Protect the Mandate. Stand with the Eritrean People.
Eritrea’s Attempt to Dismantle the Special Rapporteur’s Mandate Must Be Rejected
By tabling a resolution entitled “Discontinuation of the Mandate of the Special Rapporteur on the Situation of Human Rights in Eritrea”, the Eritrean government is making a direct attempt to silence victims, bury the truth, and block accountability.
This is not a step toward reform; it is a calculated move to evade scrutiny and continue its abuses unchecked. It must be firmly rejected and unequivocally condemned, and Eritrea must be urged to cooperate fully with the mandate.
The Eritrea Mandate Was Born of Regional Concern — Not Foreign Imposition
The mandate was established in 2012 and, for six years, was sponsored by Somalia and Djibouti, neighbouring African states directly affected by Eritrea’s abusive and destabilising policies. After the tripartite peace agreement with Ethiopia and Somalia, the two states abruptly withdrew their sponsorship of the Eritrea mandate, abandoning the Eritrean people without seeing tangible human rights improvements.
In June 2019, given the withdrawal of African sponsors, the resolution, originally initiated by African nations, was taken up by a group of six Western states, and later by the European Union, to ensure that a critical international voice for Eritrean victims remained active.
No University, No Future — Eritrea is Denying Its Youth the Right to Learn
Eritrea is the only country in the world without a university.
Asmara University, the nation’s only institution of higher learning, was officially closed in 2006. Since then, the government has replaced education with military-run colleges under the framework of national service. Final-year secondary students are sent to Sawa Military Camp, where indoctrination and forced conscription replace academic opportunity.
This deliberate militarisation of education strips young people of their futures and traps an entire generation in a system of control and servitude. What future can a nation expect when it denies its youth the right to learn, grow, and lead?
The Human Rights Situation in Eritrea: Key Facts:
- No elections since independence in 1993; Eritrea remains a one-party dictatorship.
- No opposition parties, civil society, or free press; all dissent is criminalised.
- No functioning parliament; all power is concentrated in the presidency.
- The 1997 ratified Constitution remains unimplemented.
- No independent judiciary; thousands held without charge, trial, or legal counsel.
- No freedoms of religion, expression, press, assembly, or movement.
- Gatherings of more than seven people are criminalised without prior approval.
- Children and minors are forced into indefinite national service — a system of state-sponsored slavery.
- Female conscripts face widespread sexual violence by commanders, with no accountability.
- No universities exist. Tertiary education is militarised.
- Final-year students are sent to Sawa Military Camp instead of civilian schools.
- Young people cannot own or freely use mobile phones; most rely on relatives’ devices.
- Eritrea has refused access to UN human rights mechanisms and implemented none of the UPR recommendations it has accepted.
- Eritrea has rejected the benchmarks set by successive Special Rapporteurs and the UN Commission of Inquiry.
The Five Benchmarks for Progress (Special Rapporteur, 2020), presented for Eritrea
In June 2020, then – Special Rapporteur Daniela Kravetz outlined five benchmarks for Eritrea, providing a clear, measurable path toward basic human rights reform:
- Rule of Law: End arbitrary detention, torture, and enforced disappearances; ensure fair trials.
- National Service Reform: End indefinite conscription; enforce the 18-month legal limit.
- Fundamental Freedoms: Guarantee freedoms of speech, religion, press, and movement.
- Gender Equality: Prevent sexual violence and protect the rights of women and girls.
- International Cooperation: Grant access to UN human rights mechanisms and implement their recommendations.
These are not new demands. Every Special Rapporteur, from Sheila B. Keetharuth to
Daniela Kravetz, and now Mohamed Abdelsalam Babiker, has made similar, consistent recommendations over more than a decade of reporting.
Yet, Eritrea has shown no meaningful or substantive improvement, has refused to implement any benchmarks, and has denied access to all UN human rights mechanisms. This is not passive neglect; it is an active rejection of accountability.
Why the Mandate Must Be Preserved
- Eritrea shows no willingness to reform — only to obstruct and deflect.
- Ending the mandate would abandon victims and embolden impunity.
- The Special Rapporteur remains the only independent voice for Eritrean victims.
Eritrea Cannot Oppress at Home and Claim Victimhood Abroad
Despite this long and well-documented list of abuses, the Eritrean government presents itself as a victim, lobbying shamelessly for sympathy and solidarity from countries with far better human rights records. How can states that protect the rights of their people stand in solidarity with a regime that violates every basic freedom of its own?
This hypocrisy must be exposed. Governments come and go, but the people of Eritrea and Eritrea itself will endure. The question is not whether the regime will fall — the question is who stood with the victims while it lasted.
Do the right thing: stand with the oppressed people of Eritrea, not with those who silence, enslave, and exile them.
Human Rights Concern – Eritrea (HRCE)
