ተጋዳላይ ወልደሱስ ዓማር፣ ኣባል ፈጻሚ ሽማግለን ሓላፊ ቤት ጽሕፈት ወጻኢ ዝምድናታት ሰልፊ ዲሞክራሲ ህዝቢ ኤርትራን፡ ኣብ ፓልቶክ ሕድሪ ጀጋኑና ንዕለት 11.02.2017 ርክብ ምስ ህዝቢ ክገብር ተዓዲሙ ኣሎ። ተጋዳላይ ወልደሱስ ዓማር "ግጉይ ኣጀማምራ ድሕሪ ነጻ ኤርትራ ናይ 1991፡ ንዘለናዮ ሃለዋት ከመይ ይጸልዎ"፡ ዝብል መጽናዕታዊ መደብ ሒዙ ክቐርብ እዩ።

 

መደብ ዝጅመረሉ ሰዓት ልክዕ፡ ሰዓት 20፡00 ብናይ በርሊን ኣቈጻጽራ ማለት ሰዓት 08.00 ናይ ምሸት ክኸውን እዩ። በዚ ኣጋጣሚ ኩሉ ደላይ ለውጢ ነቲ መደብ ንኽከታተል ብኽብሪ ንዕድም።

 

ሰናይ ምክትታል!

 

ቤት ጽሕፈት ዜና ሰዲህኤ

by Martin Plaut

eritrea-callup

It’s that time of the year again. The Eritrean military has issued its annual demand that civilians go on refresher courses as part of their training in the reserve militia, known as the 4th division.

This force consists of people who were exempted from indefinite National Service for a variety of reasons.

Posters have gone up around Asmara.

The one above, from Geza banda, was photographed by the Freedom Friday (Arbi Harnet) resistance network. It calls for women of the 1st, 2nd and 3rd battalions, previously considered unfit for duty because of their health, to enlist in the training.

So too are retired pensioners. All are told to report to the military training centre by Monday 1st of February at 6pm.

But its just not happening.

According to reports this weekend the number of people who reported is far lower than anticipated by the authorities.

This is particularly true in the case of women. So the authorities to extended the deadline for reporting by a week, while circulating warnings that anyone who does not report will lose their government coupons for buying essential goods in government shops.

People in rural areas are particularly bitter about these annual calls since they coincide with the harvest season. Farmers busy bringing in their crops resent losing their harvest while they undertake military refresher courses.

Overflowing jails

eritrea-adi-abeto-prison

Meanwhile, its reported that Eritrean prisons are so overcrowded that they have had to implement a shift system to cope with the unprecedented numbers of prisoners.

This is particularly true of Adi Abeto military prison on the outskirts of Asmara. Prison governors have decided to send some prisoners home for three days in a week.

As a result some serve their sentence at the start of the week and others in the second half of the week.

Many observers are saddened by the fact that at the time when countries in the region are registering unprecedented economic growth the regime in Eritrea seems to focus on imprisoning an unprecedented number of its citizens.

According to sources inside Asmara, January 2017 saw a sharp rise in the number of middle level officials who are being jailed in various ministries, as well as the arrest of officers in the police and army. High ranking officials and officers have not been included.

Those arrested have been accused of passing information to opposition forces outside the country or that they are conducting an ‘unclear’ mobilisation. Police and prison officers who have also been incarcerated are accused of ‘corruption’.

ሰልፊ ሞክራሲ ህዝቢ ኤርትራ (ሰህኤ) ሕብረት ኣፍሪቃ (ሕኣ) ብዛዕባ ትጽቢት ባይቶ ሰብኣዊ መሰል ሕቡራት ሃገራት  ኣብ ኤርትራ ብኣኡ ክውሰድ ዝግበኦ  ምርመራን ምጽራይን ብዛዕባ ብግህሰት ሰብኣዊ መሰልን ሜላዊ ገበንን ዝሕተቱን ላዕለዎት ሓለፍቲ ህግደፍ ናብ ሕጊ ምቕራብን፡ ኣዘኻኺሩ።

 

ኣብቲ ብ3 ለካቲት 2017 ብኣቶ መንግስተኣብ ኣስመሮም ኣቦመንበር ሰልፊ ሞክራሲ ህዝቢ ኤርትራ  ናብ ሓድሽ ኣቦመንበር ኮሚሽን ሕብረት ኣፍሪቃ፡  ዝተላእከ መዘክር፡ ኣቦመንበር ሰደህኤ ብምምራጽ እቶም ሓድሽ ኮሚሽነር ዝተሰምዖ ሓጐስ ገሊጹ። እቲ መዘክር ኣተሓሒዙ፡ ኣብ ኤርትራ ብዛዕባ ዘሎ ኩነታት ንሕብረት ኣፍሪቃ’ውን ዘሕፍር ምዃኑ ጠቒሱ።

 

ኣብዚ ብቕዳሕ  ናብ ግዝያዊ ኣቦመንበር ሕብረት ኣፍሪቃ ኣቶ ኣልፋ ኮንደ መራሒ ጊኒያ፡ ናብ ምክትሎም ጋናዊ፡ ካለኦት 8 ኮሚሽነራትን ኩሎም ኣብ መበል 28 ኣኼባ ሕብረት ኣፍሪቃ ዝተሳተፉ መራሕቲ ሃገራት ኣፍሪቃን፡ ኣቦመንበር ሰልፊ ደሞክራሲ ህዝቢ ኤርትራ (ሰደህኤ) ዝተላእከ መዘክር፡ ነቲ ኮሚሽን ሰብኣዊ መሰል ሕቡራት ሃገራት ብ2016 ንኩነታት ሰብኣዊ መሰል ኣብ ኤርትራ ብዝምልከት ዝወሰኖ፡  ነቶም ኣብቲ ብ483 ገጻት ዝተመዘበ ጸብጻብ፡ ኣብ ኤርትራ ሜላዊ ሰብኣዊ ገበን ዝፈጸሙ እሞ ናብ ፍርዲ ክቐርቡ ዝግበኦም ዝምልከት ሰፊሩ ዘሎ ውሳነት ክግደሰሉ ኣዘኻኺሩ።  ብመሰረት እዚ ብሰደህኤ ዝቐረበ መዘክር፡ ኣብ ኤርትራ ድሕሪ 26 ዓመታት ናጽነት፡ ቅዋም፡ ምኽባር ዝኾነ መሰረታዊ ሰብኣዊ መሰል፡   ሓሳብካ ምግላጽ፡ ምእካብ፡ ምምላኽ፡ ብሰላም ናይ ምንባር፡ ውሕስነት ህይወት፡ ካብ ቦታ ናብ ቦታ ምንቅስቓስ፡  ብሕታዊ ዋንነት ምጥራ፡ ብቑዕ ትምህርቲ ምርካ፡ ዝኽፈሎ ስራሕን ስርዓተ ጡረታን የለን።

 

መበል 28 ኣኼባ መራሕቲ ሃገራትን መንግስታትን ኣፍሪቃ፡ “ነዚ ብኣሰፋፍራ ዝተፈጥረ ፍልልይ፡ ብወፍሪ ኣብ መንእሰያት ነቀራርቦ” ኣብ ትሕቲ ዝብል ጭረሖ ብ30 ጥሪ 2017 እዩ ተጀሚሩ። እዚ ኣኼባ ብዛዕባ ምርግጋጽ ሰላምን ምርግጋእን ኣብዛ ክፍለ ዓለም መጸዋዕታ ኣቕሪቡ። ኣብዚ ኣኼባ፡ ሓድሽ ዋና ጸሓፊ ሕቡራት ሃገራት ኣቶ ኣንቶኒዮ ጉተርስን ኣቶ ማሕሙድ ዓባስ ፕረሲደንት ምምሕዳር ፍልጥኤን ዝርከብዎም ብዙሓት ላዕለዎት ዕዱማት  ተሳቲፎም ።

The Eritrean People's Democratic Party (EPDP) reminded the African Union (AU) that it is expected by the UN Human Rights Council "to investigate, prosecute and bring to justice [Eritrean authorities] responsible for violations and abuses of human rights, including any that may amount to a crime against humanity."

 Microsoft word EPDPRemindsAUofitsResponsibilitytoEritrea 1

In a memorandum addressed on 3 February 2017 to the newly elected AU Commission Chairman, Mr. Moussa Faki Mahamat,  the EPDP Chairman, Mr. Menghesteab Asmerom, congratulated the election of the Chadian foreign minister to head the executive body of the continental organization and urged him to waste no time in addressing the situation in Eritrea which the memo  described as "an utter shame to the very idea of African independence."

 

In the memorandum to the AU, also copied to the new AU chairman, Mr. Alpha Conde of Guinea, to his Ghanaian deputy, other eight commissioners and all African Heads of State who attended the 28th ordinary summit just ended in Addis Ababa, the EPDP chairman appealed to the AU Commission to heed to the call of the UN Human Rights Council decision of June 2016 and establish an accountability mechanism "to prosecute and bring to justice" the Eritrean authorities whose systematic crimes have been recorded in the 483-page report of the UN Commission of Inquiry on Eritrea, and updates of the UN Special Human Rights Rapporteur to that country, where, according to the EPDP memo, "no  constitution exists after 26 years of its statehood; no basic human rights are respected; no freedoms of  press or assembly are allowed; no free worship permitted; no security to life is guaranteed; no free mobility; no private sector; no quality education at any level; literally no paid work, no pension system ....."

 Microsoft Word EPDPRemindsAUofitsResponsibilitytoEritrea 2

 

The 28th Summit of the Heads of State and Government of the AU, held under the theme “Harnessing the Demographic Dividend through Investments in the Youth” , was opened on 30 January with a call for unity to uphold the maintenance of peace and stability in the continent. It was attended by honour guests who included the new UN Secretary General, Mr. Antonio Guterres, and Mr.  Mahamoud Abbas, President of the State of Palestine.

ፈደራላዊ ምምሕዳራዊ ቤት ፍርዲ ስዊዘርላንድ ብ2 ለካቲት 2017 ንኤርትራውያን ስደተኛታት ዝምልከት ውሳነ ኣሕሊፉ። እቲ ቤት ፍርዲ ኣብቲ ውሳነኡ  ስድተኛታት ሓተቲ ዑቕባ ካብ ኤርትራ ስለ ዝመጹ ጥራይ ፖለቲካዊ ዑቕባ ኣየውህቦን እዩ። እዚ ሓድሽ ሕጊ ካብ ወርሒ ሰነ 2017 ጀሚሩ ብናይታ ሃገረ ፈደራላዊ ቤት ጽሕፈት ስደተኛታት ኣቢሉ ኣብ ግብሪ ዝውዕል እዩ።

እዚ ኣብታ ሃገር ሕጊ ኣብ ምትርጓም ዝለዓለ ስልጣን ዘለዎ ፈደራላዊ ቤት ፍርዲ፡ ዝኾነ ካብ ኤርትራ ዕቑባ ዝሓትት   ኤርትራዊ  ኣብ ሃገሩ ብላዕለዎት ሰብ መዚ ግፍዒ ከም ዘጋጥሞ ብቑዕ መረጋገጺ እንተዘየቕሪቡ ናይ ስደተኛነት መረጋገጺ ክወሃቦ ኣይክእልን እዩ።

ብቋንቋ ፈረንሳ ዝሕተም ዕለታዊ “ጀነቫ ትሪቡን”  ኣብ ናይ 3 ለካቲት 2017 ሕታሙ ከም ዝጠቐሶ፡ ሰበስልጣን መንግስቲ ስዊዘርላንድ ብዙሓት ኤርትራውያን ናይ ስደተኛታት መሰል ምስ ረኸቡ ቀልጢፎም ናብ ሃገሮም ከም ዝገሹን ሓበሬታ ከም ኣለዎምን እዚ ድማ ኤርትራውያን ናብ ሃገሮም እንተተመልሱ ዘጋጥሞም ጸገም ከም ዘመልክትን ሓቢሩ።

ኣብዚ ቀረባ ዓመታት ሓደ ናይታ ሃገር ናይ የማናይ ክንፊ ልኡኽ ናብ ኤርትራ ከም ዝበጽሐን ኣብዚ እዋንዚ “ኤርትራ ናብኣ ንዝምልለሱ ዜጋታታ ሰላም” እያ ዝብል ጸብጻብ ሒዙ ከም ዝተመልሰ ዝዝከር እዩ። ኣብዚ ዝሓለፈ ሒደት ዓመታት ጥራይ 25 ሺሕ ኤርትራውያን ሓተቲ ዑቕባ ናብ ስዊዘርላንድ ኣትዮም እዮም።

by Martin Plaut

malta-summit

At their summit in the Maltese capital, Valletta, European Council leaders have agreed to do all they can to halt the flow of African refugees and asylum seekers across the Central Mediterranean.

This is effectively the last route left for men, women and children attempting to flee repressive African dictators.

The European leaders agreed on a declaration (below) which includes this phrase: They are "seeking to ensure adequate reception capacities and conditions in Libya for migrants, together with the UNHCR and IOM."

The phrase is vague, but it would appear to open the way to the establishment of Australian style detention centres in Libya - away from the European mainland.

MSF, UNHCR, IOM criticism

The declaration has already been condemned by MSF, which issued this statement tonight:

“With their 'Malta Declaration' on the Central Mediterranean, the European Council is delusional about just how dangerous the situation in Libya really is. Those we rescue on our boats tell us that people still there are starving in detention centres, harassed and abused. The last thing these people need is for the EU and Italy to join the list of predators.

This declaration is yet more evidence that the EU leaders’ only aim is “stemming the flow”. Today was not about saving lives, it's clear that the EU is ready to sacrifice thousands of vulnerable, men, women and children in order to stop them reaching European shores.

The declaration does not refer to any alternatives for people who are unable to stay in Libya and would be at risk if they were returned home. The suggested ways of improving the situation in Libya for refugees and other migrants are dangerously lacking in detail. In short, the plan, is nothing more than another attempt to keep them away from European shores.”

– Arjan Hehenkamp, General Director of MSF

Earlier today the UNHCR and IOM put out a separate appeal calling on the European leaders not to establish detention centres in Libya. (See full text at end of blog)

"We believe that, given the current context, it is not appropriate to consider Libya a safe third country nor to establish extraterritorial processing of asylum-seekers in North Africa."

Speaking to the press the Maltese Prime Minister Joseph Muscat said the plan was no silver bullet but expressed confidence it could help stem the flow of migrants from Libya.

"We know Libya is in a particular situation but this must not be an excuse to do nothing; if anything it is a reason to do more with Libya," he said at a press briefing attended also by Council president Donald Tusk and European Commission president Jean-Claude Juncker.

European politicians, under intense domestic pressure to reduce the arrival of refugees and migrants, are now close to sealing the Mediterranean as an escape route.

They already have a virtual "wall" across the sea, with Libya almost the only loophole remaining. It is this that they are attempting to block.

Martin


European Council PRESS RELEASE 43/17

03/02/2017

Source: European Council

Malta Declaration by the members of the European Council on the external aspects of migration: addressing the Central Mediterranean route

1.    We welcome and support the Maltese Presidency's efforts to take forward all elements of the EU's comprehensive migration policy. We reaffirm our determination to act in full respect of human rights, international law and European values, and in conjunction with UNHCR and IOM.

2.    A key element of a sustainable migration policy is to ensure effective control of our external border and stem illegal flows into the EU. In 2016, arrivals decreased to one-third of the levels in 2015. On the Eastern Mediterranean route, while pressures remain, arrivals in the last four months of 2016 were down 98% year-on-year. We remain committed to the EU-Turkey Statement and the full and non-discriminatory implementation of all its aspects, as well as to continued support for the countries along the Western Balkans route.

3.    On the Central Mediterranean route, however, over 181,000 arrivals were detected in 2016, while the number of persons dead or missing at sea has reached a new record every year since 2013. With hundreds having already lost their lives in 2017 and spring approaching, we are determined to take additional action to significantly reduce migratory flows along the Central Mediterranean route and break the business model of smugglers, while remaining vigilant about the Eastern Mediterranean as well as other routes. We will step up our work with Libya as the main country of departure as well as with its North African and sub-Saharan neighbours.

4.    The Partnership Framework and the Valletta Action Plan have allowed us to deepen long-term cooperation with a number of partner countries, including on root causes of migration, through a solid partnership based on mutual trust. This work is already yielding results and will be intensified. At the same time, the urgency of the situation requires immediate additional operational measures at the regional level, taking a pragmatic, flexible and tailor-made approach at each and every point involving all actors along the migratory route. In this context, we welcome the joint Commission and High Representative Communication "Migration on the Central Mediterranean Route - Managing flows, saving lives".

5.    Efforts to stabilise Libya are now more important than ever, and the EU will do its utmost to contribute to that objective. In Libya, capacity building is key for the authorities to acquire control over the land and sea borders and to combat transit and smuggling activities. The EU remains committed to an inclusive political settlement under the framework of the Libyan Political Agreement and to supporting the Presidency Council and the Government of National Accord backed by the United Nations. Where possible the EU and Member States will also step up cooperation with and assistance to Libyan regional and local communities and with international organisations active in the country.

6.    Priority will be given to the following elements: a) training, equipment and support to the Libyan national coast guard and other relevant agencies. Complementary EU training programmes must be rapidly stepped up, both in intensity and numbers, starting with those already undertaken by Operation SOPHIA and building on its experience. Funding and planning for these activities needs to be made sustainable and predictable, including through the Seahorse Mediterranean Network; b)Further efforts to disrupt the business model of smugglers through enhanced operational action, within an integrated approach involving Libya and other countries on the route and relevant international partners, engaged Member States, CSDP missions and operations, Europol and the European Border and Coast Guard; c) supporting where possible the development of local communities in Libya, especially in coastal areas and at Libyan land borders on the migratory routes, to improve their socio-economic situation and enhance their resilience as host communities; d) seeking to ensure adequate reception capacities and conditions in Libya for migrants, together with the UNHCR and IOM (emphasis added); e) supporting IOM in significantly stepping up assisted voluntary return activities; f) enhancing information campaigns and outreach addressed at migrants in Libya and countries of origin and transit, in cooperation with local actors and international organisations, particularly to counter the smugglers' business model; g) helping to reduce the pressure on Libya's land borders, working both with the Libyan authorities and all neighbours of Libya, including by supporting projects enhancing their border management capacity; h) keeping track of alternative routes and possible diversion of smugglers' activities, through cooperative efforts with Libya's neighbours and the countries under the Partnership Framework, with the support of Member States and all relevant EU agencies and by making available all necessary surveillance instruments; continuing support to efforts and initiatives from individual Member States directly engaged with Libya; in this respect, the EU welcomes and is ready to support Italy in its implementation of the Memorandum of Understanding signed on 2 February 2017 by the Italian Authorities and Chairman of the Presidential Council al-Serraj; i) deepening dialogue and cooperation on migration with all countries neighbouring Libya, including better operational cooperation with Member States and the European Border and Coast Guard on preventing departures and managing returns.

7.    These objectives shall be underpinned by the necessary resources. In line with the Valletta Action Plan, the European Union is strengthening the mainstreaming of migration within its Official Development Assistance for Africa, which amounts to €31 billion during this financial period. Some of the actions referred to above can be funded within projects already under way, notably projects funded by the EU Trust Fund for Africa as appropriate, which mobilises €1,8 billion from the EU budget and €152 million from Member States' contributions. To cover the most urgent funding needs now and throughout 2017, we welcome the Commission's decision to mobilise as a first step an additional €200 million for the North Africa window of the Fund and to give priority to migration-related projects concerning Libya.

8.    We will further develop our external migration policy in order to make it resilient for future crises. We will identify potential barriers, for example in relation to conditions to be met for returns, and reinforce EU return capacities, while respecting international law. We welcome the Commission's intention to rapidly present, as a first step, an updated Action Plan on Returns and to provide guidance for more operational returns by the EU and Member States and effective readmission based upon the existing acquis.

9.    We agree to act determinedly and speedily to achieve the objectives set out in this Declaration and call upon all actors to work towards this end. We welcome the intention of the Maltese Presidency, in close cooperation with the Commission and the High Representative, to present a concrete plan for implementation to this effect to the Council at the earliest opportunity, to take work forward and to ensure close monitoring of results. The European Council will review progress on the overall approach at its meetings in March and in June on the basis of a report from the Maltese Presidency.

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Joint UNHCR and IOM statement on addressing migration and refugee movements along the Central Mediterranean route

2 February 2017   |  Français

Ahead of the informal meeting of the European Council in Valletta tomorrow, we call on European leaders to take decisive action to address the tragic loss of life on the Central Mediterranean route and the deplorable conditions for migrants and refugees in Libya.

To better protect refugees and migrants, we need a strong European Union that is engaged beyond its borders to protect, assist and help find solutions for people in need. This includes building capacity to save lives at sea or on land, strengthening the rule of law and fighting against criminal networks.

We call for concerted efforts to ensure that sustainable migration and asylum systems are put in place in Libya, when the security and political situation permits, and in neighboring countries.

We urge a move away from migration management based on the automatic detention of refugees and migrants in inhumane conditions in Libya towards the creation of proper reception services. Open reception centres should offer safe and dignified conditions, including for children and victims of trafficking, and respect key protection safeguards.

We hope that tomorrow’s summit will also help move towards the adoption of a common approach to migration by the European Union.

Concrete measures in support of the Government of Libya are needed to build capacity to register new arrivals, support the voluntary return of migrants, process asylum claims and offer solutions to refugees. This should include a significant expansion of opportunities for safe pathways such as resettlement and humanitarian admission, among others, to avoid dangerous journeys.

In Libya, together with partners, we have made tremendous efforts to deliver basic protection to refugees, migrants and affected local populations, which in some places are also in dire need of assistance.

Security constraints continue to hinder our ability to deliver life-saving assistance, provide basic services to the most vulnerable and find solutions through resettlement, assisted voluntary return or self-reliance. Unhindered humanitarian access remains a priority.

We believe that, given the current context, it is not appropriate to consider Libya a safe third country nor to establish extraterritorial processing of asylum-seekers in North Africa.

We hope that humane solutions can be found to end the suffering of thousands of migrants and refugees in Libya and across the region, and we stand ready to assist and enhance our engagement, conditions permitting.

The Federal Administrative Tribunal of Switzerland decided on 2 February 2017 that "illegal escape from Eritrea" alone cannot be presented as a justification for Eritrean asylum seekers  to be accepted as political refugees. The law will be put into effect as of June 2017 by the Federal office for migration and refugees.

The Federal Administrative Tribunal, which is the supreme court in interpreting laws in the country, made it clear that any asylum seeker from Eritrea will no longer be eligible for refugee status unless he/she presents sufficient evidence of political persecution by the Eritrean authorities.

Tribune de Genève, the French daily, reported on 3 February that the Swiss authorities have collected information that a number of Eritrean refugees had travelled to their home country, Eritrea, soon after obtaining political protection in Switzerland and that this showed they have no problem to go back to their country of origin.

It is to be recalled that delegations of right-wing Swiss parties visited Eritrea in recent years and came with reports which claimed that Eritrea "is safe for the return of refugees" who fail to obtain political protection in Switzerland.

In the last few years alone, Switzerland was a destination for over 25,000 Eritrean asylum seekers.

ብስርዓት ህግደፍ ወግዓዊ ፈቓድ ንግዲ ዝተዋህቦም ኤርትራውያን ግዳይ ተደራራቢ ግብሪ ይኾኑ ከምዘለዉ ካብ ኤርትራ ዝተረኽበ ሓበሬታ ኣቃሊዑ። በቲ ካብ ኤርትራ ዝተረኽበ ንኩነታት ንግዲ ዝምልከት ሓበሬታ መሰረት፡ ነጋዶ ካብ ሱዳን ይኹን ካብ ኢትዮጵያ ዝተረኽበ ንህዝቢ ዘድሊ መሰረታዊ ነገራት ናብ ኤርትራ ከእትዉ እንከለዉ ኣብ ከም በዓል ተሰነይ ዝኣመሰሉ ናይ ዶብ ከተማታት ቀረጽ ይኸፍሉ እሞ ቅብሊት ይወሃቦም እዩ። ኣብ ማእከል ኤርትራ ምስ ኣተዉ ድማ ዋላ ዝኸፈልሉ ቅብሊት እንተርኣዩ ዳግማይ ቀረጽ ክኸፍሉ ይግደዱ ምህላዎምን እንተዘይከፊሎም ድማ ዝሓዝዎ ንብረት ከም ዝራሰን እዞም ምንጭታት ይጠቕሱ።

ብዘይካዚ ኣብ ምኽፋል ዘይፍትሓዊ ግብርን ቀረጽን ዝተዋፈሩ ናይቲ መንግስቲ ኣካላት ኣብ ፈቐዶ ድንኳናት እንዳዞሩ „እዚ ንብረት ካበይ ኣምጺእኩምዎ?“ እንዳበሉ ንዋናታት ከም ዘዋጥርዎምን ቀረጽ ክኸፍሉ ከም ዘገድድዎምን እንተዘይከፊሎም ድማ ንብረቶም ከም ዝውሰድን እቲ ዝረኸብናዮ ሓበሬታ ብተወሳኺ ኣብሪሁ።

ብኻልእ ወገን ድማ ብሰንኪ ወጻዒ ሕግታትን ምምሕዳርን ስርዓት ህግደፍ ዘማረሩን ኩሉ መዳያት ዘጸገሞምን እሞ ናብ ውሕስነት ዘየብሉ ስደት ክኸዱ ዘይመረጹን ኤርትራውያን መንእሰያት፡ ኣብ ፈቐዶ ገዳማትን ስቱር ቦታትን ክሕብኡ ይግደዱ ምህላዎም  ካብ ኤርትራ ዝተላእከ ሓበሬታ የረድእ።

PROJECT EXILE: ERITREAN STATE MEDIA REPORTER TURNS CRITIC

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“When prison became a synonym for Eritrea…you can only flee.”

In Eritrea, even being part of the East African nation’s tame state media is no protection. That was the conclusion Abraham Zere reached after years of working as a columnist for the government newspaper Hadas Erta and later for the ruling party’s magazine. 

All independent media outlets in the country of 6 million were closed in 2001 amid a massive crackdown on internal dissent following the country’s disastrous two-year border-war with Ethiopia. More than a dozen prominent journalists were jailed – and to this day it’s not known how many are still alive. 

Abraham Zere

Abraham Zere (courtesy)

But as Abraham has written, for state media workers Eritrea became aKafka-esqueworld of uncertainty and seemingly random detentions by security forces.

In 2006, security forcesdetained10 state media journalists who worked at the Ministry of Information without any apparent rhyme or reason–keeping some in custody for weeks. In 2009, the military raided a state educational station called Radio Bana, arresting at least 40 reporters and media workers for reasons that are still unclear. Some wereheldin prison until 2015. 

Abraham had his own difficulties in 2009 after publishing a column in the ruling party’s Hidri magazine highlighting the disaffection of Eritrean youth. That led to an immediate rebuke from Eritrea’s powerful Minister of Information Ali Abdu (himself now anasylum seekerin Australia after fleeing in 2013) – who published his own column in the state newspaper labeling Abraham’s work  “irresponsible and dangerous.” 

“I was living in a stifling atmosphere characterized by fear and uncertainty,” Abraham says. “When prison became a synonym [for] Eritrea; when citizens were left to languish in harsh dungeons merely by association, friendship or suspicion; when you vividly see your bleak future projected, what other options do you have? You can only flee.”Eritrea-CIA_WFB_Map_(2004)

Abraham escaped Eritrea in 2012 after being granted permission to study abroad. Now living in Ohio, where he co-founded the free expression group PEN Eritrea and is a graduate student at Ohio University, he spoke with Global Journalist’s Anna Sutterer about his work in a country that has ranked last in Reporters Without Borders’ World Press Freedom Index foreight consecutive years

Global Journalist: How did you manage to get out of Eritrea in 2012? 

Abraham: I left the country initially to study in South Africa after lobbying and pulling all possible contacts for more than four months. I had to go to the Office of the President in person and discuss my case with the director [Yemane Gebremeskel, now information minister].

It is still considered a big favor…I had a good excuse to leave officially to study, but I also badly wanted to escape and breathe fresh air.

GJ: Tell us about the article you wrote that angered the former information minister – and led you to think about fleeing?

Abraham: After resigning from [state newspaper] Haddas Erta, I started to contribute to the only other outlet: Hidri magazine, the official organ of the ruling party. Then in April 2009, I wrote an article in which I boldly mocked how the Eritrean youth were disempowered while the national media have been portraying otherwise.

The article outraged [former information minister] Ali Abdu, as I was teasing his ministry. The next day he wrote me a strong warning and identified me as a national security threat in the national newspaper.

Global Journalist: It’s been very difficult for foreign reporters to cover Eritrea, though recently a few have been allowed in. How free are they to report?

Abraham: The journalists have their escorts who are often extensively briefed by the ruling party’s leaders. Then they end-up interviewing tow or three media-friendly government officials. 

But there has been an exception to this recently by theNew Yorker‘s Alexis Okeowo. Her main story was the Eritrean soccer team that defected in Botswana.

She extensively interviewed the players, met most of the crucial figures in the country and accurately described everyday life in Eritrea. Her article, in my view, is the best article written on Eritrea over the last decade. 

Global Journalist: PEN Eritrea advocates for free expression in Eritrea. Why is it important to keep talking about press freedom there when it hasn’t changed in 15 years?

Abraham: Myself and other exiled colleagues are writing to underline the abysmal state of free press in Eritrea. Over the last year, we have done some tangible works and highlighted the cases offorgotten Eritrean journalists who have been reduced to names and numbers mainly for lack of information.

For the last year and a half, I have been extensively writing mainly on Eritrea’s freedom of expressions and human rights abuses for different media. When I publish something, in an attempt to shake the dread silence, I relieve a fraction of my guilty conscience for staying behind my colleagues who are languishing in Eritrean detention centers. 

Source=http://globaljournalist.org/2017/02/project-exile-exiled-eritrean-state-media-reporter-turns-critic/

ኣብዚ ዝሓለፈ ወርሓት ቀውዒ ዝበጽሑ ደቆም ናብ ግዱድ ኣገልግሎት ዝተወስድዎም ብዕድመ ዝደፍኡ ኤርትራውያን፡ ብደቂ-ደቆም እውን ክሕገዙ ከም ዘይከኣሉ ብዝተፈላለየ ምኽንያት ናብ ኤርትራ ገይሾም ናብቲ ዝነብርሉ ወጻኢ ሃገር ዝተመልሱ ምንጭታት ሓቢሮም። ከም ሓበሬታ ናይቶም ምንጭታት እዞም ዝኣኸሉ ደቆም ብግፋ ዝተወስድዎም ሽማግለታት ካልእ መተካእታ ምስ ሰኣኑ ካብ 14 ክሳብ 17 ዓመት ዝዕድሚኦም ደቂ-ደቆም ናብ ስረሓት ቀውዒ ምስ ኣዋፋሩ እቶም ህጻናት እውን ብሓይልታት ጸጥታ ናይቲ ስርዓት ከም ዝተገፈፉን ናበይ ከም ዝተወስዱ ከም ዘይለጡን ሓቢሮም።

እዚ ከምዚሉ እንከሎ ኣብ ኤርትራ ብዕድመ ንዝደፍኡ ዜጋታት መሬት ኣይወሃብን ዝብል ዘይፍትሓዊ ሕጊ ስለ ዝወጸ ኣብ ኩሉ ኩርነዓት እታ ሃገር ተቓውሞታት የስዕብ ከምዘሎ እዞም ኣቐዲምና ዝጠቐስናዮም ምንጭታት ይሕብሩ። ዋላ‘ኳ ካብ ዝተፈላለዩ ኣካላት „መሬት እንተዘይተዋሂብዎም ደኣ ብምንታይ ክነባበሩ“ ዝብል ሕቶታት ይልዓል እንተሃለወ ላዕለዎት ሰብ መዚ ናይቲ ስርዓት ግና ክምልስዎ ከም ዘይደለዩ እቲ ሓበሬታ የረድእ። ነዚ ኩነታት ዝተዓዘቡ ወገናት ምናልባት ብዝሕን ዋሕድን ስድራቤት ወይ ተወሳኺ ኣታዊ ኣብ ግምት ኣእቲኻ ካብ ምሉእ መገበር ኣትሕት ኣቢልካ ምዕዳል ሓደ ጉዳይ ምዃኑ፡ ካብዚ ሓሊፉ ግና ንሰባት ኣብ ገዛእ ሃገሮም እሞ ድማ ኣብቲ ዝያዳ ኣላዪ ዝደልይሉ ደረጃ ዕድመ መሬት ኣይግበኣኩምን ምባል መወዳድርቲ ዘየብሉ በደል ምዃኑ ይገልጹ ኣለዉ።

ብኻልእ ወገን ድማ ኣብዚ እዋንዚ ኣብ ኤርትራ ብደረጃ ተጋዳላይ ይኹን ሃገራዊ ኣገልግሎት ከም ዘገልገሉ ዘረጋግጽ ወረቐት ዘለዎም እንተዘይክይኖም ካብዚ ውጻኢ ብዜግነትካ ኣብ ዝኾነ ስራሕ ምውፋር ከምዘይፍቀድ ንኩነታት ኤርትራ ብቐረባ ዝተኸታተሉ ወገናት ይምስክሩ።