursuant to
this, they have established the Eritrean al-Nhada Party.” [18d] (p18)
TIGRE/TEGRE
19.26 The World Directory of Minorities and Indigenous Peoples publication stated
that:
“The Tigre (Tegre) peoples, who represent about one-third of the country’s
population, are dominant. Culturally and ethnically they are related to the Beja
of Sudan. Claiming Arab origin, their language, Tigre, is Semitic. Mostly
Muslim, their primary occupation is cattle herding. Most are nomadic,
however, some have settled by rivers such as the Barka and on state cotton
plantations...Tigre is used to describe the people who speak Tigre and the
language itself. It shared origins with Tigrinya but is now very different. Its use
is declining under the impact of Tigrinya in Eritrea.” [6]
19.27 The Oslo Centre for Peace and Human Rights 2009 report The Lasting
Struggle for Freedom in Eritrea - Human Rights and Political
Development, 1991-2009, stated further:
“The Tigre [italics in text of source] group is constituted of diverse peoples
inhabiting parts of the western lowlands, the northern highlands, the northern
coastal plains, and parts of the Dahlak islands. The ten or so different clans
speaking the Tigre language, of which the largest is the Beni Amer, do not
form a distinct ethnic entity, although they share a common adherence to
Islam.” [92]
19.28 The Encyclopedia of the Peoples of the World stated that the Tigre also speak
“Bedawiye and Arabic. They are Sunni Muslims or Ethiopian Orthodox
Christians. A major shift from the latter to the former religion took place during
the first half of the nineteenth century, which loosened Tigre links with the
Ethiopians”. The same Encyclopedia noted that “the Tigre include ten major
tribal units: Ad Sawra, Ad Sheikh, As Mu’allim, Aflenda, Bet Asgede, Bet Juk,
Marya, Mensa, Meshalit and Sabdarat”, and also noted that “historically ‘Tigre’
was used to denote a vassal to a ruling stratum claiming descent from the
Beni Amer or Saho.” [56] (p600). The Lonely Planet Guide stated that “Tigrean
society is traditionally hierarchical, with a small aristocracy known as
‘shemagille’ ruling the masses. When the village leader dies, his power passes
to his offspring.” [32] (p330).
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20. LESBIAN, GAY, BISEXUAL AND TRANSGENDER PERSONS
20.01 The International Lesbian and Gay Association State-sponsored Homophobia
report, published in May 2009, stated that in legislative terms, Eritrea follows
the old Ethiopian law and homosexual acts (both male and female) are illegal.
The punishment for homosexual acts is imprisonment. The actual prison
sentence can be as short as ten days or as long as three years. [12]
20.02 The US State Department Human Rights report for 2009 stated that:
“Homosexuality is illegal, and homosexual persons faced severe societal
discrimination. The government accused foreign governments of promoting
the practice to undermine the government. There were no known official
discriminatory practices against civilians, although there were uncorroborated
reports that known homosexual persons in the military were subjected to
severe abuse. There were no known lesbian, gay, bisexual, or transgender
organizations in [the] country.” [4i] (section 6)
20.03 According to the UNHCR Eligibility Guidelines for Assessing the International
Protection Needs of Asylum Seekers from Eritrea report, published in April
2009:
“Homosexuality is illegal in Eritrea. Pursuant to the ETPC [Eritrean
Transitional Penal Code], sexual, or any other ‘indecent’, act performed with a
person of the same sex is prohibited, and offenders are prosecuted and
punished. Those, who have previously come to the attention of the authorities
due to their sexual orientation, may be targeted.
“Homosexuals are reportedly arrested and detained in the same facilities as
(suspected) political dissidents. Furthermore, homosexuals face severe
societal discrimination.” [18c]
20.04 Most of the above information is reiterated in the Canadian IRB’s reply to a
request, dated 28 February 2007.
http://www.unhcr.org/refworld/docid/469cd6b815.html [68e]
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21. DISABILITY
21.01 The US State Department Human Rights report for 2009 noted that:
“The law and unimplemented constitution prohibit discrimination against
persons with disabilities in employment, education, or in the provision of other
state services, and there were no reports of discrimination in practice…there
are no laws mandating access for persons with disabilities to public
thoroughfares or public or private buildings, but many newly constructed
buildings provided such access.” [4i] (section 5)
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22. WOMEN
LEGAL AND POLITICAL RIGHTS
22.01 The US State Department Human Rights report for 2009 noted that:
“Women have a legal right to equal educational opportunities, equal pay for
equal work, and equal property rights; however, in practice men retained
privileged access to education, employment, and control of economic
resources, particularly in rural areas. Women generally did not enjoy a social
status equal to men.”
“…the National Union of Eritrean Women (NUEW), Ministry of Labor and
Human Welfare, and Ministry of Health were the primary government offices
responsible for ensuring legal rights of women.” [4i] (section 6)
22.02 As regards political rights, according to the US State Department Human
Rights report for 2009, women as well as men cannot join opposition political
parties in Eritrea or vote in free democratic elections, as Eritrea is a one-party
state, and the Eritrean government does not permit free elections. [4i] (section
3).There are, however, women in government positions and government
administration as noted in the same report: “Women held four ministerial
positions in the government: justice, labor and human welfare, tourism, and
health. Women also served in other senior government positions, such as
mayors and regional administrators.” [4i] (section 6)
SOCIAL AND ECONOMIC RIGHTS
22.03 A Canadian IRB reply to a request, published on 28 February 2007, gave
details of the work of the National Union of Eritrean Women, described as an
Eritrean Government-sanctioned “non-governmental organization as well as a
government mechanism concerned with equality”. [68g]
22.04 According to the Suwera Centre for Human Rights report, The State of Human
Rights in Eritrea 2008, published in August 2009:
“Women receive low wages than men at a rate of 50-80% and they only
constitute 7.4% of the skilled labour force in the country. However the low rate
of the [sic] employment among females in the field of teaching, which is
considered favourable to them, well demonstrates the big margin between
males and females in the employment market. Women constituted only 11%
of the teaching staff in the intermediate and secondary school stages in the
school year 2002-2003.” [22] (p9)
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MARRIAGE
22.05 According to a 2008 Ohio University Centre for International Studies report on
Eritrea:
“In most Eritrean ethnic group[s] marriage is a sacred institution because the
family is believed to be a strong and solid building block of society. Marriage is
one of the societal links between two partners that enhance the patriarchal
system and the male dominant tradition where gender bias is highly
perpetuated. The experience of marriage and divorce reveals that the
marriage relationship in most Eritrean communities is highly influenced by
inherited attitudes and traditional cultural practices. Customary rules of
marriages vary among the ethnic groups. Generally, girls marry at an early
age, sometimes as young as fourteen. A large share of marriages in the rural
areas are still arranged by the family groups concerned. As a result traditional
marriage practices within different areas may vary from one ethnic group to
another, for example, betrothal arrangement, wedding day ceremony, the
practice of dowry, the family life and the regulations with respect to divorce
and child custody are as an example of the difference.
“In most Eritrean ethnic groups except the Kunama, women do not choose
their partners. Whatever form of marriage is sanctioned in Eritrea, the
arrangement require great care and participation of the communities among
which the parents and partners live.” [48]
22.06 The World Organisation Against Torture (OMCT) has stated in a report
published in 2003 entitled Violence against Girls in Eritrea, that:
"Eritrean civil law provides that the minimum age for marriage for both
girls and boys is 18. Nevertheless, customary law carries great weight in
Eritrean society and often girls are married at ages well below the legal
limit.
“It is widely acknowledged in Eritrea that girls are married earlier than
boys. The traditional view holds that the ideal age for marriage for a girl
is between 12 and 18.”
“It is widely acknowledged in Eritrea that girls are married earlier than
boys. The traditional view holds that the ideal age for marriage for a girl
is between 12 and 18. In one study, the view was expressed that marrying
girls at a young age was necessary to ensure their virginity before
marriage and protect ‘the woman from sin.’ The ideal age for marriage
for men is not correspondent with that of women. In the study mentioned
above, many respondents claimed that men should wait until they are
between at least 20 and 25, with some asserting that 25 be the minimum
age, because of the many responsibilities a man assumes once he is
married.” [43]
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VIOLENCE AGAINST WOMEN
22.07 The US State Department Human Rights report for 2009 stated that:
“Violence against women was pervasive. Domestic violence is a crime;
however, domestic violence cases were rarely brought to trial, and there were
no legal penalties enshrined into law. Women seldom openly discussed
domestic violence because of societal pressures. Such incidents were more
commonly addressed, if at all, within families or by clergy. The authorities’
response to domestic violence was hindered by a lack of trained personnel,
inadequate funding, and unsupportive societal attitudes.” [4i] (section 6)
22.08 A Canadian IRB reply to a request, published on 28 February 2007, added
that “a May 2003 report published by the World Organization Against Torture
(Organisation mondiale contre la torture, OMCT) in 2003 identifies dowry
payments and honour crimes as contributing to violence against women.”
[68g]
For information about FGM, see Children - Female Genital Mutilation (FGM)
22.09 The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees Eligibility Guidelines for
Assessing the International Protection Needs of Asylum Seekers from Eritrea
report, published in April 2009, added:
“Violence against women, including domestic violence and rape, is reportedly
widespread in Eritrea, despite criminalization of such practices…furthermore,
cases of domestic violence are rarely prosecuted and no legal penalties for
such crimes are enshrined into law. Abortion is illegal and pregnancy out-of-
wedlock is strongly condemned by the community, and could lead to physical
and psychological violence, or even death.” [18f] (p27)
22.10 Regarding rape, the US State Department Human Rights report for 2009
stated that:
“Rape is a crime punishable by up to 10 years’ imprisonment, while gang rape
or rape of a minor or an invalid is punishable by up to 15 years in prison.
Sexual assault is punishable by six months to eight years in prison. It was
unclear whether spousal rape is illegal. No information was available on the
prevalence of rape. Authorities often responded to reports of rape by
encouraging the perpetrator to marry the victim.” [4i] (section 6)
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TRAFFICKING OF WOMEN
22.11 Anti-Slavery International, in its working paper Trafficking in women forced
labour and domestic work in the context of the Middle East and Gulf region,
published in 2006, stated:
“Eritrea is mainly a sending country of migrants. It is currently not possible to
establish how many are possibly trafficked. Most information available
suggests that Eritrean women migrate for employment to the Middle East and
Gulf countries, some of them hoping that they will get to Europe. The use of
smugglers is widespread, as it is often difficult to leave the country legally.
There seem to be no efforts by the Eritrean authorities to address trafficking in
persons. As far as the TPO was able to establish, there is no legislation on
trafficking and embassies do not provide any services, nor do they help if a
trafficked migrant worker is being repatriated. In fact, some of the migrant
workers interviewed, made it clear that the repatriation back to Eritrea is the
least desired scenario, as they claim to have reasonable grounds to fear
compulsory military service and/or some form of punishment for having
illegally emigrated from the country.” [33]
See also Trafficking
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23. CHILDREN
OVERVIEW
23.01 The CIA World Factbook section on Eritrea (27 May 2010 version) stated that
it is estimated that 42.5 per cent of the population is below the age of 15
years, and of these, it is estimated that there are 1,235,457 males and
1,224,142 females. Infant mortality is high, with 42.33 deaths per 1,000 live
births. There are no significant gender imbalances in the population at birth
(1.03 male to 1 female), in the general child population (1.01 male to 1 female)
or in the general adult population (0.96 male to 1 female). [28]
23.02 Eritrea is a signatory to the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the
Child (CRC), the International Labour Organisation Minimum Age Convention
1973 (ILO 138) and the African Charter on the Rights and Welfare of the
Child, and acceded on 16 February 2005 to the optional protocol. [80] (Child
Soldiers Global Report 2008)
BASIC LEGAL INFORMATION
23.03 According to the United States Law Library of Congress “while the age of
majority according to the [Eritrean] Civil Code is 18 years of age, the Civil
Code also recognizes marriages between the age of 15 and 18 in recognition
of Eritrean customary marriage practices.” [90]. The US State Department
Human Rights report for 2009 noted that the “legal minimum age for marriage
for both men and women is 18, although religious entities may bless
marriages at younger ages.” [4i] (section 6). This report also stated that the “the
legal minimum age for employment is 14 years” and that the law prohibits
minors from working in transport industries or working underground, such as in
mines and sewers.” [4i] (section 7). According to the 2008 Child Soldiers Global
Report, the legal voting age in Eritrea is 18 years of age and 18 is the
minimum age for voluntary recruitment into the armed forces. [80]. Only
persons over the age of 18 are required to undergo national service duties,
including compulsory military service according to the National Service
Proclamation. [13]
LEGAL RIGHTS
23.04 The Constitution only mentions children s pecifically in Article 22 in relation to
the right to enjoy family life and that “parents have the right and duty to bring
up their children with proper care and affection; and, in turn, children have the
right and the duty to respect their parents and to sustain them in their old age.”
[2] (Article 22)
JUDICIAL AND PENAL SYSTEMS
23.05 There have been reports that during mass detentions and giffas, children have
been detained with families. [23] (Journal Chrétien, 9 June 2007). There have
also been reports that detainees have been separated from dependent
children.
See Freedom of religion - arrests and detentions
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VIOLENCE AGAINST CHILDREN
23.06 The US State Department Human Rights report for 2009 noted that there are
“no laws against child abuse and no government programs to combat the
problem. Physical punishment was widespread and socially accepted.” [4i]
(section 6). The Committee on the Rights of the Child, in the ‘Treaty Body
Report: Rights of the Child: Eritrea - 6 June 2003’ stated “the Committee is
concerned at the lack of available data on ill-treatment of children, including
child abuse and corporal punishment. It also notes with concern that corporal
punishment is not expressly prohibited by law and is widely practiced in the
home and in institutions.” [43] (section 31)
FEMALE GENITAL MUTILATION (FGM)
23.07 The US State Department Human Rights report for 2009 reported that:
“An estimated 94 percent of girls had undergone FGM. Almost all ethnic and
religious groups in the country practiced FGM, despite extensive government
efforts to curb the practice. In the lowlands, infibulation - the most severe form
of FGM - was practiced. In 2007 the government issued a proclamation
declaring FGM a crime and prohibiting its practice. The government and other
organizations, including the NUEW [National Union of Eritrean Women] and
the National Union of Eritrean Youth and Students, sponsored a variety of
education programs during the year [2009] that discouraged the practice.” [4i]
(Section 5)
23.08 The Inter-Parliamentary Union (information on Eritrea undated) added further
detail:
“Infibulation, excision and sunna are reportedly practised in Eritrea by Muslims
and Christians. According to WHO, the prevalence was 97% in 1995 despite
positions taken against FGM by the Eritrean People’s Liberation Front and the
National Union of Eritrean Women. However, the IPU has no first-hand official
statistics or other details on this subject.
“The IPU has no information on the existence of specific legislation.
”…in 1996, government policy was enunciated to eliminate FGM; to create
and enforce legislation prohibiting practices such as FGM; to include in
women’s health care the prevention of such practices as FGM; and to provide
treatment, counselling and rehabilitation for women suffering from FGM-
related complications. The Government includes information on FGM in its
health and general education programmes. The Ministry of Health carries out
government policy relating to FGM and provides training on the topic to
primary health care coordinators throughout the country.” [54]
23.09 According to the Suwera Centre for Human Rights report, The State of Human
Rights in Eritrea 2008, published in August 2009:
“On 20 March 2007 the Eritrean government issued Decree No. 2007/158
banning the circumcision of females or female genital mutilation (FGM).The
decree includes five articles. Under the fourth article, it states that anyone who
practices FGM shall be imprisoned from 2 to 3 years and pay the fine of 5,000
to 10,000 Nakfa (local currency). In cases where circumcision leads to death, PDF page 95
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the imprisonment can be between 5 to 10 years. The Decree punishes anyone
who seeks, instigates or encourages circumcision of females by providing
tools or other means by imprisonment from 6 months to one year in addition to
paying 3,000 Nakfa. And if the one practicing circumcision is working on [sic]
the health services, the punishment is doubled, and the court may suspend
professional licenses for a period of up to two years…however, since the
issuance of the Decree, no one was reported to have been or put in custody
under the stipulations made in this Decree. [22] (p10)
“The government to date hasn’t published any statistics about the Decree’s
contribution in lessening the high rate of the practice of circumcision or FGM in
Eritrea which reached 89% according to the Eritrean government’s report to
[the] CEDAW Committee in New York in 2006.” [22] (p10)
TRAFFICKING
23.10 Awate reported in an article dated 24 August 2007, that:
“Through its connections with Sudan’s Eastern Front, the Eritrean regime is
now trafficking Eritrean children to the Gulf States to serve as camel jockeys.
The ‘legal’ age for camel jockeys is 15 and it is not clear whether the children
Eritrea is exporting are 15 or much younger. What is clear is that the Arab Gulf
States prefer children who are 8-12 years old.
“According to our source, the children have been taken from the surrounding
areas of Tessenei in Western Eritrea. The trafficking is said to be carried out in
coordination with officials from the Eastern Front who carry Eritrean diplomatic
passports. The cash-starved Eritrean regime has a long history of participating
in any commercial activity that will raise money. Shortly after independence, it
organized a maid export service charging the mostly young females exorbitant
rates for exit visas and work permits in the Middle East.” [50x]
See Trafficking for wider overview
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CHILDCARE AND PROTECTION
ORPHANS
23.11 The Home Office Fact-Finding Mission April 2003 report notes that the
Eritrean Government’s policy is to avoid institutionalising orphans, and instead
of orphanages, the Government promotes reunification programmes, foster
care, adoption, and a system of community-based children’s homes (also
known as group care). UNICEF (according to the UNICEF representative in
Eritrea) regarded the alternative programmes as models of good practice for
countries in similar situations. [3] (p73). Children’s homes of 10 to 12 children
and two housemothers are the Government’s preferred option to institutional
care, if the extended family cannot be used. [3] (p72-73). The review of
placements is undertaken by social workers of the Ministry of Labour and
Human Welfare, with regular checks, though hampered by lack of guidelines
and a lack of skilled staff. [3] (p73)
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23.12 With regards to the formal orphanage system, the fact-finding mission was
informed that:
“There are several large orphanages within Eritrea adding that Asmara has
one of the biggest. Orphanages are either run by the state or Christian NGOs
in the country. They are considered by UNICEF to have satisfactory facilities
such as adequate bedding, food and clothing provisions etc. Acceptability for
entry to an orphanage is universal; there are no unacceptability rules that
apply. Eritrea does all that it can for orphans, and the Eritrean public and
expatriate community supports them in this policy.” [3] (p73-74)
23.13 The United Nations Mission in Ethiopia and Eritrea (UNMEE) notes in an
article Orphans benefit from Eritrea’s strong family values, dated 13
September 2007, that:
“Thanks to the Eritrean tradition of strong family values, the dedication and
commitment of the country’s Ministry of Labour and Human Welfare and its
close collaboration with UNICEF and other UN agencies, the number of
orphans in the country has decreased significantly since 1992. Today Eritrea
has 50,000 orphans compared to the 90,000 identified by a national survey in
1992.” [88]
23.14 The UNMEE article also noted:
“One of the projects that has helped to bring about this change is known as
Mahzel which has been implemented in Gash Barka region. Ms Leila Blacking,
Chief of UNICEF’s Communications Section explained that the project, which
is named after a traditional baby carrier made of leather, addresses the
problems of the most vulnerable orphans identified by community committees
and then referred to a central committee for consideration. In most cases, the
orphans are placed with their extended family and the assistance provided
covers the cost of looking after the child, and the provision of a means of
income for life for the child.” [88]
23.15 The UNMEE article stated that:
“According to the Social Welfare Department statistics more than 27,000
orphans were reunited with blood relatives or host families under the “Mahzel”
project. Mr. Habtom Sium, Director of the Department said that one of the
preferred options is to place orphans within their extended families. In
collaboration with other stakeholders, the department has so far reunited
42,000 with either their extended families or with other families willing to take
them in. However, Mr. Habtom also explained that the number of children who
have been adopted has not been encouraging. For those orphans who cannot
be reunited with their extended families or adopted, a community-based group
care programme, which provides group homes, was started in 1996. To date,
there are 19 group homes all over the country providing homes for 132
orphans.” [88]
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23.16 The UNMEE article explained that:
“In Eritrea, Mr. Habtom said that institutional care for orphans remains a last
resort and as a result, institutions in Keren and Mendefera have closed.
Asmara Orphanage Centre, established in 1945, is still open but only cares for
278 orphans, compared to 10,000 in 1993. Shelter, food, schooling,
counselling, vocational training, guidance, health, sport and recreation are the
principal facilities provided by the orphanage. The children are aged between
1 up to 18 years old. Following the growing number of children that HIV/AIDS
has orphaned, the Department offers 200 Nakfa a month, per child, to the
care-taking family. UNICEF’s Child Protection Officer, Mr. Baerbel Hoefers,
said that the Mahzel project deals partly with children who have lost parents to
AIDS while stressing that additional fund[s] would be needed to address this
issue.” [88]
23.17 The UNMEE article concluded that:
“ ‘Demobilisation of an orphan begins immediately after 18,’ said Mr. Habtom,
‘with all the counselling given to prepare the orphan to lead his future life. The
orphan has to have completed high school and in the process of seeking
further studies or getting a job.’ Because orphans are less likely to go to
school than children within the family unit, education remains a top priority for
all programmes involving these children. Mr. Habtom also mentioned a
successful education programme, initiated in 1992, aimed at helping street
children and young commercial sex workers. More than 9,000 street children
have benefitted from the programme and Nakfa10 million has been invested in
changing the lifestyle of young prostitutes.” [88]
See Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs)
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EDUCATION
23.18 Europa World (accessed on 12 May 2010) stated that
“Education is provided free of charge in government schools and at the
University of Asmara. There are also some fee-paying private schools.
Education is officially compulsory for children between seven and 13 years of
age. Primary education begins at the age of seven and lasts for five years.
Secondary education, beginning at 12 years of age, lasts for up to six years,
comprising a first cycle of two years and a second of four years. According to
UNESCO estimates, in 2005/06 primary enrolment included 46.5 percent of
children in the relevant age-group (boys 49.8%; girls 43.2%), while the
comparable ratio for secondary enrolment was only 25.1% (boys 30.1%; girls
20.1%).” [1]
23.19 The US State Department Human Rights report for 2009 report noted that:
“Education through grade seven is compulsory, and tuition-free; however,
students were responsible for uniforms, supplies, and transportation, which
was prohibitively expensive for many families. Education above grade seven
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schools and teachers at all levels, remedied in part by holding morning and
afternoon shifts at schools. In rural areas, young girls usually left school early
to work at home.” [4i] (section 6)
23.20 Europa World (accessed on 12 May 2010) noted that:
“In 2004/2005 there were an estimated 5,500 students enrolled on bachelor
degree courses at the University of Asmara. The University of Asmara was
officially closed in September 2006. Higher education would henceforth be
provided by six newly-established technical institutes, each associated with a
relevant Government ministry. The institutes provide education in the fields of
science, technology, business and economics, social sciences, agriculture and
marine training.” [1]
See also School leavers and conscription
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HEALTH AND WELFARE
23.21 The health of Eritrean children has improved over the last few years according
to an article published in the Shaebia website in December 2008:
“Eritrea is one of the few third world countries that are expected to achieve the
Millennium Development Goals on the health sector in general and child
health in particular. The country has registered remarkable progress in child
mortality rate over the last 17 years.
“…while African children’s health care situation is at a low level, Eritrea has
given a good lesson to the rest of the continent. Eritrea reduced child death
rate by 50 percent and that makes it one of the few countries on track for
achieving the Millennium Development Goals.
“According to the report of the Ministry of Health, the achievement is attributed
to regular vaccination, public campaigns, dedication of health workers, high
community participation, and above all the political commitment of the country.
Consequently, Eritrean children are now free from polio, measles, tetanus and
the malaria mortality rate has also dropped dramatically over the last few
years.
“Community based child health care, one of the most effective measures, was
established in 2005 in 17 villages, and in 2007 it reached 63. These centers
played an important role in the provision of health services to remote areas of
the country where the majority of the people live.
“The distribution of vitamin A to Eritrean children was also one of the main
factors in the child health development. Every year, the Ministry of Health
distributed and regularly followed the process. Health workers visited remote
areas of the country where there are no health centers to provide children with
vitamin A.” [51]
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improve the health of Eritrean children, as noted in an article in its website
(accessed on 27 April 2010):
“Having endured a thirty year struggle for independence and a recent border
skirmish, Eritrea’s health system was inadequate with poor facilities, and
lacking both supplies and skilled healthcare staff. In 1995, just 41% of
children 12-23 months were fully vaccinated and 38% had received no
vaccinations at all. Infant and child mortality rates were 72 and 136 per 1000,
respectively.
“USAID provides approximately $2.5 million annually to improve maternal and
child health in Eritrea. As part of this larger assistance program, the Ministry of
Health (MoH) identified several key areas in which USAID could make a
contribution to improving immunization and child health. USAID, through a
$2.3 million grant, helped to supply both equipment and training in the
implementation and management of an expanded program for immunization.
“USAID also assisted the MoH to begin the implementation of integrated
management of childhood illness (IMCI). With USAID help, the MoH
conducted a baseline survey to determine the ability of health facilities and
health workers to implement IMCI. Over 500 health care providers at all levels
of the health care system were trained in IMCI case management.
“A follow-up assessment of health facilities was completed in 2003 and
showed tremendous improvement in the availability of equipment and drugs
necessary to implement IMCI. Assessment practices of providers also
improved – checking for the three danger signs increased from 0% to 37%;
checking for cough, diarrhea and fever increased from 25% to 89%; and
checking immunization status increased from 19% to 58%.
“Immunization coverage increased in fully vaccinated children 12-23 months
from 41% in 1995 to 76% in 2002. According to the Demographic and Health
Survey (DHS), this level of immunization coverage is the highest among sub-
Saharan African countries in the past five years and the rate of improvement -
83% over 7 years - is remarkable at a time when immunization coverage has
decreased in Africa on average.” [20]
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24. TRAFFICKING
24.01 The US State Department 2009 Trafficking in Persons report, published in
June 2009, stated:
“Eritrea is a source country for men, women, and children trafficked for the
purposes of forced labor and commercial sexual exploitation. In connection
with a national service program in which men aged 18 to 54 and women aged
18 to 47 provide military and non-military service, there have been repeated
reports that some Eritreans in military service are used as laborers on some
commanding officers’ personal properties, as well as in the construction and
agricultural sectors, functions outside the scope of the Proclamation of
National Service (No. 82/1995)…reports concerning these workers also noted
that, with the exception of a small stipend, pay for their work was remitted
directly to the Eritrean government.” [4d]
GOVERNMENT EFFORTS TO TACKLE TRAFFICKING
24.02 The US State Department 2009 Trafficking in Persons report stated:
“The Government of Eritrea does not fully comply with the minimum standards
for the elimination of trafficking and is not making significant efforts to do so.
The Eritrean government does not operate with transparency and published
neither data nor statistics regarding its efforts to combat human trafficking; it
did not respond to requests to provide information for this report.
“…the Government of Eritrea made no known progress in prosecuting and
punishing trafficking crimes over the reporting period. Articles 605 and 607 of
the Eritrean Criminal Code prohibit trafficking in women and young persons for
sexual exploitation; procuring women and children to engage in prostitution is
punishable by up to five years’ imprisonment, which is not commensurate with
punishments prescribed for other grave crimes. Forced labor and slavery are
prohibited, except when authorized by law, under Article 16 of the ratified but
suspended Eritrean Constitution, but there are no known laws or enabling
proclamations specific to trafficking for labor exploitation. Proclamation 11/199
prohibits the recruitment of children under 18 years of age into the armed
forces. The government did not publish information on investigations or
prosecutions, if any, of human trafficking offenses during the reporting period.
“…the government made no known efforts to prevent future incidences of
trafficking during the reporting period. Eritrean media, all state-owned, made
neither public announcements nor media presentations regarding human
trafficking during the reporting period…although the government does not
publicly acknowledge human trafficking as a problem, an office exists within
the Ministry of Labor to handle labor cases, including human trafficking; the
accomplishments of this office during 2008 are unknown. Limited resources
and a small number of inspectors impeded the ministry’s ability to conduct
investigations; the government did not provide information on the number of
child labor inspections it carried out in 2008. The government is implementing
a national plan of action on child labor that primarily focuses on integrating or
reintegrating children with families, communities, and schools as a means of
preventing child labor, or rehabilitating children engaged in child labor...
Eritrea has not ratified the 2000 UN TIP Protocol.” [4d]
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PROTECTION AND SUPPORT SERVICES
24.03 The US State Department 2009 Trafficking in Persons report stated:
“The government did not appear to provide any significant assistance to
victims of trafficking during the reporting period. The Ministry of Labor and
Human Welfare oversees the government’s trafficking portfolio, but individual
cases of transnational human trafficking are reportedly handled by the Eritrean
embassy in the country of destination; information regarding embassy efforts
to assist trafficking victims was not provided. The government has no known
facilities dedicated to trafficking victims and does not provide funding or other
forms of support to NGOs for services to trafficking victims. The government
severely limited the number of foreign NGOs permitted to operate in the
country; of the few remaining NGOs, none operated anti-trafficking programs.
During the reporting period, the government operated a program to identify
children involved in commercial sexual exploitation and reintegrate them with
their families. Nearly 300 children engaged in prostitution received support
through this program in 2007; the government did not make available similar
information on the programs’ accomplishments in 2008...the government did
not ensure that victims are not inappropriately incarcerated, fined, or otherwise
penalized solely for unlawful acts committed as a direct result of being
trafficked.” [4d]
See Trafficking of children; Trafficking of women
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25. MEDICAL ISSUES
GENERAL
25.01 The World Health Organisation Eritrea Country Cooperation Strategy report
published in August 2009 stated that:
“Since independence in 1991, Eritrea has made considerable progress in
promoting equitable, accessible and affordable health services to the majority
of its citizens with the support of its partners. This is demonstrated by the
significant improvement of health indicators.
“…although there is a Primary Health Care Policy, the over all [sic] national
health sector policy will soon be finalized and endorsed by the higher
authorities. The country still experiences acute shortage of human resource at
all levels of the Health Care delivery System. The health service is delivered in
a three tier system in the country and an effort to improve the referral system
is underway.” [41c]
25.02 Information [undated] published in the Asmera.nl website indicates that:
“Medical care is improving rapidly in Eritrea, new hospitals and health facilities
are opened every year. Modern facilities may not always [be] available outside
Asmara…basic non-prescription medicines are available in Asmara, but the
selection is not large. Supplies of medicine can be irregular. Visitors should
bring a supply of any necessary drugs and prescriptions.” The same site has
photographs posted of main hospitals and one of the pharmacies in Asmara.
[25a]
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OVERVIEW OF AVAILABILITY OF MEDICAL TREATMENT AND DRUGS
25.03 The World Health Organisation’s Eritrea Country Cooperation Strategy report,
published in August 2009, stated that:
“The health infrastructure has made considerable progress. Currently, there
are 25 hospitals, 52 health centers, 180 health stations and 113 clinics. Over
sixty different medicine products are locally produced; key medicines are
available in 95% of health facilities and there is no shortage of supplies and
equipment. There is a National Drug Laboratory that undertakes the quality
control. Blood for transfusion is screened for transmissible infections including
HIV/AIDS, Hepatitis and syphilis. Chronic diseases like Diabetes,
Hypertension, Mental Health and infectious diseases like Tuberculosis,
HIV/AIDS and other Sexually Transmitted Diseases are treated free of charge.
The Government sustains the payment of all health professionals,
maintenance of infrastructure and equipment and other running and capital
investments.” [41c]
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25.04 According to information published in the AmeriCares (NGO) website
(accessed in April 2010):
“Ongoing violence, recurring droughts and a rural population in Eritrea pose
great challenges for the new country's health care system. Eritrea gained its
independence from neighboring Ethiopia in 1993. Ninety percent of the
country's 5 million people are allowed to access free medical treatment at
public hospitals and clinics.
“However, Eritrea has only one doctor per 10,000 people and most health
care providers are located in urban areas. With 80% of the country's
population living in rural areas, it is much harder to access health care or
travel to urban health facilities. The lack of access to medical care leads to
needless deaths in patients with treatable illnesses, new mothers and children
under the age of 5.
“Strengthening the public health system is a priority. In recent years,
significant investments have been made and several new hospitals and
teaching facilities were opened to reach medically underserved communities.”
[9]
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HIV/AIDS
25.05 The 2008 United Nations General Assembly Special Session on HIV/AIDS
(UNGASS) report, produced by the Eritrean Ministry of Health, National AIDS
and TB Control Division, gives background information on HIV/AIDS in Eritrea:
“Like in other developing countries, HIV/AIDS has become a major threat for
Eritrea’s socio-economic development as it affects its major productive labor
force. The first AIDS case was reported in 1988. At present, the estimated
number of people living with HIV is in the range of 70,000 – 100,000.
According to the nationwide ANC sentinel surveillance conducted in 2005, the
prevalence of HIV in pregnant women was 2.38%. There were variations
between regions/zones, age groups and occupations. In 2006, special surveys
were also conducted on the most-at-risk populations, namely CSWs in
Asmara, Massawa and long distance truck drivers nationwide. The HIV
prevalence rates were 8.08%, 14.67% and 7%, respectively. Another study
that was conducted in TB patients in Asmara showed HIV prevalence of
34.33% indicating that co-infection rate was high. In comparison to the 2.38%
prevalence in the general population HIV prevalence in the most at risk
populations is very high and needs extensive targeted intervention.” [71] (p6)
25.06 The main government initiative to combat HIV/AIDS is the HAMSET project
launched in 2001: “HAMSET stands for HIV/AIDS, Malaria, Sexually
Transmitted Diseases and Tuberculosis. It is a World Bank supported
multisectoral project which involves government ministries, civil society (Non
Government Organizations, Faith based organizations, private sector and
people living with HIV/AIDS).” (UNGASS 2008) [71] (p7)
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25.07 The UNGASS report 2008, stated, regarding treatment:
“In Eritrea, the estimated number of adults and children with advanced HIV in
2006 were 12,600. Of these only 1,884 were receiving antiretroviral therapy in
accordance with the country’s approved treatment protocol, constituting 15%.
In 2007 the estimated number of adults and children with advanced HIV were
12,940, of which 3,062 were receiving antiretroviral therapy, constituting 24%.
It is worth noting here that ART is provided freely to all who are medically
eligible.
“The estimated population infected with HIV in the country lies in the range of
70, 000–100,000. The National Strategic Framework has the provision of
treatment, care and support as one of its major goals. In line with this, the
MOH has recently finalized a series of national ARV and clinical care
guidelines and implementation plans. In 2006, the MOH prepared Eritrean
HIV/AIDS Care Manual. The government has acknowledged that with the
increase in the number of HIV infected people, they will rely on conversant
compassionate providers of care to help them understand a complicated
illness, to assist them in coping with HIV-related diseases, and to provide
them with comfort and treatment needed to improve the quality and length of
their life.
“In order to meet these goals, it would be essential to mobilize all available
health care providers and resources in the country (NATCoD, 2006).
Due to the relatively low prevalence and urban dominance of the epidemic,
63% of AIDS cases are reported from the hospitals in the capital city.
Therefore, the antiretrovirals are provided in these hospitals and other
hospitals located in the Zones. Officially ART was launched in the country in
September 2005 in five designated sites in the capital city and other towns.
Since its launching ART was expanded to the six Zones and by the end of
2007 at least one ART site exists in each Zone. As of 2007, 14 out of the 30
public, military and private hospitals are providing antiretrovirals, constituting
47% of these health facilities.” [71] (p35)
25.08 A report entitled Relentless Endeavors Underway to Prevent HIV/Aids
Infection, published in the Shabait website in December 2009, about medical
services for people with AIDS stated that:
“The number of visitors of the voluntary HIV/AIDS blood testing and counseling
service is on the rise which in turn contributed to the reduction of HIV infection,
stated Dr. Andeberhan Tesfatsion, director of HIV/AIDS and TB in the Ministry of
Health.
“In a meeting held at Hotel Asmara Palace, he commended the encouraging
endeavors of all institutions and partners in preventing the spread of the infection
and uprooting the discriminatory attitude of the society towards persons living with
HIV/AIDS.
“Dr. Andeberhan further pointed out that the Government is working diligently in
introducing age prolonging medicine (ART- Antiretroviral Therapy) and distributing
it to people living with HIV/AIDS free of charge, and thereby enable [sic] them
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“He explained that although the spread of HIV/AIDS is at its lowest level in Eritrea
compared to other countries in the region, concerted action is nonetheless
needed as the country is located in high-risk zone.” [26b]
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KIDNEY DIALYSIS
25.09 Shabait reported in November 2008 that “dialysis treatment for patients
suffering from kidney disease has been introduced in Eritrea. Accordingly,
Orotta Referral Hospital has introduced four modern equipments [sic] to this
end.” The report also stated that “Eritrean nurses have been trained to
properly monitor the newly introduced equipments [sic]”, and also that
“previously, patients who require dialysis treatment used to travel abroad for
the treatment.” [26a]
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MENTAL HEALTH CARE
25.10 The World Health Organisation (WHO) Mental Health Atlas 2005 stated in its
Eritrea country profile that though there is a mental health policy devised in
1997, there is no specific mental health legislation other than provisions in the
Penal Code; there is no national mental health programme, nor budget
allocations for mental health. [41a] (p1-2). On actual provision, the WHO Mental
Health Atlas states “Mental health is a part of the primary health care system.
Actual treatment of severe mental disorders is available at the primary level.
Severe mental disorders are primarily treated at the tertiary level (at St Mary’s
Psychiatric Hospital). However, limited care is available at secondary and
primary levels.” [41a] (p2). The WHO Mental Health Atlas 2005 notes that
phenobarbital, chlorpromazine, and diazepam are available at the primary
health care level. [41a] (p3).
25.11 The WHO published a report in 2006 about the mental health care system in
Eritrea. This report stated that:
“In 1971 the government built a special neuro-psychiatric hospital in southwest
Asmara, called St. Mary’s Hospital. This hospital was planned to provide 120
beds, a number that increased significantly in time to a today’s number of 160
beds. The wards have since been changed from big sleeping hallways of 36
beds, to smaller compartments with 4 to 6 beds. The hospital now consists of
several wards, which make up the inpatient department, as well as an
outpatient department. [41b] (p6)
“…in 2005, the mental hospital staff consisted of one psychiatrist/director, one
matron, one administrator, four head nurses, eight psychiatric nurses, one
psychology graduate, eleven general nurses and twenty-two health assistants,
supported by a laboratory and a pharmacy. [41b] (p6)
“…there are two wards for male patients (one for civilians and one for military
patients) and one for female military and civilian patients. Until now, the only PDF page 106
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way to restrain patients has been to chain them to their beds by their ankles.
About one-third or more of all patients are chained. [41b] (p7)
“…the outpatient department is open 5.5 days a week. About 10 new patients
are seen on a daily basis, which means about 2,700 new patients a year are
served. Sometimes patients are referred, but the majority of patients refer
themselves. Most patients (both in and outpatients) come from the Asmara
region. [41b] (p7)
“…during the last few years the MoH [Ministry of Health] has been training
around 60 primary care workers in basic mental health knowledge; physicians
as well as nurses in one week training are trained to diagnose and treat the
most frequent psychiatric disorders and to do follow up…although some of
these professionals are able to apply their knowledge, the majority are not
able to do this since there is not a good distribution system of psychotropic
drugs and they do not have access to these drugs. [41b] (p7)
“…Eritrea’s mental health policy was last revised in 1998 and includes the
following components: developing community health services, downsizing
large mental hospitals, developing a mental health component in primary
health care, human resources, involvement of users and families, advocacy
and promotion, human rights protection of patients, equity of access across
different groups, financing, quality improvement an a monitoring system.
[41b] (p10)
“In addition, a list of essential medicines is present. These medicines include
Antipsychotics, Anxiolytics, Antidepressants, Mood stabilizers and
Antiepileptic drugs. [41b] (p10)
“…according to the data for the year 2004, the total number of human
resources working in mental health facilities or private practice is 0.83 per
100,000 [of the] population. The breakdown per 100,000 [of the] population is
as follows: 0.06 psychiatrists (2 psychiatrists), 0.06 other medical doctors (2
medical doctors not specialized in psychiatry), 0.33 nurses (12 nurses), 0.03
(1 psychologist), but no social workers or occupational therapists.” [41b] (p18)
See also Overview of availability of medical treatment and drugs
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26. HUMANITARIAN ISSUES
26.01 In June 2009, United Nations IRIN reported that:
“Eritrea is facing a food crisis, but aid workers say they cannot fully determine
its severity as they are unable to assess the situation because of travel
restrictions and the government's policy of ‘self-reliance’.
“The rains have failed again this year, in what is one of the driest regions in
Africa. One aid agency report said the country had produced only about 30
percent of its food requirements in 2008/09.
“According to a recent report by the UN Children's Fund (UNICEF), rates of
acute malnutrition in the northern provinces of Gash Barka and Anseba were
above the emergency threshold of 15 percent; by February 2009, admission
rates to therapeutic feeding centres were already two to six times greater than
in 2008.
“UNICEF warned that higher global food prices could be affecting up to 2
million Eritreans, more than half the population of 3.6 million. UN agencies
have projected that the 1.3 million people living below the poverty line would
suffer most.
“…the average family cannot afford the most popular staple grains, such as
teff, which retails at $8 per kg in Asmara, and is used to make injera, a
pancake that is the mainstay of an Eritrean meal. A family of four would
consume at least 25kg of teff a month, amounting to $200, so teff has become
a luxury rather than a staple.” [19c]
26.02 According to the UNICEF (United Nations Children’s Fund) Humanitarian
Action Report 2010:
“Poor and erratic rainfall characterized much of the first half of 2009 in Eritrea,
a country located in one of the driest parts of Africa and where seasonal rains
are vital for subsistence. The worsening situation has been compounded by
the effects of high food prices which have impacted heavily on the coping
mechanisms of many households, pushing an increasing number of people
into displacements and forcing women and children to live or work on the
streets. Malnutrition is on a stark rise as a result, with admissions to
therapeutic feeding centres as much as six times higher in 2009 than last year.
The presence of landmines in Eritrea remains a major threat, with children
comprising around half of the casualties and fatalities caused by the detonation
of unexploded ordnance.” [27]
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26.03 A BBC News report, published in December 2009, indicated that the Eritrean
government’s policy on food distribution may have worsened the food shortage
problem that exists in some parts of the country:
“Eritrea's drive for food self-sufficiency is opening it to allegations of grain
confiscation - a charge the government denies, and which is difficult to verify.
“Nineteen million people in the Horn of Africa are expected by the UN to need
food aid to survive after failing rains aggravated a drought which has already
destroyed crops and starved livestock.
“However, Eritrea is turning down food aid.
“Girma Asmerom, Eritrea's ambassador to the European Union, told the BBC
‘foreign food aid demonises the local people and makes them lazy’.
“He said the Eritrean government had its own strategy for dealing with the food
shortage, including transporting grain from parts of the country which, he said,
had enjoyed a bumper harvest.
“But Eritreans who have fled across the border to a refugee camp in northern
Ethiopia told us their government's policy was causing widespread hunger.
“Farmers from Eritrea said the government had seized their harvest, paying
them as little as 8% of the market value.
“…supporters of the policy say it keeps the price of basic food low.
“But the refugees told us that the quantity the government allows a family to
buy is not enough and that police arrest anyone found selling extra grain at
market value.
“When we contacted Girma Asmerom, he strongly denied that the government
was seizing food from farmers.” [8p]
See Economy
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27. FREEDOM OF MOVEMENT
27.01 The US State Department Human Rights report for 2009 noted:
“The law and unimplemented constitution provide for freedom of movement,
foreign travel, emigration, and repatriation; however, the government restricted
some of these rights in practice.
“…while citizens could generally travel freely within the country and change
their places of residence, the government restricted travel to some areas
within the country, particularly along the border with Sudan and Ethiopia. The
government continually modified its requirements to obtain passports and exit
visas, sometimes suspending passport or exit visa services without prior
warning. Citizens participating in national service were often denied internal
travel permits, passports, and exit visas. Many persons who previously were
issued passports were not allowed to renew them, nor were they granted exit
visas. Military police periodically set up roadblocks in Asmara and on roads
between other cities to find draft evaders and deserters. Police also stopped
persons on the street and forcibly detained those who were unable to present
identification documents or movement papers showing they had permission to
be in that area.” [4i] (section 2d)
27.02 The Human Rights Watch 2009 Service for Life - State Repression and
Indefinite Conscription in Eritrea report stated:
“Severe restrictions on freedom of movement are in place. As more and more
of its citizens leave the country, the government’s methods to try and stem the
exodus have become more brutal…within Eritrea, movement is equally
circumscribed through a variety of mechanisms. [29e] (p62)
“…a visitor to Eritrea in late 2008 described buses being frequently stopped
and passengers asked for ID cards: some possessed laminated cards
showing that they had completed national service, others had letters
authorizing travel to a specific place and for a limited period of time.” [29e] (p63)
27.03 Foreign nationals in Asmara need permission to travel outside the city, as
noted in the Travel Advice (updated March 2010 version) section of the United
Kingdom Foreign and Commonwealth Office website:
“All foreign nationals are required to have a travel permit to leave Asmara.
This includes Embassy officials and other foreign nationals resident/working
in Eritrea. Those working outside Asmara are also required to have a travel
permit to leave their area of residence or work. Applications for such travel
permits in Asmara are handled by the Department of Protocol of the Ministry
of Foreign Affairs (or relevant ministry). Applications outside Asmara are
handled by the local Zoba (Region) Administration Offices. Permission may
take several days to be granted and is sometimes refused or delayed.” [10c]
See also Round-ups (Giffa)
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28. INTERNALLY DISPLACED PEOPLE (IDPS)
28.01 An Internal Displacement Monitoring Centre report Eritrea: IDPs returned or
resettled but border tensions remain, published in February 2009 stated:
“In early 2006, the government stepped up its return and resettlement efforts
with the goal of returning all IDPs to their home areas or moving them to
resettlement villages. In March 2006, it estimated that there were almost 8,900
displaced households in the border regions of Gash Barka and Debub
(Government of Eritrea, March 2006). This would correspond roughly to
45,000 individuals. Of those, over 30,000 people had returned to their areas of
origin or resettled by September 2007, including an estimated 10,000 people
who had been living with host communities.
“…various UN sources have reported that by mid-2008, all IDPs in Eritrea had
either returned or been resettled…according to a UNDP source, some IDPs
were still living with hosts at the beginning of 2009 (UNDP-Eritrea, January
2009).
“…on the political front, the continuing impasse over the demarcation of the
border and the status of the town of Badme presents an ongoing serious risk
of renewed conflict and a major source of instability in the Horn of Africa.
Following the Ethiopian government’s refusal to accept the virtual demarcation
of the border by the EEBC, the unilateral Eritrean implementation and
expulsion of UNMEE peacekeepers significantly increased the risk of new
conflict.” [84]
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29. FOREIGN REFUGEES
29.01 The US State Department Human Rights report for 2009 described the
situation regarding people seeking refuge in Eritrea:
“The country was not party to the 1951 [United Nations] Convention relating to
the Status of Refugees and its 1967 Protocol, and was not party to the 1969
African Union Convention Governing the Specific Aspects of the Refugee
Problem in Africa. As a result the government cannot provide legal refugee or
asylum status; however, in practice the government provided protection
against the expulsion or return of refugees to countries where their lives or
freedom would be threatened on account of their race, religion, nationality,
membership of a particular social group, or political opinion. The government
provided temporary protection to approximately 135 persons from Sudan and
4,300 persons from Somalia on a prima facie basis. Reports indicated that the
government provided resources to Ethiopian refugees only if the refugees
joined Ethiopian opposition groups. Ethiopian refugees who did not join
opposition groups reportedly were harassed by government officials.
“The government required noncitizens to pay an annual fee for a residency
card; there was no discrimination regarding nationality. The fee was 500 Nakfa
($34), which was used to demonstrate that a foreigner was not indigent. If the
foreigner could not pay the fee he was first referred to the ICRC for
repatriation. If he refused repatriation, he was incarcerated for 60 days, at
which point the cycle began again.” [4i] (section 2d)
29.02 Awate reported on 24 March 2008 that Sudanese, Ethiopian and Somali
opposition groups amongst refugee populations, who had formerly been
welcomed by the Eritrean Government, were finding that they had become
victims of the general economic collapse as the Eritrean Government was no
longer able to financially support them. Thus, Sudanese, Ethiopian and Somali
opposition groups are in the process of relocating from Eritrea. [50n]
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30. CITIZENSHIP AND NATIONALITY
30.01 The Eritrean Nationality Proclamation No.21/1992 published in April 1992
details the criteria and law regarding Eritrean Nationality. [7]
30.02 On 27 January 2004, the Home Office received a letter from the Eritrean
Embassy in London clarifying certain points with regards to obtaining Eritrean
nationality from the UK. The letter stated that:
“a A person who is with an Eritrean father/mother would be eligible for
Eritrean nationality as long as the person provides three witnesses.
b The political views of the three witnesses are not relevant to establishing
the nationality.
c The political views of the applicant for nationality are not relevant to
establishing eligibility for nationality and obtaining an Eritrean passport.
d The voting in the 1993 Referendum is not a necessary precondition to
establishing nationality.
e Paying a 2% tax on nationals overseas is not a precondition for eligibility
for Eritrean nationality and obtaining a passport.
f Claiming refugee status overseas does not preclude eligibility for Eritrean
nationality or obtaining an Eritrean passport.
g All application forms are filled in pe rson by the applicant at the Embassy’s
consular section and has [sic] to be authorised by the Ministry of Foreign
Affairs in Eritrea. No application forms out of the standard provided by the
Embassy are accepted.” [14]
30.03 A British fact-finding mission reported on 29 April 2003 that “if a person’s
parents or grandparents were born in Eritrea you will certainly be entitled to
Eritrean nationality but will have to prove this.” It was also confirmed that
applicants would not be asked about their views, political or otherwise.
[3] (p46-48)
VERIFICATION OF NATIONALITY: THREE WITNESSES
30.04 The British fact-finding mission [FFM] report published on 29 April 2003
contains the most detail about ‘the three witnesses method’. [3] (p48). The FFM
states “An applicant can call on any ‘three witnesses’ to verify that the
applicant is an Eritrean national. The ‘three witnesses’ must be Eritreans who
hold an Eritrean identification card or passport. Though every adult is
supposed to have a national ID card and anyone holding an Eritrean passport
would be in possession of that card, identity records are not centralised and it
is often difficult to find information about an individual…while documentation
can help a person to prove nationality the Eritrean government now relies on
the ‘three witness’ rule.” [3] (p48)
30.05 Furthermore, it noted that “they [an applicant] can choose any three Eritreans
in the world that they know personally. The person abroad will have to go to
the Eritrean embassy of that country in order to answer questions. These are
standard questions about how long they have known the person, relationship
etc. They sign a piece of paper that is then faxed onwards.” [3] (p48)
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MIXED MARRIAGES AND MIXED BIRTH
The following paragraphs relate to reunions of partners in mixed Eritrean and
Ethiopian marriages.
30.06 A British fact-finding mission reported on 29 April 2003 that “in most cases a
mixed marriage will prove to be no problem if both partners are already in
Eritrea. If they are split between Eritrea and Ethiopia then the ICRC arranges
visits and temporary reunions…if both partners are in Eritrea…the non-
Eritrean would apply for a residence permit. This is also the situation if a
person is unable to prove nationality. While a person attempts to prove their
credentials, a person is given a residence permit, these are renewable every
six-months. With most residence permits a person is allowed to work….in
cases where a person is part of an expelled mixed marriage they will if at all
possible be dealt with faster…the Eritrean Government is very sympathetic to
such cases.” [3] (p50)
30.07 This 2003 FFM report also noted that:
”In the case of a mixed birth a person would generally not have too many
problems as long as they can prove that they have Eritrean roots. This would
make them eligible for Eritrean nationality under the normal procedures of the
nationality proclamation.” [3] (p50)
30.08 In comments prepared for the Advisory Panel on Country Information meeting
on 8 March 2005, UNHCR stated [regarding family reunion and the ICRC
arranging visits between split families] that:
“In reality, this is extremely difficult for the majority of cases and not all are
able to avail themselves of the ICRC mechanism, which is the only possibility
for travel between the two countries. A person must decide to move
permanently to the other country if they are to repatriate with ICRC and often,
Ethiopia will not accept the arrival of an Eritrean spouse and vice versa.” [18b]
30.09 In comments prepared for the Advisory Panel on Country Information meeting
on 8 March 2005, UNHCR stated [regarding nationality issues]:
“If a couple is in a mixed marriage, it is very difficult to acquire Eritrean
nationality for the foreign spouse who wishes to do so. With regard to dual
nationality, the person will only be regarded as an Eritrean citizen if s/he is in
Eritrea and no consideration will be taken to the other nationality, an issue
which has caused some friction between certain western diplomatic missions
and the Government of Eritrea, especially with regard to detention cases.”
[18b]
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STATUS OF ETHIOPIANS IN ERITREA
30.10 The Human Rights Watch report, The Horn Of Africa War: Mass Expulsions
and the Nationality Issue, published in January 2003, noted that:
“The legal status of Ethiopian residents in Eritrea who had not sought Eritrean
nationality at the time of the war’s outbreak [1998 – 2000 war between
Ethiopia and Eritrea] does not appear to be in dispute. The Eritrean
government as a rule considered them as aliens. It did not automatically issue
the Eritrean national identity card or passport to these Ethiopians nor did it
recruit them for employment reserved for nationals. Ethiopians were also not
called up for military service in Eritrea. For the purposes of residency and
departure procedures, the Eritrean government continued to deal with
Ethiopian nationals under the normal institutions and procedures governing
aliens residing in the country, i.e. they were required to acquire residency
permits and obtain exit visas to leave the country.” [29a] (p31)
30.11 The British fact-finding mission of April 2003 reported that:
“One international observer commented to the delegation that since 2000 the
attitude towards Ethiopians had changed, not as a result of any Government
led initiative but as a result of a shift in the attitude of the public and police
towards them. The inability to earn a living had been a leading cause for those
that chose to be repatriated. Without the possibility of work they have little
option but to leave.” [3] (p45)
30.12 The Canadian IRB noted in a reply to a request dated 20 February 2007 that
the ICRC had continued to assist with repatriations. The UNMEE had
monitored the process and the reply added that:
“The UN Secretary-General noted that ‘persons of Ethiopian origin continue to
face discriminatory practices in Eritrea, including the demand for payment or
high ‘repatriation clearance fees’. He further noted that persons of Eritrean
extraction were reportedly detained prior to their repatriation. In several of his
reports to the UN Security Council, the Secretary-General reiterated appeals
to the governments of Ethiopia and Eritrea ‘to ensure that the repatriations
remain voluntary and that they are carried out in a proper and dignified
manner’.” [68c]
30.13 An International Committee of the Red Cross report, published in August
2009, stated that “the Eritrean authorities have informed the International
Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) that it will no longer be involved in any
repatriation of Ethiopians from the country. According to the authorities, this
decision was motivated by the unilateral cancellation of two repatriation
operations in late 2008 and early 2009 by Ethiopia”. The report further stated
that since 2000, more than 43,000 Ethiopian and Eritrean civilians have been
repatriated to their respective countries, and that “the decision of the Eritrean
authorities to terminate the ICRC’s involvement in the repatriations does not
affect the right of Ethiopian nationals to leave Eritrea if they wish to do so.”
[40b]
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31. FORGED AND FRAUDULENTLY OBTAINED DOCUMENTS
31.01 According to information from a Response to Information Request, dated 8
July 2008, published by the Research Directorate of the Canadian Immigration
and Refugee Board (IRB), the Eritrean government is aware that some
Eritrean national identity cards have been fraudulently obtained but does not
know how common this practice is. The Response to Information Request also
refers to a report published by the “The Indian Ocean Newsletter” dated 3
March 2008, about Ethiopian refugees buying Eritrean national identity cards
in ‘Khartoum from Eritrean intermediaries’. [68f] (p50)
31.02 Information dated 8 July 2008 from another IRB Response to Information
Request, stated that:
“To obtain the [Eritrean] national identity card, a person has to prove that
he/she is [of] Eritrean origin. A person is said to be [of] Eritrean origin, if
he/she was a resident in Eritrea in 1933. Any one born from such a person
(either father or mother, or both) is also considered [to be of] Eritrean origin.
- This can be proved:
- by presenting a certificate of birth,
- three witnesses, who are above the age of 40, or
- any other relevant document.” [68d]
31.03 According to the US State Department’s Visa reciprocity schedule (accessed
in April 2010):
“Eritrean passports do not show the applicant’s nationality…posts [American
diplomatic posts] may issue visas in the Eritrean passports, but should insist
that another document indicating nationality…is also presented with the
passport when possible. Eritrean National ID cards are only issued in Tigrinya
and Arabic to those over 18 years of age and are easily alterable, making
proof of Eritrean citizenship difficult to determine.” [4c]
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32. EXIT AND RETURN
PASSPORT APPLICATIONS
32.01 According to information obtained from the British Embassy in Asmara in April
2010:
“Individuals working in a government ministry or agency must obtain
ministerial permission before applying for a passport. Other individuals must
obtain authorisation from a local government administrator and present a birth
certificate, any military/national service medical exemption documents, and an
ID card. The administrator will then instruct the Department of Immigration
(which has offices in regional capitals) to issue a passport. All of the
Department of Immigration’s regional offices can issue passports. There is a
fee for this service. For some time now, it has been very difficult to obtain first-
issue passports. In practice, those individuals who are exempt from
military/national service, such as people who are ill or old, as well as
government officials who need to travel abroad on official business, will find it
easier to obtain passports. Even in these cases, however, there is no
guarantee that a passport application will be accepted. Passports, which are
due to go biometric at some point, are printed in English, Tigrinya and Arabic.”
[10e]
32.02 The US State Department Human Rights report for 2009 noted that:
“The government does not recognize dual citizenship; therefore, all persons of
Eritrean descent are citizens. In general citizens had the right to return;
however, citizens had to show proof that they paid the 2 percent tax on foreign
earned income to be eligible for some government services, including exit
visas upon their departure from the country. Applications to return to the
country filed by citizens living abroad were considered on a case-by-case
basis if the applicant had broken the law, contracted a serious contagious
disease, or was declared ineligible for political asylum by other governments.”
[4i] (section 2d)
32.03 On 1 June 2006, new regulations were brought in by the Eritrean authorities
regarding the entry into, and travel within Eritrea, by foreign nationals. The
Government of Eritrea required all visitors and foreign residents to obtain
travel permits for any travel outside Asmara city limits. [4b] (US Overseas
Security Advisory Council [OSAC], 19 March 2008); [38a] (Eritrea Daily,
31 May 2006). The OSAC travel warning stated that “the GSE [Government
of the State of Eritrea] has cited security and safety concerns as the reasons
for requiring travel permits for all travel outside Asmara.” [4b]
See Freedom of Movement
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EXIT VISAS
32.04 The Eritrean government requires Eritrean citizens to obtain exit visas before
they are allowed to leave the country, which for many Eritreans are difficult to
obtain, as noted in the US State Department Human Rights report for 2009:
“Citizens and some foreign nationals were required to obtain exit visas to
depart the country. Persons routinely denied exit visas included men up to the
age of 54, regardless of whether they had completed national service; women
under the age of 47; members of Jehovah’s Witnesses; and other persons out
of favour with, or seen as critical of, the government. In 2006 the government
began refusing to issue exit visas to children 11 years and older. The
government also refused to issue exit visas to children, some as young as five
years of age, either on the grounds that they were approaching the age of
eligibility for national service or because their expatriate parents had not paid
the 2 percent income tax required of all citizens residing abroad. Some
citizens were given exit visas only after posting bonds of approximately
150,000 nakfa ($10,000).” [4i] (section 2d)
32.05 According to information obtained from the British Embassy in Asmara in April
2010:
“Exit visas used to be issued in sticker form but following a 2009 alleged visa
scam are now stamps. They are produced in a standard format, in English
only.
“Exit visas are not issued free of charge. The cost is currently around £8
(GBP) for a single exit visa. If government officials are travelling on official
business we assume, but cannot confirm, that they do not pay fees.
“Exit visas are issued by the Department of Immigration which has regional
offices. All these regional offices have the authority to issue exit visas.
Applicants must apply in person only.
“…in practice, the majority of Eritreans wishing to travel abroad are not issued
with exit visas and therefore cannot leave the country legally. Government
officials and ministers can certainly obtain exit visas provided they have been
given authorisation to travel abroad on official business. People who need
medical treatment abroad can also obtain exit visas. Businessmen will almost
always have to satisfy the age limit. In other words, they would have to be
over the age of 57 before they would be allowed to apply for an exit visa.
Women are not given preferential treatment or dispensation. For example, we
know of many Eritrean women who have undergone military service, or are
married and have children, but have still been refused exit visas for bona fide
journeys abroad. Religious ministers or clerics can obtain exit visas if they
need to travel abroad to attend meetings or events in connection with their
religious faith, but they would have to belong to one of the officially recognised
religions, such as the Roman Catholic Church.”
“…multi-exit visas are not issued. Exit visas are valid for one month and for
one journey only.” [10e]
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32.06 The Awate report, For PFDJ, Yesterday’s Target is Today’s Income
Opportunity, published in September 2008, alleged that there is a visa regime
agreed by the Eritrean and the Sudanese Governments that targets all visa
Eritreans leaving Eritrea via Sudan. The report stated that:
“In exchange for Euros and US dollars, the Eritrean embassy in Khartoum
issues Eritrean passports to escapees who secure visas (mostly to the Arab
Gulf states.) Ironically, the Eritrean citizens would have been shot on sight if
the Eritrean government border patrol had spotted them days earlier. Once a
visa is secured for a foreign country, they need to get an exit visa from
Sudan’s immigration office. Following its reconciliation with Eritrean officials,
the Sudanese government has instructed its immigration office not to issue
exit visas to Eritreans unless they bring a no-objection letter from the Eritrean
embassy in Khartoum. Prior to issuing the no-objection letter, the Eritrean
embassy requires the applicants to fill lengthy forms (their relatives,
addresses, etc) and transfers the information to the Eritrea embassies in their
destination country. This assures their loyalty once they arrive in the foreign
land.” [50y]
32.07 The Human Rights Watch 2009 report Service for Life - State Repression and
Indefinite Conscription in Eritrea, added:
“Due to the large number of people fleeing or refusing to return after being
allowed to leave, exit visas are routinely denied for young people who are
eligible for national service. Children from the age of 14 are usually denied exit
visas but the US State Department has reported exit visas refused for children
as young as five. One older woman who had managed to travel to visit her
children abroad described the signs in the Foreign Ministry as saying that only
men over the age of 54 and women over 47 are eligible for exit visas, she
said, ‘only the old can travel.’ ” [29e] (p63-64)
32.08 Individuals who are close to Eritrean government ministers and other
politicians may have more freedom to leave Eritrea than other Eritreans, as
suggested in an Awate article of 21 May 2008:
“A small privileged group composed of the children and families of high
government officials and ministers as well as of loyal cadres, some in need of
specialised medical diagnosis and treatment, are allowed to travel via Asmara
Airport and encouraged to acquire permanent residence permits in the West,
posing as paperless political asylum seekers. When granted refugee status
they travel frequently to Eritrea and remain ardent supporters of the regime
from whom they have sought ‘asylum’. Likewise, many of the perpetuators
[sic] of human rights violations in Eritrea have their entire families transferred
abroad and travel regularly to visit them.” [50k]
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32.09 According to information obtained by the British Embassy in Asmara in April
2010 regarding people who need exit visas to travel abroad for medical
treatment:
“People wishing to travel overseas for medical treatment are required to have
a medical certificate provided by a government medical panel. The medical
panel is made up of doctors who have the authority to carry out a medical
examination on the person concerned. Medical certificates are only issued
after a medical examination has been carried out. Depending on the age of
the person concerned and severity of the condition, the normal requirement for
military/national service exemption papers may be waived. We do not believe
that letters from foreign doctors are also required as it is local medical opinion
that carries weight in these matters.” [10e]
32.10 Awate reported in May 2009 that:
“As of May 1, 2009, all exit visa permits for the unfit and people who leave the
country permanently (after attesting, in writing, that they forfeit their right to
return) are now prohibited. The prohibition against providing visas to those
who haven’t ‘fulfilled their national duty’ (i.e. military service until the age of 50
or more) still stands.” [50d]
See Freedom of Movement
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REQUIREMENT FOR ERITREANS LIVING ABROAD TO PAY TAX
32.11 The Human Rights Watch 2009 Service for Life - State Repression and
Indefinite Conscription in Eritrea report stated:
“There are a variety of ways in which the Eritrean government exerts pressure
on exiles for both financial and political reasons. The government expects all
Eritreans in the diaspora to pay a two percent tax on income. While taxing
expatriates may be a legitimate state function, the manner in which the
Eritrean government coerces individuals into paying this income [tax] presents
serious human rights concerns. If refugees or other Eritrean expatriates do not
pay the two percent tax then the government typically punishes family
members in Eritrea by arbitrarily detaining them, extorting fines, and denying
them the right to do business by revoking licenses or confiscating land.
[29e] (p75)
“The two percent tax is not only a financial mechanism, however. The
government also uses it to consolidate its control over the diaspora population
by denying politically suspect individuals essential documents such as
passports and requiring those who live in Eritrea to provide ‘clearance’
documents of their relatives who live abroad - essentially coercion to ensure
that their relatives have paid the two percent expatriate income tax demanded
by the government. [29e] (p75)
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“... one man living in the UK, a known critic of the government, said that his
family had been denied land that they had applied for in Eritrea, because of
his refusal to pay the tax…clearance is a process whereby an embassy
charges a fee to certify that Eritreans living abroad have paid their dues and
are up to date with the two percent tax…a woman living in Eritrea described
how several of her neighbors had had their business licenses revoked
because their children, residents in the United States, had not paid the two
percent [tax] and they could not provide clearance certificates. [29e] (p76)
“Embassies have particular leverage over many Eritrean immigrants and
refugees who do not have travel documents, and those whose passports
require renewing. A refugee living in Rome had his application for a new
passport refused…’if you don’t pay [the tax] they don’t renew your passport,
with no passport, you have no permit to stay in Italy…so directly or indirectly
you are obligated to pay.’ ” [29e] (p76)
See Freedom of Movement
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ILLEGAL EXIT FROM ERITREA
32.12 The Awate report, No Legal Exit; No Limit On Exodus, dated 25 September
2008, stated that:
“The exile to Ethiopia and Sudan, which was averaging about 300 a month,
has nearly doubled in recent months…most of the embassies in Eritrea do not
provide consular services. Consequently, Eritreans used to go to neighbouring
Kenya, Sudan and Djibouti to get entry visas…most Eritreans under the age of
50 are supposed to be enlisted either in the armed forces or the reserve: the
exit visas used to be granted only to senior citizens and Eritreans requesting
to be re-united with expatriates. Now, Eritrea’s immigration office has issued a
blanket denial for all passport and exit visa requests from Eritrea.” [50q]
32.13 Leaving Eritrea illegally can have serious consequences for the individuals
who attempt to do so, as reflected in the Human Rights Watch 2009 Service
for Life - State Repression and Indefinite Conscription in Eritrea report:
“Human Rights Watch were told by a number of sources that there is an
official ‘shoot-to-kill’ policy in operation against all those trying to cross the
border. A former officer in exile told Human Rights Watch that such an order
was in effect: ‘Now the law is killing people for crossing the border. The law
changed one year ago’. Another more senior officer, specified: ‘There was a
circular. There has been such a large number of people [crossing] that there
was an announcement that anyone who crosses the border will be shot.’ ”
[29e] (p39)
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TREATMENT OF RETURNED FAILED ASYLUM SEEKERS
32.14 Individuals who have been arrested or detained, having returned voluntarily
and not as failed asylum seekers, include Aster Yohannes, wife of one of the
G15/G11 political detainees, and Saleh Ali Sheikh and his wife Saret
Ramadhan, as reported by Amnesty International on 19 May 2004:
“Eritreans returning from abroad, like Aster Yohannes, risk arbitrary detention
if they return to Eritrea and are suspected of opposing the government – even
if they have a foreign passport. In May 2003 two Eritrean nationals, Saleh Ali
Sheikh, and his wife, Saret Ramadhan, were reportedly detained on arrival
from Saudi Arabia at Asmara airport and ‘disappeared’.” [5c] (p22)
See Police - Arbitrary Arrest and Detention
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33. ERITREAN REFUGEES ABROAD
OVERVIEW
33.01 The Human Rights Watch 2009 Service for Life - State Repression and
Indefinite Conscription in Eritrea report stated:
“Eritrea is currently among the top refugee-producing nations in the world.
Fleeing the country is truly a last resort because the conditions facing
refugees abroad are appalling and the punishments inflicted on asylum
seekers who are forcibly returned are terrible, including torture and death. The
Eritrean government considers leaving the country without a valid exit visa a
crime, and absconding from national service is viewed as tantamount to
treason. [29e] (p65)
“Leaving Eritrea is not an easy undertaking. As described above, heavily
patrolled borders, mine-fields, and a shoot-to-kill policy make escape from
Eritrea difficult. Despite this, thousands of people are leaving the country. The
majority of refugees end up in Ethiopia and Sudan in overcrowded refugee
camps. An increasing number try to make it to Europe via Sudan and Libya.
They face difficult conditions crossing the Sahara and risk detention and
extortion at the hands of Libyan and Sudanese police. [29e] (p65)
“…the scale of the Eritrean outflux is increasing. In 2007 the US Committee
for Refugees and Immigrants estimated around 600 Eritreans were crossing
into Ethiopia every month. In January 2009 the Ethiopian government claimed
the number had grown to 900 a month. In 2007 the UN said that at least
10,000 Eritrean refugees arrived in Sudan and by 2008 this had apparently
increased to at least 13,000 known new arrivals, likely a conservative estimate
given that many of them do not apply for refugee status and remain in Sudan
illegally, in transit for Libya. According to UNHCR, in 2008 more than 3,000
Eritreans entered Italy, the main entry point for Eritrean asylum-seekers to the
European Union, an increase of 50 percent over the 2,000 Eritreans who
arrived in 2007.” [29e] (p65-66)
ERITREAN REFUGEES IN LIBYA
33.02 In September 2006, Human Rights Watch published Stemming the flow:
abuses against migrants, asylum seekers and refugees, which includes
information on the Libyan Government’s treatment of Eritrean refugees and
migrants in Libya. In chapter VI, the report outlines the poor conditions that
Eritrean refugees and migrants are detained in, such as in Kufra, with deaths,
neglect and abuse reported. [29b]
33.03 Amnesty International (AI) issued an Urgent Alert dated 8 February 2007 that
expressed concern over the possible forced return of 430 Eritrean nationals, at
that moment held in detention by the Libyan authorities. It stated:
“Reports suggest that the Libyan authorities may have beaten and raped or
sexually abused some detainees, and some detainees may even have died in
custody as a result of such torture or other ill-treatment. According to Amnesty
International’s information, of the 430 detainees, 130 detainees, including
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1,000 km from the Libyan capital Tripoli, while the remaining 300 are detained
in Misratah, about 200km from Tripoli.”
“…in August 2006, 300 Eritreans were detained in Libya and threatened with
deportation. It however appears that they were not deported although the
whereabouts of some of them remains unknown (see UA 225/06, MDE
19/004/2006, 24 August 2006).” [5q]
33.04 AI was further alarmed about returns to Eritrea in January 2008, with news of
the Libyan Government’s programme for the deportation of over one million
illegal immigrants. The BBC reported on 17 January 2008 that Human Rights
Watch had roundly condemned the Libyan Government initiative. [8q]
33.05 The Human Rights Watch 2009 Service for Life - State Repression and
Indefinite Conscription in Eritrea report added:
“Libya has a well-documented history of abuses against migrants including
forcefully returning people to Eritrea. Conditions in detention are terrible, with
detainees often subjected to beatings and other abuse and denied access to
medical treatment or to the UNHCR. [29e] (p70)
“…in July 2008, Libya made plans to return 230 Eritreans, prompting Amnesty
International to warn against their deportation. Amnesty reported that up to
700 Eritreans were being held in Misrata prison and were at risk of
deportation. In late 2008 refugees who had spent time in Misrata before
arriving in Italy told Human Rights Watch researchers of similar numbers of
people in detention in Misrata in appalling conditions. They also said that
Libya is holding hundreds of Eritrean and other asylum seekers in other
locations for extended periods of time.” [29e] (p70)
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ERITREAN REFUGEES IN ISRAEL
33.06 The Human Rights Watch 2009 Service for Life - State Repression and
Indefinite Conscription in Eritrea report added:
“Increasing numbers of Eritreans have arrived in Israel in recent years. Israel
has provided many of the Eritrean asylum seekers who successfully entered
the country with renewable work visas, but does not grant these individuals
formal refugee status. Eritreans are also among the dozens of asylum-seekers
who tried to enter Israel from Egypt but have been stopped, temporarily
detained at the border, and then forcibly returned to Egypt by the Israeli
Defence Forces. Israeli security forces returned hundreds to Egypt in such
fashion during 2008 without assessing their claims for protection. Some of the
Eritreans refused entry by Israel in 2008 were among those subsequently
detained in the Sinai by Egyptian police and then forcibly deported to Eritrea.”
[29e] (p69)
33.07 A United Nations IRIN article of 27 February 2008 mentioned that the Israeli
Government was rounding up over 240 African asylum-seekers, primarily
Eritreans, with a view to conducting mass returns. UNHCR has recorded an
influx of over 7,400 claimants over the past three years. [19b]
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33.08 The Reuters report, Israel deports African migrants to Egypt in crackdown,
dated 31 August 2008, stated that:
“Israel has forcibly returned to Egypt dozens of African migrants who had
slipped into the Jewish state, and rights activists say they fear some are
refugees who risk torture if Egypt sends them home as expected.
“Egyptian security sources said Israel had returned 48 migrants of Eritrean,
Sudanese and Senegalese nationality to Egypt this month [August 2008], and
that Cairo planned to deport them all.
“…activists say Eritreans had surpassed [the] Sudanese as the largest group
of African migrants in Israel. Nearly all arrive via Egypt and include
Pentecostal Christians fleeing religious persecution and others trying to avoid
military service.
“…Egypt for years tolerated tens of thousands of African migrants on its
territory, but its attitude soured in recent months after it came under pressure
to halt a rising flow of Africans across the sensitive Sinai border with Israel.”
[76b]
33.09 According to a France24 News report, published in March 2010, the Egyptian
government has recently stepped up security controls along its border with
Israel, and some Eritreans who have recently tried to cross the
Egyptian/Israeli border illegally have been shot dead. The report stated that
“Egyptian police shot dead two Eritreans on Saturday [27 March 2010] as the
would-be migrants tried to cross the border illegally into Israel, a security
official told AFP [Agence France-Presse]. Four people were also wounded
during the shooting, including one who was in a critical condition, and another
person was arrested.” The report also stated that “earlier this month [March
2010], the United Nations urged Egyptian forces to stop shooting African
migrants trying to enter Israel. Around 60 have been killed in such incidents in
the past two and half years.” [52]
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ERITREAN REFUGEES IN EGYPT
33.10 On 1 July 2008, a total of 740 Eritrean nationals (655 male and 85 female)
were returned en masse from Egypt. Shabait, the Eritrean State news agency,
stated that the returnees “expressed satisfaction with the warm hospitality
accorded them.” [11c]. Awate, on 10 July 2008, expressed reservations on how
the returnees will eventually be treated. [50l]. A Reuters report, dated 8
January 2009, stated that Egypt deported a group of 32 Eritreans in January
2009, most of whom had tried to flee across the Egyptian desert to Israel. The
Eritreans were flown back to their country's capital Asmara. [76c]
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33.11 The Human Rights Watch 2009 Service for Life - State Repression and
Indefinite Conscription in Eritrea report added:
“In June 2008 Egypt returned to Eritrea up to 1,200 Eritreans who had crossed
into Egypt from Sudan. As of late 2008, at least 740 of those returnees were
still imprisoned in Wi’a, the military detention facility in Eritrea. [29e] (p68)
“In December 2008 and January 2009 the Egyptian authorities deported
dozens more Eritreans who had been detained in the Nakhl detention center
in North Sinai and police stations in the nearby city of al-Arish. Around 100 of
the Eritreans detained in Nakhl had earlier been returned to Egypt by Israel.
While detained in Nakhl the Eritreans were visited and registered by officials
from the Eritrean embassy, but UNHCR was denied access to the facility."
[29e] (p68)
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ERITREAN REFUGEES IN ETHIOPIA
33.12 According to the Suwera Centre for Human Rights 2009 report, The State of
Human Rights in Eritrea 2008:
“The flow of Eritrean refugees to Ethiopia started at the end of the war
between Eritrea and Ethiopia in 2000. The refugees were settled in the
Shimelba camp in the Tigrai region since 2004 when they were transferred
from Wa’ala Nehbi camp due to its proximity to the Eritrean border. The
Shimelba camp is located 33kms south of Sheraro town. Another camp has
also been opened in Mai Ayni away from the Eritrean border as the first one
was full to capacity.” [22] (p27)
33.13 A new refugee camp has recently been opened in Ethiopia, as noted in a
report published by the Sudan Tribune in April 2010:
“Ethiopian authorities said this week [12-17 April 2010] [that] they [had]
opened a new [refugee] camp in the northern part of the country to meet the
growing number of Eritrean refugees who arrive each month.
“The new center [refugee camp] located in Adi Harush in Tigray is the fourth to
be established in the region since 2004.
“The first batch of 356 people arrived on Thursday [15 April 2010] at the
camp[.] 80 per cent of this group is composed mainly of young people
between 21 and 34, said a statement released by the [Ethiopian]
Administration for Refugee and Returnee Affairs (ARRA).
“According to the ARRA, up to 2,000 mostly young men and women are now
crossing the [Ethiopian/Eritrean] border each month to ‘avoid excessive
repression, gross human rights violations and forced conscription into the
army.’ ” [62c]
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33.14 The US State Department Human Rights report for 2009 on Ethiopia stated:
“As in the previous year [2008], an average of 800 to 1,000 new Eritrean
refugees arrived monthly, while approximately 400 to 600 Eritrean refugees
departed monthly on secondary migration through Egypt and Sudan to go to
Europe and other final destinations. The UNHCR assisted in the reception and
transportation back to My Ayni of more than 150 Eritrean refugees who had
been detained in Egypt and deported by the Egyptian authorities.
“The government required all refugees to remain in designated camps, most
of which were located near the borders with Eritrea, Somalia, and Sudan,
unless granted permission to live elsewhere in the country. Such permission
was given primarily to attend higher education institutions, undergo medical
treatment, or avoid security threats at the camps. During the year [2009] the
government expanded its policy of providing greater freedom of movement to
some Eritrean refugees with family members living outside of the camps.” [4h]
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ERITREAN REFUGEES IN SUDAN
33.15 The Human Rights Watch 2009 Service for Life - State Repression and
Indefinite Conscription in Eritrea report stated:
“Over the past five years the increasingly cordial relations between the
Sudanese and Eritrean governments have resulted in increasing pressure
from Sudanese authorities on Eritrean refugees to return to Eritrea, contrary to
the longstanding Sudanese reception of Eritrean refugees over the previous
decades. [29e] (p67)
“…currently most refugees who flee Eritrea to Sudan either settle in refugee
camps in eastern Sudan or transit onward within the country or to other
countries in search of a safer and more stable existence. Those not in camps
in Sudan are extremely vulnerable to abuse, in particular extortion and forcible
return by the Sudanese authorities - Sudanese security services have links to
Eritrean security agents. [29e] (p67)
“…in Sudan, there are nearly 100,000 Eritreans living in open camps at
Kassala, al-Gedaref, Gezira, and Sinar. About 30,000 are said to live in towns
in these areas and at least another 30,000 or more are estimated to be living
in Khartoum. At least 10,000 new arrivals arrived during 2007. According to a
Sudanese official, 13,000 Eritreans arrived in Sudan in 2008. The government
says it cannot cope and has asked the UN for help.” [29e] (p67)
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33.16 An Awate article, dated 3 January 2008, provided details regarding what
happens to Eritrean arrivals after being arrested by the Sudanese border
patrols. The article stated:
“When they cross the border, they will be arrested by Sudanese border patrol
and detained in the refugee camps which have hosted thousands of Eritreans
since the 1960s. But before they arrive at the refugee camps, they will stop by
at the detention centers. Here, they will be asked how much money they have,
if they have a mobile phone or an address book that shows they have relatives
abroad. They are dispossessed of their money and directed to call their family
members abroad and ask them to send money. From the detention centers,
they will be driven to Wed Sherifey refugee camp. There, the authorities will
ask them to pay a fee (the equivalent of $3 USD) to have their pictures taken.
If they don’t have the money, and most won’t, they will be dumped in a shack
at transit camp or deported back to Eritrea. If they do have the money to pay
for the pictures, they are transported to Camp 26, where they will be asked to
pay $10 USD to receive a refugee ID card.” [50i]
33.17 The same article continued, describing conditions in the transit camps and
refugee camps as both overcrowded and poorly provisioned, with the added
risk for females of sexual harassment by the Sudanese guards. It adds that
Eritrean escapees are arrested if found in Kassala, as they move up to
Khartoum or Port Sudan. The article also alleges that the Eritrean authorities
are providing incentives for local East Sudan border officials to arrest and
forcibly deport Eritrean escapees. [50i]
33.18 A more recent United Nations IRIN report, dated 3 December 2009, stated:
“Eastern Sudan hosts more than 66,000 registered Eritrean refugees, the first
of whom arrived in 1968 during the early years of Eritrea’s war of
independence against Ethiopia. These days, Eritrea’s policy of indefinite
military conscription, coupled with drought and poor economic opportunities,
prompt some 1,800 people to cross into Sudan every month, according to the
UN Refugee Agency, UNHCR.
“…as they planned for their big escape to Europe or Israel, asylum-seekers
dreamed of a better life in Sudan. But instead, thousands woke up to the
realities of the grim camp conditions, lacking food security or proper
healthcare, and sharing scarce resources with Sudanese nationals. On arrival
at the reception centre at Shagarab camp in Kassala state, near the Eritrean
border, they are not immediately provided with proper shelter. Only when their
refugee status is confirmed, which can take four to six weeks, are they able to
move into tents or huts, which they often have to build themselves.
“…Shagarab, with the worst conditions among the three biggest camps in
eastern Sudan, houses more than 21,000 mostly Eritrean refugees, in addition
to some Ethiopians and Somalis. The 1,800 monthly arrivals also include
young men who flee forced conscription in the Eritrean army.
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“…the UN World Food Programme supplies the camps with food aid but
refugees say it is not enough. Education opportunities for children are also
inadequate. Out of 15,000 children in the 12 camps in the east, 6,000 do not
get the chance for a primary education because schools lack the capacity to
absorb them, UNHCR Africa Director George Okoth-Obbo said later in
Khartoum.
“…some of the refugees move to other cities in Sudan looking for
employment. The government says there are about 40,000 refugees living in
urban centres, sharing services and job opportunities with Sudanese
nationals. Although UNHCR says the government has not rejected any
Eritrean asylum-seekers, it does try to reduce the pull of the refugee camps to
potential ones.
“Refugees are allowed to work in Sudan, but government policy is to keep
them inside the camps, said Abdallah Soliman Mohamed, deputy
commissioner of refugees. With no access to better education for refugee
children, and after international donors have supported the camps for more
than 40 years, UNHCR says it is looking into other ways for the refugees to
become self-reliant.” [19e]
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34. EMPLOYMENT RIGHTS
34.01 The US State Department Human Rights Report for 2009 provided basic
information about employment rights in Eritrea:
“The law provides workers with the legal right to form and join unions to
protect their interests; however, some government policies restricted free
association or prevented the formation of some unions, including within the
civil service, military, police, and other organizations providing essential
services. The government ran all unions, including the Teacher's Union,
Women's Union, Youth's Union, and Worker's Union. Membership in these
unions was required. The government did not encourage the formation of
independent unions by employees of private businesses. Union leaders were
typically government employees, and union activities were generally
government sanctioned. The Ministry of Labor and Human Welfare must grant
special approval for groups of 20 or more persons seeking to form a union.
There were no reports that the government opposed the formation of labor
associations during the year [2009]; however, the government did not approve
the formation of any unions.
“The law allows strikes; however, all unions were closely aligned with the
government and thus did not exercise or promote the right to strike.
“The law allows unions to conduct their activities without interference, and
collective bargaining is allowed. In practice all unions are subservient to the
government, which sets wages for union workers, employees of PFDJ-owned
enterprises, and government employees. Wages are set independently in the
small private sector, although workers are not allowed to organize
independently.
“Since most businesses were government-owned, unions did not experience
antiunion discrimination.” [4i] (section 7)
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FORCED OR COMPULSORY LABOUR
34.02 The US State Department Human Rights report for 2009 stated:
“The law prohibits forced or compulsory labor, including by children; however,
forced labor occurred, particularly in [the] national service program.
“The government required all men between the ages of 18 and 54 and women
between the ages of 18 and 47 to participate in the national service program,
which included military training and civilian work programs. However, the
criteria for demobilization were unclear, and many were required to work
indefinitely in any location or capacity chosen by the government. Reports
indicated citizens were enlisted in the national service for many years below
minimum-wage rates with no prospective end date, no promotion or salary
increases, and restricted freedom of movement since those employed under
national service were often denied passports and exit visas. The government
justified its open-ended draft on the basis of the undemarcated border
[dispute] with Ethiopia. Some national service members were assigned to
return to their civilian jobs while nominally kept in the military because their
skills were deemed critical to the functioning of the government or economy.
These individuals continued to receive only their national service salary; the
government required them to forfeit to the government any money they earned
above and beyond that salary. Government employees generally were unable
to leave their jobs or take new employment. Draft evaders often were used as
laborers on government development projects.” [4i] (section 6)
34.03 Certain aspects of national service involve compulsory labour, as noted in the
Human Rights Watch 2009 report Service for Life - State Repression and
Indefinite Conscription in Eritrea report:
“In 2002, with the announcement of the Warsai Yekalo Development
Campaign (WDYC), a national social and economic development effort, the
statutory national service of 18 months was indefinitely extended so that all
male and female adults must be available to work at the direction of the state
in various capacities until the age of 40 - now often 50 or 55 in practice.
Indefinite national service starts with six months of military training followed by
12 months’ deployment either in military service or working for some other
government ministry at the direction of the Ministry of Defense. Some are also
drafted to work for the companies owned and operated by the military or ruling
party elites that dominate the economy.” [29e] (p3)
34.04 Regarding the distinction between national service and military service, the
Human Rights Watch report quoted above explained that:
“Not all national service is military service, since many conscripts are not
deployed in the army but on civilian development projects, or are assigned to
commercial enterprises with their salary paid to the Ministry of Defence.
However, the Ministry of Defence is in control of the national service program
and if someone working on a construction project were to abscond they are
still be [sic] regarded as a deserter under military law. [29e] (p43-44)
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“Refugees interviewed by Human Rights Watch emphasized that there was no
difference between military and civilian national service - conscripts are
equally at the mercy of the state. One Eritrean academic notes that, ‘What
people do not realise is that in Eritrea, there is no military service. There is
only Hagerawi Agelglot (National Service) which is much more ambitious and
broader than common Military Service.’ Military duties are only one of a
number of different assignments that conscripts can be tasked with, although it
is the most common.” [29e] (p44)
34.05 Freedom House’s Freedom in the World 2010 report on Eritrea, published in
May 2010, added that:
“Government policy is officially supportive of free enterprise, and citizens have
the nominal freedom to choose their employment, establish private
businesses, and operate them without government harassment. However, few
private businesses remain in Eritrea. This is largely because of the
conscription system, which ties most able-bodied men and women to an
indefinite period of national service and can entail compulsory labor for
enterprises controlled by the political elite. The 2009 Heritage Foundation
Index of Economic Freedom cites other barriers to starting and operating a
business in Eritrea, including burdensome regulations and the high cost of
credit. It ranks Eritrea as the second-worst country in sub-Saharan Africa for
economic freedom.” [36]
See Military and National Service; Trafficking
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Annex A: Chronology of Major Events
1952 Federation formed between Eritrea and Ethiopia [1]
1958 Eritrean Liberation Movement (ELM) founded. [1]
1961 Eritrean Liberation Front (ELF) begins armed campaign for Eritrean
independence from Ethiopia. [1]
1962 Eritrea’s status reduced to that of an Ethiopian province. [1]
1972-74 Civil war in Eritrea between ELF and breakaway Popular Liberation Forces
(which went on to form the Eritrean People’s Liberation Front [EPLF] in 1977).
[1]
1974 Revolution which brings hard-line Marxist ‘Derg’ regime to power. [1]
1977-78 Further splits within ELF. [1]
1985 Second civil war between ELF and breakaway factions, leading to further
splits from ELF, effectively neutralising it as an effective military force; EPLF
now the main opposition force to Ethiopian rule. [1]
1989 EPLF captures Massawa. [1]
1991 May: EPLF captures Asmara; at same time Eritrean People’s Revolutionary
Defence Force (EPRDF) captures Addis Ababa and overthrows Derg; EPRDF
recognises EPLF as government of Eritrea and agrees independence
referendum for Eritrea in 1993. [1]
1993 April: UN-supervised referendum overwhelmingly approves independence
from Ethiopia. [1]
24 May: Independence proclaimed. [1]
28 May: International recognition of independence of the State of Eritrea;
EPLF establishes transitional government, with EPLF leader Issayas Afewerki
becoming first President of Eritrea. [1]
June: Eritrea admitted to the Organization of African Unity (now the African
Union).
8 June: Issayas Afewerki elected first President of Eritrea by the National
Assembly. [8a] [39]
1994-95 Conferences on constitutional reform held throughout Eritrea, but Government
opponents not invited to participate. [1]
1994 February: EPLF becomes the People’s Front for Democracy and Justice
(PFDJ) and espouses its support for a pluralistic political system. [1]
1995 May: The National Assembly approved proposals to create six administrative
regions to replace the 10 regional divisions that had been in place since
colonial rule. [1]
November: The Assembly approved new names for the regions and finalised
details of their exact boundaries and sub-divisions. [1]
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1997 23 May: New Constitution adopted by Constituent Assembly but not fully
implemented. [1]
1998 May: Border conflict with Ethiopia erupts into heavy fighting; thousands of
Eritreans expelled from Ethiopia and many Ethiopians leave Eritrea. This
conflict lasts until 2000. [1]
1999 The border conflict started in 1998 between Eritrea and Ethiopia continues.
Numerous clashes occur during 1999 between Eritrean and Ethiopian troops.
[1]
2000 April: Peace talks in Algiers organised by the OAU fail.
May: Hostilities between Ethiopia and Eritrea resume. [1]
June: Eritrea and Ethiopia sign ceasefire agreement and agree to UN
monitoring force along border. [1]
December: Eritrea and Ethiopia sign peace agreement in Algeria establishing
commissions to mark border, exchange prisoners, return displaced people and
hear compensation claims. [1]
2001 February: Eritrea accepts United Nations plans for a temporary demilitarised
zone along its border with neighbouring Ethiopia. [1]
Ethiopia says it has completed its troop withdrawal from Eritrea in accordance
with a United Nations-sponsored agreement to end the border war. [1]
April: Eritrea announces that its forces have pulled out of the border zone with
Ethiopia - a key provision of the peace agreement signed between the two
countries. [1]
May: A dissident group at the centre of the PFDJ publicly expresses strong
criticisms of the President. This group is known as the ‘Group of 15’ or ‘G-15’.
(In later sources as ‘G11’, thus referred to as ‘G15/G11’) [1]
September: The Government closes all privately owned newspapers.
Following this the police arrest ten leading journalists. [5c] (p6)
Security authorities detain 11 members of the G11/G15 group. Four members
escape arrest. [1]
2002 February: It was decided that the National Assembly would comprise 75
members of the PFDJ Central Committee and 75 directly elected members. All
but eight of the 50-member Constitutional Commission were government
appointees, and there was no provision for any opposition participation in the
interim system. [1]
31 March: The ten journalists arrested in September 2001 begin a hunger
strike. Nine of the ten were moved from the 1st Police Station in Asmara to an
unknown location. [5c] (p7)
13 April: The International Tribunal announces the border decision. Both
Eritrea and Ethiopia declare victory. Confusion over which country controls
Badme remains. [1]
May: Roma Gebremichael, the wife of one of the G-15 detainees, is arrested.
[5c] (p7)
May: The UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) announces that by
the end of the year Eritreans in Sudan would no longer automatically be
entitled to refugee status.
October: Malta deports over 200 asylum seekers back to Eritrea. They are
detained on arrival and held incommunicado without charge or further
explanation. [5c] (p5) PDF page 134
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29 November: 1,130 POWs and 95 civilian internees of Eritrean origin are
released by the Ethiopian authorities and repatriated. [1]
2003 March: The Boundary Commission categorically rules Badme to be in Eritrean
territory. Ethiopia voices its opposition to the ruling. [1]
2004 February: Former Canadian Foreign Minister Lloyd Axworthy is named UN
special envoy to help defuse the stand-off between Ethiopia and Eritrea. [1]
July: UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan visited the Horn of Africa in a new
initiative to kick-start the stalled Ethiopian-Eritrean peace process. [19a]
September: UNMEE expresses disappointment after the Eritrean
Government re-imposed restrictions of movement along a crucial supply route
for its peacekeepers. [19a]
November: Prime Minister Zenawi announces a five-point plan to try to end
the border stalemate with Eritrea, saying his country would accept, “in
principle”, the April 2002 ruling of the independent Boundary Commission that
was intended to end hostilities between the two neighbours. He, however,
insists that the ruling is still illegal and unjust. Any attempt to implement the
Hague-based decision, he adds, “might lead to a serious escalation of the
tension between the two countries and thereby undermine the peace”. [19a]
December: Eritrea calls on Ethiopia to abide by the ruling of an independent
commission that delineated their disputed border in 2002 and urges the
international community to help secure peace and stability in the Horn of
Africa. It demands Ethiopia’s “cooperation with the Boundary Commission to
ensure expeditious demarcation of the boundary” and calls for “full and
unconditional respect of the Algiers Agreement”. [19a]
2005 February: The United Nations noted a large number of troops being deployed
at the border between Ethiopia and Eritrea. The troops remained on their own
soil, but Ethiopian soldiers had come within a 20–40 kilometre range of the
frontier. [8h]
August: Martti Ahtisaari, UN special envoy for the humanitarian crisis in the
Horn of Africa, conducted an eight-day visit to the region to assess prospects
for long-term food security. The government asks the US Agency for
International Development (USAID) to cease its operations in the Horn of
Africa country. [19d]
October: The Government imposes more restrictions on the movement of UN
peacekeepers, days after grounding UN helicopter flights. [19d]
December: The Eritrean Government rejects a claim by Amnesty International
that it engages in religious persecution. The UN relocates some UNMEE staff
to Ethiopia following Eritrea’s decision to expel European and North American
personnel. [19d]
2006 20 January: The patriarch of the Eritrean Orthodox Church is placed under
arrest. [31a]
1 June: Travel restrictions into and within the country enforced by the Eritrean
Government for foreign nationals and dual nationality holders. [4c]
16 October: The Eritrean army moves 1,500 troops and 14 tanks into the
demilitarised zone of the Ethiopian/Eritrean border. The UN Security Council
protests at the “flagrant” breach of the ceasefire. [8g]
3 November: Helen Berhane, a Rhema church member who had been detained
without trial for 18 months, who was abused and tortured, was confirmed as
having been released from detention. [5o] [31g] [67b] PDF page 135
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6 December: Military service round-up (Giffa) begins in Asmara; 500 parents
and relatives of young people missing from official registers targeted for arrest,
detention and fines. [5e]
2007 25 January: Further Government restrictions and impositions placed on the
deposed patriarch of the Eritrean Orthodox Church. [49]
5 April: The Government bans the practice of FGM. [19c]
9 May: 80 members of the Orthodox Presbyterian Church, a registered
denomination, arrested in Asmara. [87b]
8 June: Police raids in Asmara, detaining Pente Christians. [67a]
15 October: Attempted assassination of Col. Simon Ghebredengel. [50u]
November: Eritrea accepts border line demarcated by international boundary
commission. Ethiopia rejects it. [8j]
2008 January: UN extends mandate of peacekeepers on Ethiopia-Eritrea border for
six months. UN Security Council demands Eritrea lift fuel restrictions imposed
on UN peacekeepers at the Eritrea-Ethiopia border area. Eritrea declines,
saying troops must leave border. [8j]
15/16 February: UNMEE withdraws its force of 1,400 troops and 200 military
observers as a “temporary withdrawal”, with the Ethiopian Government
permitting withdrawl to northern Ethiopia. [66]. However, a dispute arose
between the UN and the Eritrean Government about how how much
equipment the UN could leave, with the UN insisting on leaving with all its
transport: the Eritrean Government prevented both fuel and food rations
reaching the UN force. [8o]
April: UN Secretary-General Ban Ki Moon warns of likelihood of new war
between Ethiopia and Eritrea if peacekeeping mission withdraws completely.
Outlines options for the future of the UN mission in the two countries.
Djibouti accuses Eritrean troops of digging trenches at disputed Ras Doumeira
border area and infiltrating Djiboutian territory. Eritrea denies charge. [8j]
May: Eritrea calls on UN to terminate peacekeeping mission. [8j]
June: Fighting breaks out between Eritrean and Djiboutian troops in the
disputed Ras Doumeira border area. [8j]
September: An Eritrean government intelligence camp in Molokhseito was
reportedly attacked by armed units of the Eritrean National Salvation Front
(ENSF) [50z]
November: The Eritrean government launched a fresh crackdown on
Christians. At least 110 evangelical believers were detained. The Christians
were arrested in all parts of the country apart from Asmara. Those detained
included 65 members of the evangelical Kale Hiwot Church. [91]
2009 January: The UN Security Council gave Eritrea an ultimatum to withdraw its
forces from a disputed border region with Djibouti within five weeks. The UN
resolution also called for Eritrea to remove its military hardware from the Ras
Doumeira region and the island of Doumeira. [8b]
February: The Australian Broadcasting Corporation reported that a bomb
explosion killed two people and wounded eight others at a restaurant in
western Eritrea. The ABC report further stated that “Eritrea blamed Ethiopia
for an earlier bomb attack in January 2008 that killed one person and
wounded several others in another market town near the western border”. [55]
April: UN Secretary Council says Eritrea failed to fulfil its obligation to
withdraw troops from disputed border area of Djibouti under an ultimatum
issued in January [2009]. Eritrea denies having troops on Djiboutian soil. [8j] PDF page 136
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June: United Nations IRIN reported that Eritrea was facing a food crisis
caused by poor harvests, a lack of rain, and the high cost of food. [19c]
August: International tribunal ruling stipulates that Eritrea and Ethiopia have
to pay one another financial compensation for war damages incurred in the
1998-2000 border war. [8c]. An assassination attempt on President Afewerki
by members of the Eritrean Defence Forces reportedly fails. The president is
reportedly unharmed in the incident. [16b]
December: The United Nations Security Council voted to impose sanctions
on the Eritrean regime. The sanctions place an arms embargo on Eritrea, an
asset freeze on specific businesses and individuals, as well as a travel ban on
political and military leaders to be identified by a sanctions committee. [50c]
2010 February: The Red Sea Afars Democratic Organisation (RSADO) stated that
it had it killed 17 Eritrean government soldiers and injured more than 20 others
in an attack on military barracks. The attack was carried out in Fura in central
Dankalia on 15 February according to a RSADO spokesman. [16c]
March: On 27 March, Egyptian police shot dead Eritreans trying to cross the
Egyptian/Israeli border illegally. [52]
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Annex B: Political Organisations
Afar Revolutionary Democratic Unity Front (ARDUF)
The ARDUF is known locally as Ouguguma, which is a newly created Afar word for
revolution. [70b]
Afar National Liberation Movement (ANLM)
The ANLM is a pro-Ethiopian Afar-based organisation. [70b]
Alkhalas
Website given in an Awate article of 15 February 2007 as http://www.alkhalas.org/eng-
home1.htm [50t]
Association of Eritrean Initiative (AEI)
The AEI is also known as the Eritrean Initiative Group (EIG) and is led by Mhamed
Medeni. It is a member of the AENF/EDA. Its popular support inside Eritrea is very
limited. [70b]
Eritrean Democratic Party (EDP)
The website of the EDP was given in an Awate article of 15 February 2007 as:
http://www.selfi-democracy.com [50t]
Eritrean Islamic Jihad (EIJ)
Radical opposition group; in August 1993 split into a military wing and political wing. [1]
Eritrean Islamic Salvation Movement (EISM)
Known until 1998 as Eritrean Islamic Jihad (EIJ), the EISM is led by Sheikh Khalil
Mohammed Amer. The EIJ was allied to Sudan and had bases in that country. It is a
member of the AENF/EDA and has Muslim support. [70b]
Democratic Movement for the Liberation of Eritrea (DMLE)
An organisation opposed to the People’s Front for Democracy and Justice (PFDJ)
Leadership Hamid Turky. [70b]
Eritrean Democratic Resistance Movement (EDRM)
Led by Ismail Nada, the EDRM is based on the Nara and other ethnic minorities from
the Gash-Setit zone. It is a member of the AENF/EDA. It is narrowly ethnic in make-up.
[70b]
Eritrean Kunama Democratic Liberation Movement (EKDLM)
Led by Qernelyos, the EKDLM, which is based on the Kunama ethnic group, is
allegedly supported by Ethiopia. It is a member of the AENF/EDA. [70b]
Eritrean Liberation Front (ELF)
Mainly Muslim and formed in the late 1950s to pursue Eritrean autonomy. It initiated
anti-Ethiopian guerilla activity in the early 1960s, but its influence later declined as it
was increasingly marginalised by the breakaway Eritrean People’s Liberation Front
(which later became the People’s Front for Democracy and Justice). Now split into
numerous factions, the ELF opposed the PDFJ transitional government of Eritrea.
Website given in an Awate article of 15 February 2007 as http://www.omaal.net
[50t]
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Eritrean Liberation Front-Central Command (ELF-CC)
Founded 1982; Chairman Abdella Idriss. [1]
Eritrean Liberation Front-National Council (ELF-NC)
Leader Hassan Ali Assad. [1]
Eritrean Liberation Front-Revolutionary Council (ELF-RC)
Established by former ELF members who remained outside EPLF; President Seyoum
Ogbamichael; leader Ahmed Mohamed Nasser. [1]. Awate reported that Ogbamichael
died on 16 December 2005. [50o]
Eritrean National Alliance (ENA)
Formerly Alliance of Eritrean National Forces (AENF) and founded in 1999.
Changed name in 2002 – Grouping of 13 opposition organisations (including EIJ, EIS,
ELF, and a number of ELF factions). Military wing set up in 2003; Chairman Hiruy
Tedla Bairu; Secretary General Husayn Khalifa. [1]
Eritrean People’s Congress (EPC)
Led by Abu Siehel, the EPC is allegedly backed by Sudan. It is a member of the
AENF/EDA with limited support from Muslim Eritreans. [70b]
Eritrean People’s Liberation Front Democratic Party (EPLF-DP)
The first opposition organisation to be created from the membership of the PFDJ that
now rules Eritrea. Established at the end of 2001 with a statement on the Internet, the
EPLF/DP aims to protest at President Afewerki’s authoritarian rule. It is believed that
one of its founding members is the former Defence Minister, Mesfin Hagos. [1]
Eritrean Revolutionary Democratic Front (ERDF)
Led by Berhane Yemane, the ERDF, which is a member of the AENF/EDA, was close
to Sagem and consequently friendly with Ethiopia. [70b]
Islah
Website given in an Awate article of 15 February 2007 as http://www.islaher.org [50t]
Islamic Salvation Movement
Eritrean Islamic Jihad Movement (EIJM), Harakat al Jihad al Islami’ – The Federation
of American Scientists (statement last updated 1999) said: “The Eritrean opposition
group Harakat al Jihad al Islami (EIJM) changed its name to Harakat al Khalas al
Islami (Islamic Salvation Movement) in September 1998. The Movement has been
seeking the forceful overthrow of Eritrea’s government and its replacement by an
Islamic government. Sudanese authorities indicated their support of the Movement
allowing the Movement’s Secretary-General Sheikh Mohamed Amer to hold a news
conference in Khartoum.” [24]
People’s Front for Democracy and Justice (PFDJ)
Founded 1970 as the Eritrean Popular Liberation Forces (EPLF); following a split in the
Eritrean Liberation Front, renamed the Eritrean People’s Liberation Front in 1977;
adopted present name in February 1994. Christian and Muslim support; in May 1991
took control of Eritrea and formed provisional Government; formed transitional
Government in May 1993; Chair Isaias Afewerki, President of Eritrea; Secretary
General Alamin Mohamed Said. [1]
Popular Liberation Forces
Breakaway faction from ELF which went on to form EPLF in 1977. [1] PDF page 139
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Red Sea Afar Democratic Organisation
Afar opposition group; Secretary General Amin Ahmmad. [1]
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Annex C: Prominent people: past and present
THE GOVERNMENT
Isaias Afewerki
President Isaias Afewerki is the dominant figure in Eritrean politics: head of state,
government and ruling party. He was born in 1945 and joined the Eritrean Liberation
Front (ELF) in 1966 after studying engineering at Addis Ababa University. He
underwent military training in China and quickly rose up the ELF chain of command. He
helped found the Eritrean People's Liberation Forces in 1970, which became the
Eritrean People's Liberation Front (EPLF) at the 1st organisational congress of 1977
and became Secretary-General of the front in 1987. At independence he became
chairman of the State Council of the National Assembly and later secretary general of
the Provisional Government of Eritrea. Isaias has presided over the country since
assuming power on the fall of the Dergue in May 1991 and was elected president by
the National Assembly in June 1993. During 1997 and 1998, however, critics accused
him of pursuing an overly aggressive foreign policy towards neighbours and of blocking
the planned transition to democracy. Post-war, there appears to be no chance of
Eritrea’s government regaining this momentum under Isaias’ authoritarian rule. Since
late 2002, he has also assumed responsibility for most of the defence portfolio. [70b]
(Jane’s Security Sentinel, October 2007)
Arefaine Berhe
Minister of Agriculture [70b]
Abraha Asfaha
Minister of Construction [70b]
Sebhat Ephrem
Minister of Defence [70b]
Semere Rusom
Minister of Education [70b]
Tesfai Gebreselassie
Minister of Energy and Mines [70b]
Berhane Abrehe
Minister of Finance [70b]
Osman Salih Muhammad
Minister of Foreign Affairs [1]
Dr Salih Mekki
Minister of Health [1]
Ali Abdu
Minister of Information [1]
Fawzia Hashim
Minister of Justice [1]
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Askalu Menkerios
Minister of Labour and Human Welfare [70b]
Woldemichael Gebremariam
Minister of Land, Water and Environment [1]
Ahmed Haj Ali
Minister of Maritime Resources [1]
Naizghi Kiflu
Minister of Local Government [1]
Dr Giorgis Teklemikael
Minister of Trade and Industry [1]
Amna Nur Hussein
Minister of Tourism [1]
THE G15/G11 POLITICAL PRISONERS
Ogbe Abraha
Army General; formerly Chief of Staff of the Defence Force, Minister of Trade and
Industry, and Minister of Labour and Social Welfare. [5d] (p6). Reportedly died in July
2002. [45]
Aster Fissehatsion
Director in the Ministry of Labour and Social Affairs; executive member of the official
National Union of Eritrean Women; EPLF official since 1977; former wife of Mahmoud
Ahmed Sheriffo, also detained in September 2001. [5d] (p6). Reportedly died in April
2003. [45]
Berhane Gebregziabeher
Army Major-General; head of the National Reserve Force; EPLF political bureau
member since 1977. [5d] (p6). Reportedly died in June 2002. [45]
Beraki Gebreselassie
Former Ambassador to Germany (to May 2001); previously Minister of Education and
Minister of Information and Culture. [5d] (p6). Reportedly died in July 2007. [45]
Hamad Hamid Hamad
Head of the Arabic (Middle East) Department in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs; former
Ambassador to Sudan. [5d] (p6). Reportedly died in November 2005. [45]
Saleh Kekiya
Former Minister of Transport and Communication, Vice-Minister of Foreign Affairs and
Head of the Office of the President. [5d] (p6). Reportedly died in August 2003. [45]
Germano Nati
Regional Administrator. [5d] (p6). Reportedly died in March 2008. [45]
Estifanos Seyoum
Army Brigadier General; former Head of the Inland Revenue Service (to August 2001).
[5d] (p6). Reportedly died in September 2007. [45]
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Mahmoud Ahmed Sheriffo
Former Vice-President (dismissed in February 2001), Minister of Local Government,
and Minister of Foreign Affairs; EPLF co-founder. [5d] (p6). Reportedly died in
December 2003. [93]
Petros Solomon
Former Minister of Maritime Resources; previously Minister of Foreign Affairs, EPLF
military commander and intelligence chief, EPLF political bureau member since 1977.
[5d] (p6)
Haile Woldetensae (or Weldensae, also known as “Durue”)
Former Minister of Trade and Industry (until July 2001); previously Minister of Foreign
Affairs during the war and the peace talks, and also Minister of Finance; former EPLF
head of political affairs and political bureau member since 1977. [5d] (p6)
IMPRISONED JOURNALISTS
Compiled from the Committee to Protect Journalists’ list [30]
Zemenfes Haile
Ghebrehiwet Keleta
Selamyinghes Beyene
Hamid Mohammed Said
Saleh Ajezeeri Said Abdulkadir (reportedly died in March 2004) [45]
Yosuf Mohamed Ali (reportedly died in June 2006) [45]
Amanuel Asrat
Temesgen Gebreysus
Mattewos Habteab
Dawit Habtemichael
Medhanie Haile (reportedly died in February 2004) [45]
Dawit Isaac
Seyoum Tsehaye
Fessaye Yohannes (“Joshua”) AI reported on 15 February 2007 that he had died in
prison. [5p]. RWB’s 2008 World Report also stated that he had died in prison. [17b]
See Freedom of Speech and Media
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Annex D: List of abbreviations
AI Amnesty International
CEDAW Committee on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against
Women
CPJ Committee to Protect Journalists
CRC Convention on the Rights of the Child
EU European Union
FCO Foreign and Commonwealth Office (UK government department)
FGM Female Genital Mutilation
FH Freedom House
GDP Gross Domestic Product
HIV/AIDS Human Immunodeficiency Virus/Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome
HRW Human Rights Watch
ICG International Crisis Group
ICRC International Committee for Red Cross
IDP Internally Displaced Person
ILO International Labour Organisation
NGO Non-Governmental Organisation
OCHA Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs
RSF Reporters sans Frontières
STD Sexually Transmitted Disease
TB Tuberculosis
TI Transparency International
UK United Kingdom
UN United Nations
UNAIDS Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS
UNESCO United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization
UNHCHR United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights
UNHCR United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees
UNICEF United Nations Children’s Fund
UNMEE United Nations Mission in Ethiopia and Eritrea
USAID United States Agency for International Development
USSD United States State Department
WFP World Food Programme
WHO World Health Organization
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Annex E: References to source material
The Home Office is not responsible for the content of external websites.
Numbering of source documents is not always consecutive because some older
sources have been removed in the course of updating this document.
[1] Europa World Online
Eritrea section (access by subscription only)
www.europaworld.com
Date accessed 12 May 2010
[2] Draft Constitution of Eritrea
Constitutional Commission of Eritrea, Asmara July 1996
http://www.parliament.go.th/parcy/sapa_db/cons_doc/constitutions/data/Erit
rea/Eritrea.htm
Date accessed 15 August 2008
[3] Home Office (United Kingdom government department)
Report of Home Office fact-finding mission to Eritrea: 4-18 November
http://www.unhcr.org/refworld/type,FACTFINDING,UKHO,ERI,3f4f24f20,0.html
Date accessed 15 August 2008
[4] United States State Department www.state.gov
a Background Note on Eritrea, February 2010
http://www.state.gov/r/pa/ei/bgn/2854.htm
Date accessed 16 March 2010
b Overseas Security Advisory Council - 19 March 2008, Asmara, Eritrea:
2008 Crime and Safety Report
http://www.osac.gov/Reports/report.cfm?contentID=80306
Date accessed 26 June 2008
c Travel.State.Gov, Reciprocity schedule, Eritrea [undated]
http://travel.state.gov/visa/frvi/reciprocity/reciprocity_3557.html#
Date accessed 28 April 2010
d Trafficking in Persons Report: Eritrea section, 16 June 2009
http://www.state.gov/documents/organization/123362.pdf
Date accessed 9 July 2009
e International Religious Freedom Report 2008, Eritrea: 19 September 2008
http://2001-2009.state.gov/g/drl/rls/irf/2008/108367.htm
Date accessed 9 December 2009
f Country Report on Human Rights Practices for 2005, Eritrea: March 2006
http://www.state.gov/g/drl/rls/hrrpt/2005/61568.htm
Date accessed 15 March 2006
g International Religious Freedom Report 2009, Eritrea: 26 October 2009
http://www.state.gov/g/drl/rls/irf/2009/127231.htm
Date accessed 9 December 2009
h Country Report on Human Rights Practices for 2009, Ethiopia:
11 March 2010
http://www.state.gov/g/drl/rls/hrrpt/2009/af/135953.htm
Date accessed 28 April 2010
i Country Report on Human Rights Practices for 2009, Eritrea:
11 March 2010
http://www.state.gov/g/drl/rls/hrrpt/2009/af/135952.htm
Date accessed 12 March 2010 PDF page 145
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j Country Report on Human Rights Practices for 2006, Eritrea:
6 March 2007
http://www.state.gov/g/drl/rls/hrrpt/2006/78733.htm
Date accessed 22 March 2010
[5] Amnesty International http://www.amnesty.org
a Eritrea Annual Report 2008 (covering events from January to December
2007)
http://thereport.amnesty.org/eng/Regions/Africa/Eritrea
Date accessed 2 July 2007
b Pastor Mengist Tewelde-Medhin and 55 members of the Hallelujah
Pentecostal Christian Church, Public AI Index: AFR 64/002/2004,
9 March 2004
http://web.amnesty.org/library/print/ENGAFR640022004
Date accessed 9 March 2006
c Eritrea: ‘You have no right to ask – Government resists scrutiny on human
rights’ - 19 May 2004
http://www.amnesty.org/en/library/asset/AFR64/003/2004/en/dom-
AFR640032004en.pdf
Date accessed 28 June 2004
d Eritrea: Arbitrary detention of government critics and journalists,
18 September 2002
http://www.amnesty.org/en/library/info/AFR64/008/2002
Date accessed 12 March 2010
e Eritrea: Over 500 parents of conscripts arrested 21 December 2006
http://web.amnesty.org/library/print/ENGAFR640152006
Date accessed 2 January 2007
f Press Release - Egypt: Govt Forcibly Returns Up to 1,400 Asylum Seekers
From Eritrea, 13 June 2008
http://allafrica.com/stories/200806130152.html
Date accessed 31 March 2009
g Eritrea: Further information on fear of torture/prisoners of conscience:
Evangelical church members released (Public AI Index: AFR 64/015/2005),
29 November 2005
http://asiapacific.amnesty.org/library/print/ENGAFR640152005
Date accessed 9 March 2006
h Eritrea: Fear of torture or ill-treatment/incommunicado detention/detention
without charge (Public AI Index: AFR 64/011/2005), 28 July 2005
http://www.amnesty.org/en/library/asset/AFR64/011/2005/en/dom-
AFR640112005en.html
Date accessed 1 August 2008
i Eritrea: Fear of torture or ill-treatment/prisoners of conscience, 75
evangelical Christians (Public AI Index: AFR 64/001/2006)
17 February 2006
http://asiapacific.amnesty.org/library/Index/ENGAFR640012006?open&of=
ENG-ERI
Date accessed 9 March 2006
j The Wire, Vol.32, No. 02, Religious persecution in Eritrea, March 2006
http://web.amnesty.org/library/Index/ENGNWS210022006?open&of=ENG-
ERI
Date accessed 9 June 2006
k Eritrea section of the Annual Report 2010 (covering events from January to
December 2009), published on 27 May 2010
http://thereport.amnesty.org/sites/default/files/AIR2010_AZ_EN_0.pdf
Date accessed 28 May 2010 PDF page 146
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l Eritrea – Religious Persecution, 7 December 2005
http://web.amnesty.org/library/pdf/AFR640132005ENGLISH/$File/AFR6401
305.pdf
Date accessed 13 December 2005
m Pastor and churchgoers held in detention at risk of torture, Amnesty
International calls for their immediate and unconditional release,
8 September 2007
http://amnesty.org.uk/news_details.asp?NewsID=17438
Date accessed 17 September 2007
n Death Sentences and Executions 2009, March 2010
http://www.amnesty.org/en/library/info/ACT50/001/2010/en
Date accessed 12 April 2010
o Eritrea: gospel singer Helen Berhane released, 3 November 2006
http://web.amnesty.org/library/print/ENGAFR640142006
Date accessed 20 February 2007
p Eritrea: prominent journalist reported dead in secret prison,
15 February 2007
http://web.amnesty.org/library/print/ENGAFR640022007
Date accessed 20 February 2007
q Libya: 430 Eritrean nationals, 8 February 2007
http://web.amnesty.org/library/print/ENGMDE190042007
Date accessed 21 February 2007
r Eritrea Annual Report 2006 (covering events from January to December
2005)
http://web.amnesty.org/report2006/eri-summary-eng
Date accessed 17 July 2006
[6] World Directory of Minorities and Indigenous Peoples
http://www.minorityrights.org/directory
Eritrea Overview section [undated]
http://www.unhcr.org/refworld/country,,MRGI,,ERI,,4954ce2a19,0.html
Date accessed 1 April 2009
[7] Eritrean Nationality Proclamation (Number 21/1992)
Gazette of Eritrean laws, Vol. 2/1992, Number 3, Eritrean Provisional
Government
[8] British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) News Online http://news.bbc.co.uk/
a Eritrea Country Profile, 11 May 2010
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/africa/country_profiles/1070813.stm
Date accessed 12 May 2010
b UN in Eritrea pull-out ultimatum, 14 January 2009
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/africa/7829406.stm
Date accessed 15 January 2009
c Eritrea to pay Ethiopia millions, 18 August 2009
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/africa/8208285.stm
Date accessed 27 August 2009
d Djibouti troops killed on border, 11 June 2008
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/africa/7448348.stm
Date accessed 31 July 2008
e Eritrea incursion ‘to pick crops’, 17 October 2006
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/6057352.stm
Date accessed 13 November 2006
f Students’ daring jailbreak in Eritrea, 9 August 2002
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/africa/2182775.stm
Date accessed 22 April 2005 PDF page 147
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g UN criticises Eritrea ‘incursion’, 16 October 2006
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/africa/6057352.stm
Date accessed 17 October 2006
h Concern at Horn troop deployment, 17 February 2005
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/africa/4274759.stm
Date accessed 27 April 2005
i Eritrea army ‘entered Djibouti’, 6 May 2008
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/africa/7385690.stm
Date accessed 31 July 2008
j Timeline: Eritrea, 11 May 2010
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/africa/country_profiles/1070861.stm
Date accessed 12 May 2010
k Eritrean crackdown on religions, 7 December 2005
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/africa/4506602.stm
Date accessed 12 December 2005
l Eritrean Christians tell of torture, 27 September 2007
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/africa/7015033.stm
Date accessed 1 October 2007
m Eritrea bans Ethiopian songs, 6 January 2003
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/africa/2632399.stm
Date accessed 24 November 2006
n Asylum for Eritrean gospel singer, 22 October 2007
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/africa/7056120.stm
Date accessed 17 December 2007
o UN troops ‘trapped’ in Eritrea,16 February 2008
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/africa/7248085.stm
Date accessed 18 February 2008
p Eritrea’s Controversial Push to Feed Itself, 24 December 2009
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/africa/8428492.stm
Date accessed 28 April 2010
q Deportations from Libya ‘illegal’, 17 January 2008
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/africa/7193737.stm
Date accessed 17 January 2008
r Eritrea arrests 30 praying women, relatives say, 11 December 2009
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/africa/8407704.stm
Date accessed 18 February 2010
s Horn of Africa ‘crisis’, UN warns,16 December 2005
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/africa/4530642.stm
Date accessed 26 April 2006
[9] AmeriCares (American NGO)
Eritrea: AmeriCares Emergency Relief and Medical Aid [2010]
http://www.americares.org/wherewework/africa/eritrea.html
Date accessed 29 April 2010
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[10] Foreign and Commonwealth Office (United Kingdom) www.fco.gov.uk
a Letter dated 2 July 2001 from the British Embassy in Addis Ababa
b Letter dated 13 June 2008, from the British Embassy in Asmara, about
questions on military training/national service
c Travel Advice for Eritrea (9 March 2010 version)
http://www.fco.gov.uk/en/travelling-and-living-overseas/travel-advice-by-
country/sub-saharan-africa/eritrea
Date accessed 29 April 2010
d Country profile on Eritrea; 8 October 2007 version
http://www.fco.gov.uk/en/about-the-fco/country-profiles/sub-saharan-
africa/eritrea
Date accessed 18 July 2008
e Information dated 1 April 2010, from the British Embassy in Asmara, about
national service and exit from Eritrea
[11] Dehai News http://www.dehai.org
a Refugee voices: no longer stateless, but still in limbo, 7 July 2008
http://www.dehai.org/archives/dehai_news_archive/0053.html
Date accessed 16 July 2008
b Eritrean opposition groups call on Sudan to lift imposed ban, 9 June 2008
http://dehai.org/archives/dehai_news_archive/apr-jun08/1021.html
Date accessed 16 July 2008
c (Eritrean Ministry of Information) Eritrean nationals who returned home
from Egypt express satisfaction with the warm hospitality accorded them,
1 July 2008
http://www.dehai.org/archives/dehai_news_archive/0012.html
Date accessed 16 July 2008
[12] The International Lesbian and Gay Association (ILGA)
State-sponsored Homophobia: A world survey of laws prohibiting same sex
activity between consenting adults - May 2009, Daniel Ottosson
http://www.ilga.org/statehomophobia/ILGA_State_Sponsored_Homophobia
_2009.pdf
Date accessed 2 October 2009
[13] Government of Eritrea
Proclamation No 82/1995 - National Service Proclamation of 23 October
1995
http://www.awate.com/artman/uploads/national_service.pdf
Date accessed 12 May 2010
[14] Eritrean Embassy, London, United Kingdom
Letter dated 27 January 2004 to the Home Office about Eritrean nationality
(hard copy only)
[15] Encyclopedia of the Nations
Eritrea - Ethnic Groups [undated]
http://www.nationsencyclopedia.com/Africa/Eritrea-ETHNIC-GROUPS.html
Date accessed 26 April 2010
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[16] assenna.com http://www.assenna.com/
a Eritrean Government arrests people for accessing opposition websites;
it also warns Internet cafes, 31 December 2008
http://asena.delina.org/index2.php?option=com_content&do_pdf=1&id=1302
Date accessed 20 January 2009
b Eritrean president Isaias Afewerki escaped assassination attempt by
members of the Eritrean Defence Forces, 14 August 2009
http://asena.samai.co.uk/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=1898
:eritrean-president-isaias-afewerki-escaped-assassination-attempt-by-
members-of-the-eritrean-defence-forces&catid=18:news&Itemid=70
Date accessed 27 August 2009
c Eritrea rebels say [they] killed 17 government troops, 18 February 2010
http://assenna.com/english/news/2378-eritrea-rebels-say-killed-17-
government-troops
Date accessed 18 February 2010
d International Women’s Day Celebration in Eritrea, 8 March 2010
http://assenna.com/english/articles/2460-international-womens-day-
celebration-in-eritrea
Date accessed 11 May 2010
[17] Reporters Without Borders
http://www.rsf.org/index.php?page=rubrique&id_rubrique=2
a Eritrea section of the World Report 2009, 1 May 2009
http://www.unhcr.org/refworld/country,,RSF,,ERI,,49fea97fc,0.html
Date accessed 29 May 2009
b Eritrea section of the 2008 World Report, 13 February 2008
http://www.unhcr.org/cgi-
bin/texis/vtx/refworld/rwmain?page=country&docid=47b418b215&
;skip=&category=COI&coi=ERI
Date accessed 5 May 2008
c Eritrea: Plea to EU to Suspend Development Aid in Light of Fresh
Crackdown On Journalists, 6 March 2009
http://allafrica.com/stories/200903060773.html
Date accessed 15 April 2009
d Prominent journalist arrested, ex-prison guard reveals fate of other
detained journalists, 12 May 2010
http://en.rsf.org/eritrea-prominent-journalist-arrested-ex-12-05-
2010,37459.html
Date accessed 28 May 2010
[18] United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR)
http://www.unhcr.org/cgi-bin/texis/vtx/home
a Eritrean refugees fly out of Ethiopia for a new life in the United States,
5 July 2007
http://www.alertnet.org/thenews/newsdesk/UNHCR/a6a0934d2cac0025662
3f526c5575294.htm
Date accessed 1 April 2009
b UNHCR comments to the Advisory Panel on Country Information on the
October 2004 Home Office Country Report for Eritrea, February 2005
www.apci.org.uk
Date accessed 23 June 2006
c UNHCR Eligibility Guidelines for Assessing the International Protection needs
of Asylum-Seekers from Eritrea, April 2009
http://www.unhcr.no/Pdf/Positionpaper_2009/Guidelines_Eritrea_April_09.p
df
Date accessed 15 April 2009 PDF page 150
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d Writenet report commissioned by the United Nations High Commissioner
for Refugees Status Determination and Protection Information Sections
(DIPS), Eritrea: Challenges and Crises of a New State, published on
1 October 2006
http://www.unhcr.org/publ/RSDCOI/4538821e4.pdf
Date accessed 2 October 2007
e UNHCR comments to the Advisory Panel on Country Information on the
October 2005 Home Office Country Report for Eritrea, March 2006
(hard copy)
f Letter from UNHCR dated 11 March 20 05, ‘Draft Evasion in Eritrea’
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