This is most peculiar. Why did the Qatar National Bank go to a London court to try to win back $250 million from Eritrea?
The details are sketchy, but come from an authoritative source: Law 360 – which supplies information to business.
Below is as much as I can see at present.
Service Row Delays Qatari Bank’s $250M Eritrean Loan Fight
Law360, London (May 10, 2019, 6:23 PM BST) — A London judge Friday opted not to decide if Qatar National Bank can give Eritrea notice of a $250 million lawsuit over an unpaid loan outside of normal diplomatic channels until…
“In the case of Eritrea, when the UAE military was ejected from Djibouti at the beginning of the Saudi-led intervention in Yemen in 2015, Abu Dhabi quickly engagedwith the government in Asmara over access to its port of Assab. Until then, Eritrea had been close to Iran, receiving aid and allowing the Iranian navy use of Assab. Eritrea also had good relations with Qatar, which had kept a contingent of troops along a disputed Djibouti-Eritrea border until Eritrea sided with the UAE and Saudi Arabia in their dispute with Qatar. Eritrea cut ties with Iran and agreed to allow the UAE to build up military facilities just across the Bab el-Mandeb from Yemen’s southwest coast. The bases there have played a crucial role in the UAE’s ability to conduct military operations in southern Yemen, including the amphibious assault to retake Aden from Houthi forces in August 2015. In exchange, according to experts, the UAE and Saudi Arabia have helped modernize Eritrea’s power grid and have given in-kind assistance of oil, among other aid. According to the U.N. panel of experts on Somalia and Eritrea sanctions, Eritrea deployed around 400 troops to Yemen as part of the coalition forces. Eritrea’s budding ties to the UAE and Saudi Arabia – an apparent lifeline offering relief from its international isolation – triggered an alarmed response in Addis Ababa.”
እዚ "ብያኣክል" ዝብል ህዝባዊ ምልዕዓል መታን ክዕወት ዓሚቁን ሰፊሕን መጽናዕቲ ዝሓትት ስለዝኾነ መራሕቱ ኣብ ዘዘለውዎ ሃገር ምስተን ዓለምለኸ ትካላት ክተሓባበሩን ትምህርታዊ ዝኾነ ፍልጠት ንክቀስሙ ክጓየዩ ኣለዎም።እቲ ቅድሚ ሕጂ ሒዝናዮ ዝጸንሓና ልምዲ ናይ ወጋሕ ትበል ለይቲ ተሪፋ ፣ትምህርታዊ ዓውደ መጽናዕትታት፣ ኮርሳት ኢዩ እቲ ንኣፍልጦኻ ዘዕቢ፣ፍልጠት ድማ ንክትምዕብል ይሕግዘካ። ዘመን ከበሮ ተሪፋ ዘመን ምንባብን ምምርማርን ይኹን፡፤
Eritrean fourth democratic wave towards Inclusive political participation and representation
The struggle from dictatorship to democracy depends on its ownership expressed through its meaningful participation to affirm this it needs democratic institutions and campaign strategy and grand strategy. The goal of the struggle from dictatorship to democracy is clear to remove the dictatorship from its deep roots and system and lay foundations for democratic system and democratic society.
Looking to the Eritrean Movements struggling against dictatorship in Diaspora the main challenge was to unify the Movements under a grand strategy including all political, civic and individuals.
The struggle from dictatorship to democracy is not similar like the struggle for national liberation from colonialism and occupation.
In the past 20 we have seen many national dialogues and conferences held by political and civic organizations but all were not sustainable and successful. This article will try to provide an overview of the process pursued in the past 20 years
During these 20 years of struggle for democratic change in Eritrea the Eritrean Opposition in Diaspora couldn't achieve structured participation but encountered multiple challenges internally ( lack of strategic partnership) and externally( foreign intervention-Ethiopian Government) but still there is hope that one day they will come together and achieve more in the coming future. To achieve this the opposition forces require along-term commitment from all its members in order to guarantee the sustainability of the struggle of all forces regardless of their political affiliations.
The Eritrean Opposition in Diaspora campaign strategy has been against each other for the past 20 years being aware of this failed strategy the opposition must direct their campaign strategy( win- win strategy) against the dictatorship, strengthening participation by all forces for democratic change, through greater participation we can win our peoples' legitimacy.
Through such campaign strategies the opposition can gain a keener understanding of the struggle from dictatorship to democracy and enhance their cooperation providing them more precise and unified message to the Eritrean people inside Eritrea. Let us promise not to campaign against each other, for example, the social media has been an instrument for defamation and blackmailing against each other let us stop this and direct the campaign strategy against it.
The Eritrean Forces for democratic change in Diaspora have tried gradually to build up alliances and coalitions but all were not sustainable and successful. We have learned many lessons during this time why these alliances and coalitions were not successful.
Building alliances and coalitions are democratic instruments in the struggle for democratic change but the Eritrean Opposition still need to learn the importance of these instruments.
The Eritrean Opposition in Diaspora have not succeeded to lay a grand strategy ( See, Gene Sharpe's research studies) winning the dictatorship in Eritrea and laying foundations( What form of Government- State Structure/Federalism/ Unitary) for democratic change inside Eritrea.
Laying grand strategy is the most important instrument to be established to remove the dictatorship and lay foundations for democratic change.
If the call of , " Enough is Enough" for national united platform is out of shared lessons learned they must first assess the past experiences of unity attempts inside themselves and with other compatriots for democratic change. Building national united platform needs a long-term commitment from all the parties involved and I hope the youth will take this initiative and revitalise the method of struggle from dictatorship to democracy.
References
President Isaias Afwerki of Eritrea, who ‘rules through fear’. Photograph: Goh Chai Hin/AFP/Getty Images
Europe’s response to the migrant crisis in the Mediterranean has rightly – if belatedly – focused on saving lives. Not a week goes by now without thousands of Africans, Asians and refugees from the Middle East being rescued off the coast of Italy by European ships. That is the welcome result of a humanitarian effort decided in late April, after a series of tragedies at sea had pushed EU leaders to act at last. But it would be dangerous to suppose that the deeper problem has been addressed. Europe deals only with the symptoms of migration, not its root causes. Eritrea is a striking case in point.
This east African nation of 6 million people is now one of the biggest sources of migrants who take the perilous journey into Sudan and then across Libya before finally setting out to sea towards Europe’s shores. There is no civil war in Eritrea, nor has there been an international military intervention. What Eritreans desperately try to escape is a dictatorship that sounds close to being Africa’s equivalent of North Korea. The UN’s inquiry on human rights in Eritrea, in a damning report published earlier this week, found what it called “a pervasive control system used in absolute arbitrariness to keep the population in a state of permanent anxiety”. It describes torture, arbitrary detentions, enforced disappearances, indefinite military conscription, forced labour. It is a comprehensive description of how President Isaias Afwerki, in power for 23 years, rules through fear.
In the face of the systematic inhumanity of his regime, Europe has turned a blind eye. Even worse, the EU has in recent months decided on a new development aid package to Eritrea, worth over €300m. The argument is that financial support will help stem the flow of asylum seekers pouring out of the country. But it is not likely to work like that. Rather, the aid will first feed the cynicism of a dictatorial system only too happy to feel vindicated in its twisted assertion that Eritreans are migrating for predominantly economic reasons, not political ones. Second, such a policy does nothing to relieve those who so desperately need urgent help. Europe is not only compromising its own values by turning a blind eye to tyranny, it is rewarding a regime with aid instead of thinking strategically.
Any reading of the UN report should tear down this convenient myth. The EU must base its action not on wishful thinking but on the report’s core conclusion, which is that crimes against humanity may be being committed in Eritrea. This means that European governments, including the UK’s, that have tried to cast Eritreans as economic migrants, must seriously consider changing course. If Eritreans are fleeing persecution, Europe’s obligation is to be open to them, not to retreat behind false representations. If aid is to be delivered, it must come with strict obligations attached. There may be no easy solution to Eritrea’s domestic situation, but the very least one should expect from Europe is to recognise the facts: it is a totalitarian state whose refugees are not, or not only, in search of work but who are fleeing a very real terror.
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"Let us all act to resolve our internal problems by dialogue”
"Let us make Eritrea the place to share and care"
Stop accusing and blaming each other but come together and evaluate the past and come to invent new ideas promoting innovations.
We failed to build institutions of both legislative and executive bodies as well as the laws, procedures and norms by which we operate. The struggle from dictatorship to democracy demands the fundamental needs of our diverse people, thus we must have clear methods of struggle to bring fundamental changes.
The Eritrean forces for democratic change have had experimented variety of means in the last 27 years, to bring regime change in Eritrea. But all these approaches failed to unite and work together except deteriorated the spirit of mutual respect and trust.
It is not easy to evaluate the exact methods in transition from dictatorship to democracy and reasons that led to the result of the current situation of the opposition forces in Eritrea, but it would be useful to investigate the reasons behind the status quo in the opposition camp which might help us pick the mechanisms that could lead to our aspired democratic change.
Twenty years has passed in internal political bickering and conflict.
In this article I will be dealing with some proposals that can help us to come to the table of negotiations rather than accusing each other who is the right or wrong.
a/ articulated and critical analysis of the conflict.
b/ foster national consensus on the challenges and opportunities facing our struggle from dictatorship to democracy.
c/ reaching an agreement on common national agenda.
Conflicts are not all negative but when actors attempt to resolve conflicts by moving outside established institutional frame work they can create severe problems.
Forces for democratic change should have solved its internal conflicts by dialogue; establishing an environment for an inclusive knowledge-based dialogue on the political process aimed to achieve the desires of our people.
By dialogue ;disputes arisen inside the forces for democratic change should have been processed, debated; reacted and resolved.
At this moment; the writer of this short article recommends that let us all be involved to bring all forces for democratic change at the table and resolve the dispute by dialogue in order to get the trust of our people as an alternative to the current oppressive regime of one man rule.
28 April 2019
Habte Hagos, chairman, Eritrea Focus
The two-day London Conference looking at how a free and democratic Eritrea might emerge in the future was a fascinating, exhilarating and challenging event. It heard from Eritreans from a range of backgrounds and many viewpoints. There were inputs from experts – Eritrean and international – who have worked on and thought about the country and its people for many years.
It was an entirely positive event, which makes the negative response of the Eritrean government as sad as it is predictable. Instead of welcoming discussions about the options that are now emerging, it has attempted to belittle and dismiss. Yemane Ghebremeskel – Minister of Information – responded to the Conference by attacking Baroness Kinnock.
Glenys Kinnock is an extraordinary British politician and a very long-standing friend of Eritrea. She visited Eritrea during the liberation struggle and her books including: “Eritrea: Images of War and Peace” did much to inform the international public about the situation.
Baroness Kinnock has been a stalwart supporter of Eritrea Focus, which organised the London Conference, but sadly she was not able to organise nor to participate in these events. If she had been with us, it would have been the icing on the cake.
Ambassador Estifanos, who represents Eritrea in Japan, took a different approach.
Perhaps predictably, he attempted to link the Conference to the Tigrayans. It is a rather tired rhetoric, but it can be wheeled out to suit almost any situation, so he has adopted it again.
It is a hallmark of the current regime that they insist on keeping the Eritrean people in the dark. We are denied information about the changes going on in our country and our region. With our National Assembly suspended we have no opportunity to engage in debates about our own futures. This is quite unacceptable.
Our reply
Neither of these criticisms is accurate, but that is unlikely to convince either of these government officials. Our appeal is – rather – to the wider Eritrea public. In this regard we want to make our position clear since, as it is often said, transparency is the best disinfectant. To that end we are publishing the Conference agenda, which identifies who spoke and who led the discussions. [see at the end] The papers will also be published in due course.
Eritrea Focus is an association of Non-Governmental Organisations, human rights organisations, exile and refugee groups as well as individuals concerned with the human rights abuses in Eritrea. We campaign to expose the horrific abuses and suffering of Eritreans, both within the country and as refugees living abroad. We campaign for democratic accountability in Eritrea and the establishment of the rule of law, and actively engage with the international community in our efforts to achieve this.
The London Conference was an important part of our activities. It was attended by about 70 people – mostly Eritreans, but also international experts. Many different views were expressed.
Delegates came from Kenya, Botswana, a number of European countries and the United States as well as the UK. Funding for the Conference was kindly provided by the National Endowment for Democracy, which is funded by the US Congress, as well as private donations.
Our aim is simple: to look at the immense challenges facing Eritrea and to try to assist in the emergence of a democratic government that can replace the current dictatorship. Ours is a catalytic and facilitative role: we cannot be involved in the end of the present autocratic regime overseen by President Isaias. That task is exclusively one for Eritreans and especially for Eritreans inside the country. What we can do is assist and encourage the process of thinking about what will be required once the transition has taken place. This will be an immense project: no-one can have exclusive ownership of it. All constructive contributions should be welcome.
We are enormously heartened by recent developments inside Eritrea and amongst the diaspora. The ‘Enough’ – Yiakel movement, which the youth have taken up with such enthusiasm, is very much to be welcomed. It will fuel the changes that are coming, but as the Arab Spring so clearly demonstrates energy and hope are not enough. The future must be planned for if it is to produce the kind of government in which rights are respected and the rule of law is established. Our work is designed to be an inclusive process, sharing our work with anyone who shares our aims.
What next?
Over the next few weeks we will put together a range of working groups. These will take forward the papers that were presented at the Conference. We will begin the process of thinking about how Eritrea might be reconstructed after a transition, so that the country can have the ‘softest of landings.’ The issues will include law and the constitution, the economy, women and minority groups and regional issues. We need to identify key scholars and able Eritreans, who can critique what is being considered, but who are also prepared to step forward once the current regime has gone. We will publish the papers we have and how people can become involved.
This is a process – not an end point. But we believe that these are important considerations.
First: We are not a substitute for Eritrean political movements and organisations. We can assist, be catalytic and supportive. Only Eritreans can take the transformation of their country forward. We will try to be inclusive – including reaching out to transnational Eritrean youth in the diaspora.
Second: We do not aim for conformity but for collaboration. We accept, encourage and recognise the work of many other organisations like the Eritrean Lawyers, Eritrean journalists and other professional groups. We will accept and work with the many civic organisation emerging from the country’s women and its youth. “Unite, don’t harmonise” is a useful slogan. We aim to map Eritrea’s intellectual resources and consider how to fill the gaps.
Third: we already have some resources, although we are a small organisation and aware of our limitations. We have produced a well-received exhibition charting the history of Eritrea and we are willing to share it. We are supporting the improving media environment – including the Assena radio and television. We are also monitoring the international media, and will publish what we find.
There is a huge amount of work to be done, but we are not alone and the wind is in our sails.
See the Conference agenda here: Eritrea Conference 2019 – Programme
———————— ENDS ——————————-
April 23, 2019 (KHARTOUM) - The U.S. Deputy Assistant Secretary (DAS) for East Africa and The Sudans called n the leader of the transitional military council (TMC) to negotiate with the opposition groups on the formation of a civil government.
Makila James who is visiting Sudan nowadays met Tuesday with Abdek Fattah al-Burhan TMC leader to discuss the political situation in the country after the fall of the regime of President Omer al-Bashir.
In a statement released on Tuesday evening, the U.S Embassy in Khartoum said the visiting diplomat commended the TMC on their decision to heed the people of Sudan’s legitimate demand for a civilian-led, inclusive and representative government that respects human rights.
"She, also, encouraged the TMC to continue to negotiate with the political opposition and protest leaders and to form a civilian-led transitional government," reads the statement.
The opposition which suspended discussions with the TMC political committee organized significant protests across the country on Tuesday and has proven its capacity to mobilize the Sudanese street.
Another protest is scheduled for Thursday before to announce civil authority, a lean government and the appointed transitional legislative assembly.
The visiting diplomat, also, held a meeting with the Freedom and Change forces.
"She commended the people of Sudan for their resiliency and commitment to non-violence as they expressed their legitimate demand for inclusive and representative government," said the Embassy.
Further James reiterated the U.S. priority to see a civilian-led transition to a peaceful and democratic Sudan, stressed the statement.
(ST)
JOHANNESBURG – Former President Thabo Mbeki says while the African Union and the international community discuss the future of Sudan, the country’s sovereignty must be respected.
Mbeki visited the African National Congress (ANC) pavilion at the Rand Easter Show where he weighed in on the ongoing Au Troika Summit in Egypt being attended by President Cyril Ramaphosa.
“The sovereignty of the Sudanese people about their own future has to be respected and that’s important, there’re clearly many other people around the world who are very interested in the future of Sudan, which is good. But I’m saying that interest must not undermine the possibility of the Sudanese to exercise sovereignty.”
At the summit, African leaders will focus on “the evolution of the situation in Sudan” where protests continue after the military toppled President Omar al-Bashir.
Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi is also the current president of the African Union.
He will receive the Chadian president Idriss Deby, Rwanda’s head of state Paul Kagame, Congo’s Denis Sassou-Nguesso, Somalia’s Mohamed Abdullahi Mohamed and Ramaphosa as well as Dijbouti’s leader Ismail Omar Guelleh.
For Sudan, the objective “is to discuss … the most appropriate ways to address the evolution of the situation and to contribute to stability and peace”, Egypt’s presidency said.
The AU on 15 April threatened to suspend Sudan if the military does not hand over power within 15 days of that date to a civilian authority.
President of the African Union Commission Moussa Faki is also expected to participate in the discussions, along with officials from Ethiopia, South Sudan, Uganda, Kenya and Nigeria.
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
24 April 2019
UN Secretary General’s former Africa representative calls for democratic change in Eritrea
London, 24 April 2019 – Ambassador Haile Menkerios, who served as the United Nations Special Representative to the African Union, and Eritrea’s ambassador to Ethiopia from 1991 to 2000, is calling for a “national conference of representatives of the Eritrean people that would decide on a transitional arrangement to ensure an inclusive process of building participatory democracy in the country.”
Ambassador Menkerios will make his remarks to ‘Building Democracy in Eritrea’, a two-day conference held at Senate House, University of London, from 24-25 April.
The landmark conference will hear from Ambassador Menkerios that only the formation of a new national body of representatives “can prevent violence” following the end of the current dictatorship.
President Isaias Afwerki has ruled Eritrea since independence in 1993. He has suppressed all opposition parties, crushed the independent media and imprisoned his opponents indefinitely.
Eritrea has “the notoriety of being perhaps the only country in Africa that does not have a functioning constitution, a legitimate elected government, nor legitimate and functioning governance institutions that ensure accountability,” Ambassador Menkerios will say.
Conference objective
The two-day conference is being organised by Eritrea Focus, in partnership with the Institute of Commonwealth Studies at the School of Advanced Study. It brings together more than 70 delegates from the USA, Europe and Africa, including academics, campaigners, members of the Eritrean diaspora, and international experts.
“The objective of ‘Building Democracy in Eritrea’ is to bring together Eritreans and international supporters to begin thinking about tangible, realistic objectives for the establishment of democracy and the administration of justice in the country”, said Habte Hagos, Chairman of Eritrea Focus. “The time for this is now.”
The lessons from Sudan and Algeria
The London conference meets as the Sudanese and Algerian uprisings are unfolding, and which serve as examples of how regime change can come about. The aim of the conference is to look beyond Eritrea’s current dictatorship and to explore how democratic renewal can be assisted and encouraged.
Among those participating are:
While the rapprochement between Eritrea and Ethiopia last year brought an end to the state of “no war, no peace” that persisted for 20 years, there are no signs that any reforms have been enacted to address the drastic situation of human rights within the country, which last month the UK Government said remained of “significant concern”.
“The almost absolute concentration of power in the hands of the President is both unstable and unsustainable”, says Habte Hagos. “The British Government acknowledges that we have seen no improvement in the situation of Eritreans following the peace deal with Ethiopia, and people continue to flee the brutal regime of indefinite conscription and the suppression of their most basic human rights. We must learn the lessons of dictatorships that fell but did not give way to democracy, and act quickly to set out the conditions that must be met for a future free from the tyranny of the past three decades.”
ENDS
Notes to editors:
Eritrea Focus is an association of Non-Governmental Organisations (NGOs), human rights organisations, exile and refugee groups and individuals concerned with the gross abuses of human rights in Eritrea.
The objective of Eritrea Focus is to draw attention to the horrific abuses and suffering of Eritreans, both within the country and as refugees living abroad. We campaign for democratic accountability in Eritrea and the establishment of the rule of law, and actively engage with the international community in our efforts to achieve this.
Eritrea Focus provides secretarial support to the All-Party Parliamentary Group (APPG) on Eritrea.
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