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Eritrea “turning into a giant prison”
by Scott Gilbreath ~ April 19th, 2009
Human Rights Watch has issued a scathing report on the tiny African nation of Eritrea. Under the autocratic rule of President Isayas Afewerki, Eritreans are subjected to “arbitrary arrest and detention, torture, forced labor, and inhuman conditions in detention; rigid restrictions on freedom of movement and expression; and religious persecution”, causing a humanitarian crisis.
“Eritrea’s government is turning the country into a giant prison,” said Georgette Gagnon, Africa director at Human Rights Watch.
[…]
Based on more than 50 interviews with Eritrean victims and eyewitnesses of abuses in three countries, the report describes how the Eritrean government uses a vast apparatus of official and secret detention facilities to incarcerate thousands of Eritreans without charge or trial. Many of the prisoners are detained for their political or religious beliefs, others because they tried to evade the indefinite national service or flee the country.Torture, cruel and degrading treatment, and forced labor are routine for conscripts as well as detainees. Detention conditions are appalling, with detainees typically held in overcrowded cells – sometimes underground – or in shipping containers that reach searing temperatures by day and are freezing at night.
Those who try to flee risk severe punishments and the possibility of being shot while crossing the border. The government also punishes the families of those who escape or desert from national service with exorbitant fines or imprisonment. Despite these severe measures, thousands of Eritreans are trying to escape their country.
The Eritrean government has long been known as one of the world’s worst persecutors of Christians. Thousands of believers, including children, are confined in shipping containers or jail cells. At least eight are known to have died in custody in recent years. Eritrea ranks high in lists of countries that trample on the human rights of followers of Jesus.
Last December, authorities conducted another round of mass arrests of Christians, bringing the total in custody to about three thousand.
Earlier this month, Eritrea hauled human rights activist Dania Avallone into an Italian court for daring to demonstrate at Eritrean government sponsored events in Italy.
The HRW report can be downloaded or read online via this page.
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April 19th, 2009 at 06:51 PM
Great blog. Thanks for drawing attention to this very important report and the needs of our brothers and sisters there.
April 23rd, 2009 at 08:36 AM
[...] FAILED STATE Eritrea “turning into a giant prison” …. [...]