The acquittal of Medhanie Tesfamariam Berhe (Eritrean man accused of human trafficking cleared in case of mistaken identity, 13 July) is a much belated recognition of his innocence, after he was arrested in Sudan following a British tip-off and tried in Italy. It is also a damning indictment of Italy’s and the UK’s misguided anti-trafficking policy in the Horn of Africa. Both states have been at the forefront of the so-called Khartoum Process in which the EU and European states cooperated with regimes such as Omar al-Bashir’s Sudan. Critics of this process had warned all along about the risk of such partnerships. Mr Berhe’s case was therefore not an unfortunate, unforeseeable incident but entirely predictable. It is time for a thorough inquiry to establish the UK’s role in framing an innocent man and effectively delivering him into the hands of Sudanese forces who were known for torturing suspects, and duly did torture Mr Berhe, who is owed more than an apology by the UK.
Dr Lutz Oette
Senior lecturer in law, Soas University of London
News: PM Abiy in Asmara for a two day working visit
Written by Addis Standard
Addis Abeba, July 18/2019 – Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed arrived in Asmara, Eritrea, today for a tow-day working visit, Yemane G. Meskel, Eritrea’s Minister of Information tweeted.
The visit by PM Abiy came exactly one year since Ethiopian Airlines launched its historic flight to Asmara on July 18/2018, more than two decades after diplomatic relations between Addis Abeba and Asmara were severed.
The year-old rapprochement between the two countries saw the normalization of diplomatic relations with the re-opening of their embassies in each other’s capitals. However recently many critics say relations between the two countries were getting frosty, again. Assumptions follow the inexplicable unilateral border closure by Eritrea of the four crossing points connecting it with Ethiopia. AS
Source=https://twitter.com/hawelti/status/1151764929474695168?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1151764929474695168&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Faddisstandard.com%2Fnews-pm-abiy-in-asmara-for-a-two-day-working-visit%2F
Inquiry needed into the UK’s role in framing Medhanie Tesfamariam Berhe
Written by Dr Lutz OetteThe acquittal of this victim of mistaken identity is also a damning indictment of Italy’s and the UK’s misguided anti-trafficking policy in the Horn of Africa, writes Dr Lutz Oette
Medhanie Tesfamariam Berhe. Photograph: Andreas Solaro/AFP/Getty Images
إئتلاف المرأة الإريترية في الشتات يدين بشدة الإستيلاء التعسفى على المرافق الصحية المملوكة للكنيسة الكاثوليكية في إريتريا
Written by ائتلاف تامرأة الارترية
لندن ، المملكة المتحدة - يدين تحالف المرأة الإريترية بشدة الاستيلاء الجائر على المرافق الصحية التي تمتلكها و تديرها الكنيسة الكاثوليكية في إريتريا. كجزء من جهوده الموسعة و المتمثلة في تفكيك المؤسسات والمدارس المملوكة للمنظمات الدينية ، ورد أن النظام الإريتري قد استولى على 29 مرفقًا صحيًا يوفر الخدمات لجميع الإريتريين وخاصة النساء والأطفال (خاصة في المناطق الريفية) ، الذين لا يمكنهم الوصول إلى المستشفيات الحكومية. إن قرار النظام غير الشرعي وغير العادل يعكس تأريخه الطويل في الاعتقال التعسفي و اتهاماته المزيفة لمواطنيه بالتطرف الديني
إن تصرف النظام لم يكن له أي مبرر . حيث أنه يعاقب أولئك الذين يعتنون بأفقر الفقراء. إن معظم المرضى لم يكونوا كاثوليك ، و إنما من المسيحيين الأرثوذكس والمسلمين، و أيضاً منتسبي الديانات الأخرى. توجد العديد من المرافق في المناطق النائية. " الأب موسيى زرآي"
إن المرافق الصحية ، التي تديرها وتمولها الكنيسة الكاثوليكية ، كانت تقوم بخدمة المناطق الريفية دون مقابل يذكر. وقد أتاح توفر هذه المرافق الصحية الوحيدة للعديد من الإريتريين ، وخاصة النساء في المناطق الريفية ، الوصول إلى خدمات الرعاية الصحية الأساسية. لا شك أن إغلاق هذه المرافق الصحية سيؤثر سلبًا على المجتمعات التي تخدمها. لقد لعبت الراهبات دورًا رئيسيًا في توفير خدمات الرعاية الصحية الأكثر إلحاحاً لكل الإريتريين، خاصةً للنساء والأطفال ، حيث فشلت الدولة في رعاية العديد من الأطفال بدور الأيتام. في بلد حيث يوجد فقط 6 أطباء لكل 100000 (منظمة الصحة العالمية ، إريتريا) ، عملت المرافق الصحية التي تديرها الكنيسة الكاثوليكية كشريك يخدم السكان بلا تمييز. أثناء عملية الاستيلاء على المرافق ، شوهدت راهبات خدمن كممرضات، يطردن عنوةً من المرافق من قبل الجنود و أغلقت الأبواب خلفهنّ.
نحن ، في إئتلاف المرأة الإريترية و إذ ندافع عن حقوق جميع النساء الإريتريات ، نسأل عن مصير جميع المرضى الذين اصطحبوا خارج المرافق الصحية ، والراهبات المتفانيات، و أيضاً الكهنة والموظفين الصحيين الذين خدموا تلك المجتمعات. و نطالب بوضع حد لحالة انعدام القانون ، وأن تتم محاسبة حكومة إريتريا المارقة على أفعالها.
ائتلاف تامرأة الارترية
13التاريخ: يوليو 2019
البريد اللاكترونى: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
ውህደት ደቀንስትዮ ኤርትራ ኣብ ስደት፡ (ውደኤ) ነቲ ኣብ ኤርትራ ብቤት ክህነት ካቶሊካውያን ዝመሐደራ ናይ ጥዕና ትካላት ምዕጻው ኣጥቢቓ ትኹንን
Written by ውህደት ደቀንስትዮ ኤርትራ
ውህደት ደቒንስትዮ ኤርትራ (ውደኤ) ኣብ ስደት፡ ነቲ ኣብ ኤርትራ ብቤት ክህነት ካቶሊካውያን ዝመሐደራ ዝነበረ ናይ ጥዕና ትካላት ምዕጻው ኣጥቢቓ ትኹንን።
መንግስቲ ኤርትራ ከም መቀጸልታ ናይ`ቲ ብሰፊሑ ዘካይዶ ዘሎ ናይ ጥዕና ትካላትን ብሓልዮት ሃይማኖታት ዝካየዳ ቤት ትምህርትታትን ናይ ምዕጻው ስጉምቲ፡ ንኹሉ ኤሪትራዊ ብፍላይ ንደቀንስትዮን ሕጻናትን፡ ብሕልፊ ኣብ መንግስታዊ ሆስፒታላት ክበጽሖ ዘይኽእል ቦታታት ኣብ ገጠራት ኣገልግሎት ዝህባ ዝነበራ 29 ናይ ጥዕና ትካላት ከም ዝዓጸወ ተፈሊጡ። እዚ ብዘይሐደ ምኽንያትን ብሐሶት ክሲ ጥሩፋት ሃይመናታውያን እዮም እናበለካ ኣብ ልዕሊ ዜጋታት ዝግበር ዝነበረ ማእሰርትን ንናይ ነዊሕ ታሪኽ ባህሪ ግፍዕን ግህሰትን ስርዓት ህግደፍ ዘቃልሕን ዘጋልጽን`ዩ።
“እዚ ብመንግስቲ ዝተወሰደ ስጉምታት ዝኹነ ይኹን ምኽኒያት ዘይብሉ`ዩ። እዚ ስጉምታት`ዚ ነቶም ኣዚዮም ብድኽነት ዝተጠቀዑ ድኻታት ንዝሕግዙን ዝከናኸኑን ኣካላት ዝቐጽዕ ተግባር`ዩ። መብዛሕትኦም ተጠቀምቲ ናይ`ዚ ሕክምናዊ ኣገልግሎት`ዚ ኣመንቲ ሃይማኖት ኮቶሊኽ ጥራይ ዘይኮኑ፡ ካልኦት ኣመንቲ ተዋህዶ ክርስትና ሃይማኖትን ኣመንቲ ሃይማኖት እስልምናን ኣባላት ተኸተልቲ ካልኦት ሃይማኖትን እዮም ነይሮም። ብዙሕ ክፋላት ናይ`ዚ ትካልት`ዚ ኣብ ገጠራት ኣብ ርሑቕ ቦታታትን`ዩ ነይሩ” ኣባ ሙሴ ዘርአይ።
እዝን ብካቶሊክ ቤተ ክርስትያን ዝመሐደራ ናይ ጥዕና ትካላት ነቲ ኣብ ገጠር ዝነብር ህዝቢ ብቁሩብ ገንዘብ ወይ ድማ ብነጻ ናይ ጥዕና ኣገልግሎት ዝህባ ዝነበራ`የን። እዚ በይናዊ ህላውነት ናይዘን ትካላት ከኣ እዩ ነቲ ኣብ ገጠር ዝነብር ብዙሕ ሕዝቢ ብሕልፊ ደቀንስትዮን ሕጻናትን ኣዚዩ ወሳኒ መተካእታ ዘይብለን ናይ ጥዕና ኣገልግሎት ዝህባ ትካላት ዝገብረን። ስለዚ ምዕጻው ናይዘን ትካላት`ዚኤን ነቲ ተጠቃሚ ማሕበረ ሰብ ዓቢ ጉድኣት ከም ዘስዕበሉ ርጉጽ`ዩ። ኣብዚ ከኣ ናይተን ንነብሲ ወከፍ ኤርትራዊ መሰረታዊ ጥዕናዊ ኣግልግሎት ብሕልፊ ከኣ ንደቂኣንስትዮን ሕጻናትን ኣብ ምቕራብን፡ ኣብ`ቲ መንግስቲ ኤርትራ ዝፈሸለሉ ክበጽሖ ዘይኸኣለን ንዝርከቡ ዘኽታማት ሕጻናት ምንባይን ምክንኻንን ወሳኒ ተራ ዝተጻወታ ደናግል ከይተዘከረ ክሓልፍ የብሉን። እዚ ኣብ ን100,000 ሰብ 6 ዶከተራት ዘለዋ ሃገር -(ካብ ሰነዳት WHO) ብቤት ክህነት ካቶሊክ ዝመሓደር ትካላት ብዘይ ሌላን ጉሌላን ንኹሉ ኤርትራዊ ዘቅርቦ ዝነበረ ንሕጽረታት መንግስቲ ዝሽፍን ጥዕናዊ ግብረ ሰናይ ትካላት ምዕጻው ዘይሓላፍነታዊ ስጉምቲ እዩ። እቶም ነዚ ትካላት`ዚ ንምዕዛው ዝመጹ ወተሃደራት ነተን ኣብኡ ዘገልግላ ዘነበራ ደናግል ብሓይሊ ምውጻእን ትካላት ምዕጻውን ርኡይ ግፍዒ ነይሩ።
ንሕና ውህደት ደቀንስትዮ ኤርትራ ኣብ ስደት ከም ተጣበቅቲ መሰላት ኩለን ኤርትራውያን ደቀንስትዮ መጠን ብዛዕባ ሃለዋት ናይቶም ካብቲ ሆስፒታል ዝተሰጉ ሕሙማትን ናይ`ተን ውፍያት ደናግልን ኣቕሽሽትን ናይቶም ኣብቲ ትካላት ንማሕበረ-ሰባት ኣገልግሎት ዘቅርቡ ዝነበሩ ሰራሕተኛታት ንሐትት። ከምኡ ድማ ነዚ ዘይሕጋዊ ተግባራት`ዚ ደረት ክግበረሉን፡ ነዚ ግፍዓዊ መንግስቲ ኣብ ኤሪትራ ናይ ዝፍጽሞ ተግባራት በተሓታትነት ክቀርብ ንጽውዕ።
ውህደት ደቀንስትዮ ኤርትራ
ዕለት፡ 13 /07/2019
ኢመይል፡ This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
Eritrean Justice seekers Demonstration 13.07.2019
Clarifications about the recent nationalization of the Catholic Church’s Health Centers in Eritrea
Written by ERITREAN CATHOLIC SECRETARIAT (Er.C.S)ቤት ትምህርቲ ወድ–ሸሪፈይ መበል 36 ዓመተ ትምህርቲ ብ 686 ተመሃሮ ትጅምር
Written by ብኢድሪስ እስማዒል
ወድ–ሸሪፈይ ኣብ ምብራቕ ሱዳን ኣብ ጥቓ ዶብ ኤርትራ ትርከብ መዓስከር ስደተኛታት ዝርከባ ንእሽቶ ከተማ እያ። ቤት ትምህርቲ ወድ–ሸሪፈይ ንክንድዚ ዓመታት ዝኣክል᎓ ካብ ቀዳማይ ክሳብ ሻምናይ ክፍሊ ከይሰልከየት ብትግርኛን ዓረብን ኣገልግሎት ክትህብ ዝገብራ ብልጫታት᎓ እኩብ ድምር ናይዞም ዝስዕቡ ረቛሒታት እዩ። ንሳቶም ድማ፤ ተወፋይነት መማህራና ᎓ ናይቶም ዘይሕለሉ ኣባላት ኣሰ Association Suisse Enfance-Erythrée (ASEE) ጻዕርን᎓ ምትሕብባር ካቶሊካዊት ቤተ ክርስትያን ከሰላን᎓ ኤርትራዊ ዲሞክራስያዊ ማሕበር ኣብ ሰሜን ኣመሪካን᎓ መሓዙት ቤት ትምህርቲ ወድ–ሸሪፈይ ኣብ ሽወደንን ግዱሳት ውልቀሰባት ኣብ መላእ ዓለምን እዩ።
ወድ–ሸሪፈይ ብቤት ትምህርቲ ድኻታት ዝብል ቅጽል ስም እያ ትጽዋዕ᎓ እቲ ምኽንያት ካኣ᎓ ተመሃሮ ዝኸፍልዎ ዓመታዊ ክፍሊት ምስ ካልኦት ብምዝማድ ኣዝዩ ትሑት ብምዃኑን ተመሃሮ ኣብ ነብሲ ወከፍ ካልኣይ ዓመት ብነጻ ዝዕደልዎ ዩኒፎርምን እዩ። ካብቲ ብተማሃሮኣ ዝረአ ጽቡቕ ውጽኢት ተመርኩሶምውን ሰበስልጣን ክፍሊ ትምህርቲ መንግስቲ ሱዳን᎓ ነታ ቤት ትምህርቲ ናይ ታሽዓይ ክፍሊ ትምህርቲ (ማእከላይ ደረጃ) ዘይትህበሉ ምኽንያት የልቦን እዮም ዝብሉዋ። ምምሕዳር ቤት ትምህርቲ ነዚ ክዉን ንምግባር᎓ ዘድሊ ፋይናንስያውን ንዋታውን ንምድላው ምስ መሓዙቶም ኣብ ምርድዳእ ይርከቡ።
እታ ንመበል 35 ዓመታት ኤርትራዊ ካሪክለም እናተኸተለት ንስደተኛታት ቆልዑ ትምህርታዊ ኣገልግሎት ከተወፊ ዝጸንሐት ቤት ትምህርቲ ወድ–ሸሪፈይ ሕጂውን ከምቲ ልሙድ ብዕለት 23 ሰነ ናይ 2019–2020 ዓመታዊ መደብ ትምህርቲ 686 ተመሃሮ ብምምዝጋብ እያ ስራሓ ጀሚራ ዘላ። ብመሰረት መምርሒ ክፍሊ ትምህርቲ መንግስቲ ሱዳን᎓ ኣከደሚካዊ ትምህርቲ ኩለን ቤት ትምህርትታት ሱዳን᎓ ካብ ወሒ ሓምለ ክሳብ ወርሒ መጋቢት እዩ ዝወሃብ።
ከም ዝዝከር ኣብ ዝሓለፈ ወቕተ–ትምህርቲ፤ ዝተፈላለዩ ባህርያዊ ዕንቅፋታት ከም ዕልቕልቕ ናይ ዝናብን ተላጋቢ ሕማምን ስለዘጋጠማ ስሩዕ ኣገልግሎት ትምህርቲ ብግቡእ ከተካይድ ተጻጊማ ጸኒሓ እያ። ብተወሳኺ ድማ ብሰንኪቲ ከጋጥም ዝጸነሐ ፖለቲካዊ ቅልውላዋት᎓ ባንክታት ሱዳን ብግቡእ ክሰርሕ ብዘይምጽንሑ᎓ ደሞዝ መማህራን ኣብ ግቡኡን ዕለቱን ክወሃብ ስለ ዘይተኻእለ᎓ ኣብ መነባብሮ መማህራን ሃስያ ኣስዒቡ እዩ። እተን ስሩዕ ትምህርቲ ዝወሃበለን ግዜታትውን እንተኾና ካብ ክቱር ዋዒ ተማሃሮ ይኹን መማህራን ብኣድማዕነት ክዋስኡ ከምዘይክእሉ ርዱእ እዩ። ነዚ ሽግርዚ ንምቅላል ምምሕዳር ቤት ትምህርቲ፤ ናይ ኤለክትሪክ ገመድ ናይ ምስሓብ ፍቓድ ኣብ ምውጻእን ምስ ተኾናተርቲ ኣብ ዝርርብ ይርከብ።
ብኢድሪስ እስማዒል
Wad Sherifey Refugee School Starts 36th Academic Year with 686 Students
Written by Idris Ismail
By Idris Ismael, School Supervisor
The Wad-Sherifey School for Eritrean refugees, located near the Eritrean border in Eastern Sudan, started another new academic year on 23 June 2019 with 686 refugee children.
Thanks to the uninterrupted generosity of friends of the school, both charities and individuals, this is the 36th academic year for Wad-Sherifey School to give hope and a better future for children and families who fled home in search of safety.
Per guidelines of Sudanese education authorities, academic years in the country extend between July and March each year in both private and public schools.
The Wad Sherifey School, teaching in Eritrean curriculum, and using both Arabic and Tigrigna in the elementary classes, was founded and is still administered by the Eritrean Red Cross-Crescent Society (ERCCS). Each year, the school enrolls up to 700 students, with about equal number of boys and girls.
During the previous academic year that ended last March, the school faced various challenges that included damage on school buildings due to heavy rains; interruption of classes due to insecurity in the Sudan as well as an infectious epidemic caused by so-called chikungunya virus, and lack of air conditioning facilities. The school administration is in contact with the city council to acquire the necessary legal permission for power supply.
ካብ ምልኪ ናብ ዲሞክራሲ እትሰጋገር ሃገር፥ ዲሞክራሲያዊት ንኽትከውንን፥ ዲሞክራሲያዊ መደባታት ብግቡእ ኣብ ግብሪ ውዒሉ ውሕስነት ዝረክብን፥ ሓያል ፖለቲካዊ ስልፍታትን ሲቪላዊ ማሕበራትን የድሊያ። ብፍላይ ድማ ህላዌ ፖለቲካዊ ሰልፍታት ኣዝዩ ኣገዳሲ እዩ።
ፖለቲካዊ ሰልፍታት ከምቲ ኣብ ብዙሕ ፖለቲካዊ ጽሑፋት ዝብሎ፡ “ኣብ ዘመናዊ ውክልናዊ ዲሞክራሲ ዓቢ ግደ ክጻወታ ይኽእላ እየን።” ልክዕ እዩ ፖለቲካዊ ሰልፍታት ንመላእ ህዝቢ ኣይወከላ እምበር፥ ካብቲ ህዝቢ ዝመጽእ ርእይቶታት ይኹን ሓሳባት ወይ እውን ዝቐርብ ጠለባት ይኹን ጥርዓናት ኣዋህሊለን ንድሌትን ትጽቢትን ህዝቢ ንምምላስ ይማጎታን ይቃለሳን።
ፖለቲካውያን ሰልፍታት ንስልጣን ጥራይ እየን ዝወዳደራ ብምባል ብዙሕ ብድሆታት እዩ ዘጋጥመን። መጀመርያ ከምዚ ናይ ኤርትራ ሰልፍታት ኣብ ደገ ብምህላወን ንሓድሕደን’ውን ምድምማጽ ይኹን ምስምማዕዕ የብለንን። ካልኣይ ነጥቢ ነቲ ክለሳ ሓሳባውን መትከላትን ኣተሓሕዛ ንድሕሪት ገዲፈን፡ በቲ ናይ ጽባሕ ዝትግበር ግዜኡ ዘይሓለወ ናይ ስልጣን ውድድር ቁርቁስ ይኣትዋ። በዚ ዝኣክል ኣብ ነንሓድሕደን ክወቓቐሳን ክፈናጨላን ከይኣክል፡ ተጓነጽቲ ይኾና እሞ ንረብሓ ዕድመ ስልጣን መላኺ ስርዓት ይኸውን። ካልእ ኣጸቢቑ በዳሂ ዝኸውን እቲ ኣብ መንጎ ስቪል ማሕበራትን ፖለቲካዊ ሰልፍታትን ዘሎ ምትእትታው፥ ፖለቲካዊ ውዳቤ የዳኽሞ እዩ። ከምኡ እውን ንህላዌ ፖለቲካዊ ሰልፍታት ብዝጻረር መልክዕ ጐስጓሳት ስለዝካየድ፥ ዘይምስታፍን ኣንጻር ሰልፊ ምኻድን የስዕብ። ህዝቢ እውን ኣብ ልዕሊ ሰልፍታት እምነት ከም ዝጉድል ይገብር።
ህላዌ ፖለቲካዊ ሰልፍታት ይብዝሓ ይውሓዳ ብዙሕ ዘጸገም ኣይኮነን። እንታይ ደኣ፥ ኣብ ነሓድሕደን ነቲ ዲሞክራሲዊ ለውጢ ብኸመይ ኣወሃሂደን ብሓባር ይሰርሓ እዩ እቲ ዘገድስ። ስለዚ ክዛተያን ሓቢርካ ብምስራሕ ብስልጡን ኣገባብ ክዋሳኣ ዘይምኽኣለን እዩ እቲ ዓብይ ጸገም።
ልክዕ እዩ፡ ሎሚ ሰልፍታትን ውድባትን ኤርትራ፡ ወጻኢ ካብ ሃገረን ምህላወን፥ ህዝቢ ኣብ ፖለቲካዊ ብስለትን፥ ንዲሞክራሲያዊ መስርሕን ክከታተልን ከተግብርን ተኽእሎ የለን። ከምቲ ኣቐዲሙ ተጠቒሱ ዘሎ፡ እቲ ኣብ ውሽጢ ይኹን ኣብ ደገ ዘሎ ህዝቢ ንፖለቲካዊ ሰልፍታት ፋይዳ ከምዘይብለን ገይሩ ይቖጽረን። እንተኾነ እዚ ሚዛንዚ ሕመቕ እምበር መንፈዓት ኣይኮነን። ምኽንያቱ ህዝቢ ኣብ ፖለቲካ ተሳታፍነት ዘይብሉ እንተኾይኑ፥ ነቲ ምልካዊ ስርዓት ኣውዲቕካ ኣብ ክንድኡ ህዝቢ ዝደልዮ ምሕደራ ክትትክእ ኣጸጋሚ ስለ ዝገብሮ።
ስለዚ ህዝቢ ብፖለቲካዊ ስነሓሰብ ምስ ዝወዳደብን፥ ጽባሕ ክበጽሖ ንዝደልዮ መትከላት ምስዘነጽርን፡ ህዝቢ ረብሓኡን መሰላቱን የውሕሰለይ ኢሉ ዝኣምነሉ ምርጫ ክርክብ ዕድል ኣለዎ። እዚ ፖለቲካዊ ኣወዳድባ ግን፡ ነቲ ናይ ጽባሕ ዲሞክራሲያውን ግዝኣተ-ሕግን ዝነግሰሉ ባይታ ንምጥጣሕ ክኸውን ይግበኦ።
ሎሚ፡ ፖለቲካዊ ውድባትን ሰልፍታትን ይኹና ሲቪላውያን ማሕበራት ንዲሞክራሲያዊ መስርሕ ዘራጉዳን ዝጣበቓን እምበር ክሰሓሓባን ክካሰሳን ዝውዕላ ክኾና ቅኑዕ ኣይኮነን። እዚ ዘሎናዮ መድረኽ ካብ ምልኪ ናብ ዲሞክራሲ ምስግጋር እዩ፡፡ እቲ ቀዳምነትና ነቲ ወጻዕን ጸረ ህዝብን ስርዓት ምውጋድ እዩ። ጎኒ ጎኑ ድማ ካብ ህልኽን ምውጣጥን ወጺካ ንዲሞክራሲ ብኸመይ ንርዳእን ኣብ ግብሪ ነውዕሎን ሓቢርና ንቃለስን እንውስነሉ ኣገዳሲ መድረኽ እዩ።
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Where’s the peace dividend? Eritrea’s gulag state is crumbling
“Silent protest is growing,” says another army officer. “When we meet in the military camps, we talk about the wrongdoings of this government.”
Issaias Afwerki made peace a year ago. His people want the dividend
Jul 11th 2019 | ADDIS ABABA AND ASMARA
ABIY AHMED’S arrival in Asmara on July 8th last year was as colourful as it was historic. Thousands thronged the streets of the Eritrean capital to witness the first visit by an Ethiopian leader since the two countries fought a bloody war from 1998 to 2000. Both national flags fluttered along the boulevard from the airport; women carried plates of popcorn which they threw over the crowds in celebration. Eritrea’s ageing dictator, Issaias Afwerki, beamed as he embraced his young counterpart and signed a peace deal to end two decades of enmity. “There is no border between Ethiopia and Eritrea,” Abiy declared. “Instead we have built a bridge of love.”
The promise of peace was tantalising. Telephone lines and flights between the two countries were restored. Two months later the land border opened. For the first time in years Eritreans could leave their country freely. Many thought that, with the war over, Issaias would soon enact other reforms. They particularly hoped he would end the system of indefinite conscription that the UN likens to mass enslavement—and which has helped earn Eritrea the nickname “the North Korea of Africa”.
A year later Eritreans are still waiting. “Nothing has changed,” says Milena, a 16-year-old who faces being called up next year. The government has yet to say whether an old 18-month limit on conscription will be restored. Some recruits are now paid salaries and put to work in government offices, rather than brutal army bases in the desert. But there are no signs that Issaias will end conscription entirely.
Without explanation, Eritrea has once more closed all its border crossings with Ethiopia, ending a short-lived boom in cross-border trade. Food prices are rising. Markets in Asmara, which briefly bustled with Ethiopian traders, are quiet. Businesses and factories are closing, some because of a shortage of raw materials. Some water-bottlers, for instance, have shut for want of imported plastic.
Local authorities have stepped up the demolition of unlicensed homes. After the peace some residents began renovating or building new houses, wrongly assuming the government would loosen rules that effectively bar private construction. They are being bulldozed.
Even officials are perplexed. Some have stopped coming to work because they have not been told what to do. Their offices, in departments such as trade and education, stand empty. Issaias has held only one cabinet meeting since the peace deal.
Patience in Addis Ababa, the Ethiopian capital, is starting to wear a little thin. A draft trade agreement was sent to Asmara for comments late last year, according to insiders, but nothing has been heard of it since. Landlocked Ethiopia’s dream of using Eritrean ports, a huge potential benefit of the thaw, seems a long way off. The Eritrean Red Sea town of Massawa is “as dead as always”, remarks a visitor.
The most vexing issue of the peace deal, the physical demarcation of the border, appears to have been kicked into the long grass. Disputed areas such as Badme, the one-goat village over which the war started, remain under Ethiopian administration. Troops eye one another across the dusty frontier.
With neither a war to justify his repressive dictatorship, nor any promise of reforms to placate long-suffering citizens, Issaias’s grip on power seems to be weakening. For the first time in years, says a military officer, people are openly complaining in neighbourhood meetings, despite the threat of being denied state rations for doing so. “I see many people calling for his resignation,” he says. In recent weeks residents of Asmara have woken up to fresh graffiti calling for an end to conscription. Seditious pamphlets printed in Ethiopia, as well as two new television channels linked to the exiled opposition, are stirring anger. “Silent protest is growing,” says another army officer. “When we meet in the military camps, we talk about the wrongdoings of this government.”
But rather than taking to the streets, Eritreans are emigrating. Despite the closed border, many steal away. Soldiers, who once shot at those trying to sneak across the frontier, now turn a blind eye. More than 60,000 Eritreans have registered as refugees in Ethiopia since September.
Issaias does not face much international pressure. In November the UN lifted an arms embargo first imposed in 2009. He has also mended fences with Sudan and Somalia, and has drawn closer to the United Arab Emirates and Saudi Arabia.
Even so, he seems concerned about the possibility of protests. He appears less frequently in public. He has shut down health centres run by the Catholic church (apparently because its bishops criticised him) and is arresting people at random. Social media have been blocked for weeks. Some internet cafés have been closed. “The government seems to fear the Sudan revolution might happen in Eritrea,” muses an employee at the agriculture ministry.
Yet unlike in Sudan, where protests forced out a veteran despot, Omar al-Bashir, there are few young folk left in Eritrea. Barely 1% of the population uses the internet, so it is hard to organise protests online. “It will not be done on the streets,” says Zecarias Gerrima, a former journalist who is now in exile. A coup is more likely, though Issaias may be able to hang on. His country, meanwhile, is emptying.
Catholic hospital closures in Eritrea: “It is like amputating one of the Church’s arms”
Written by Martin Plaut
In mid-June, the Eritrean military forcibly closed down 21 Catholic hospitals and other medical facilities.
In mid-June, the Eritrean military forcibly closed down 21 Catholic hospitals and other medical facilities. Patients were more or less thrown out of their beds. The military smashed windows and doors and harassed staff, Father Zerai said. He reported that the director of a hospital in northern Eritrea, a Franciscan sister, was arrested when she resisted the closure.
Observers from outside of the country have suggested that, in the eyes of the government of President Isaias Aferwerki, the Church has become too self-confident in its efforts to further the peace process with Ethiopia, and they believe that the government wants to have sole control of the social sector. Said Father Zerai: “The government is obsessed with having control over everything and everyone. It sees the Catholic Church as a threat because we are part of an international network and ask questions.”
There are at most between 120,000 and 160,000 Catholics in Eritrea. Half of its population is Christian. In addition to Roman Catholicism and Sunni Islam, the Orthodox and Lutheran Churches are the only other religious denominations tolerated by the state. Unlike other countries in North Africa, Islam is not the state religion in Eritrea. The country has a “strong atheistic leaning. If it were up to the government, religion would not exist. Essentially, it follows the same school of thought as China,” said Father Zerai.
The priest is only able to speak freely because he lives outside of the country. He is no longer able to return to his homeland. The bishops in the country—there are four dioceses—are frequently pressured by the government. But this has not stopped them from vehemently protesting against the closure of the hospitals.
“Young Eritreans are leaving the country in growing numbers because there is no rule of law,” Father Zerai said. The country’s constitution has still not been fully implemented: “This is why people can just be picked up from their homes without reason. Military service has become legalized slavery,” he said.
The possibility of a future is taken away from the young,” Father Zerai said. Attempts by the international community to put pressure on Eritrea’s government because of its human rights record have failed. The country has largely isolated itself.
According to Father Zerai, freedom of religion is severely restricted and at the mercy of capriciousness: “A few are permitted to freely practice their religion, but not all.” Despite the current crisis the priest is certain that “the Catholic Church will continue its pastoral work, but also its social work. After all, it says in the Bible: faith without works is dead. Taking away the ability of the Church to carry out charitable works is like amputating one of its arms.”
ባይቶ ሰብኣዊ መሰል ሕቡራት ሃገራት፡ ክራቨትዝ ጉዳይ ኤርትራ ክከታተላ ኣናዊሑለን
Written by ቤት ጽሕፈት ዜና ሰዲህኤ
ብ11 ሓምለ 2019፡ ዝተጋበአ መበል 41 ርክብ ባይቶ ሰብኣዊ መሰል ሕቡራት ሃገራት ወይዘሮ ዳኒየላ ክራቨትዝ ጉዳይ ሰብኣዊ መሰል ኣብ ኤርትራ ንክከታተላ ኣናዊሑለን።
ዊ ባይቶ ሰብኣዊ መሰል ሕቡራት ሃገራት፡ እተን ፈቓደን ዝተሓደሰለን ውይዘሮ ናብ ኤርትራ ኣትየን ዘድሊ ሓበሬታ ንክረኽባ ተማሕጺኑ። ኣብ ርእሲዚ፡ ዋና ጸሓፊ ሕቡራት ሃገራት እዘን ወይዘሮ ንኤርትራ ዝምልከት ኣድላይ ሓበሬታ ዝረኽባሉ ኩነታት ክሰርዓለን እሞ፡ ኣብ ናይ 2020 ኣኼባ ናይቲ ባይቶን፡ መበል 75 ሓፈሻዊ ኣኼባ ሕቡራት ሃገራትን ናይ ቃልን ጽሑፍን ጸብጻበን ከቕርባ ዝኽእላሉ ኩነታት ክፍጠረለን ጸዊዑ።
ኣብ ዝሓለፈ ሽዱሽተ ዓመታት እቲ ፈቓድ ናይተን ጉዳይ ሰብኣዊ መሰል ኤርትራውያን ክከታተላ ዝምደባ፡ኣብቲ ስራሕ ናይ ምቕጻል ፈቓደን ብናይ ተሳተፍቲ ምሉእ ደገፍ እዩ ክሕደስ ጸኒሑ። ኣብዚ ዓመት’ዚ ግና ኤርትራ ብዝተወሰኑ፡ ናይ ኣፍሪቃ፡ ዓረብን ካለኦት ጨቆንቲ ሃገራትን፡ ምውካላ ስለ ዘተባብዐ፡ ዝተፈለየ ኩነታት ነይሩ። ኣብቲ ኣኼባ ባይቶ እዘን ሓላፊት ኣብ ምክትታል ሰብኣዊ መሰል ኤርትራ ንክቕጽላ፡ 21 ሃገራት ደጊፈንአን። 13 ተወከልቲ ከኣ ምስ መንግስቲ ኤርትራ ወጊኖም ኣድሚጾም። 13 ተወከልቲ ድማ ካብ ምድጋፍ ኮነ ምቅዋም ተዓቂቦም።.
UN Human Rights Council Renews Mandate of Eritrea Rapporteur Kravetz
Written by EPDP Information Office
The 41st Session of the UN Human Rights Council on 11 July voted to extend the mandate of the Eritrea Rapporteur for Human Rights, Ms Daniela Kravetz.
Besides urging Eritrea to cooperate fully with the UN expert on human rights and to give her access to the country, the Council also decided to ask the UN Secretary General to provide the Special Rapporteur with all the information and resources necessary to fulfill the mandate, and Ms Kravetz to present oral and written reports during Council meetings in 2020 and also present her repot to the UN General Assembly during its 75th Session.
For the past six years, the mandate was being renewed by unanimous vote. It was made different this year when Eritrea asked for open vote encouraged by several favourable votes from African, Arab and authoritarian states. There were 21 votes for the motion for extended scrutiny on Eritrea while 13 votes supported Eritrea. Other 13 states abstained from voting.
