31 July, 2001 to Present
Today, 31st July, 2025, marks the 24th anniversary of a turning point in my life, and the beginning of my lifelong struggle for justice in Eritrea.
In the summer of 2001, I was visiting Eritrea when a harrowing event unfolded, one that would change me forever. More than 2,000 students from the University of Asmara, the only university in the country, were rounded up and subjected to brutal treatment by the Eritrean government.
At the time, university students were exempt from the government’s mandatory summer work program, which was often forced labour under the guise of national service. But that year, without legal justification, the authorities reversed that practice. When students pushed back, the chairman and committee members of the Student Union were arrested, an act that sparked outrage across the student body.
I witnessed it all. I saw the students rounded up and taken to Asmara Stadium, where they were beaten for protesting and crying out. Their only crime was standing up for their rights and demanding the release of their fellow students.
Soon after, they were transported to Wia, a military training camp in the blistering desert.
The conditions were inhumane: scorching heat, no adequate shelter, little water, and cruel treatment. It was there that two students, Yirga Yosief and Yemane Tekie, died of heat stroke. Their deaths were avoidable. They were the result of deliberate neglect — a regime sending a clear message: dissent will be crushed, no matter the cost.
That moment broke something in me, and awakened something else: a deep conviction that I could no longer remain silent. It was then that I began my journey as a human rights activist, determined to expose and resist the cruelty of Eritrea’s dictatorship.
Just a few years later, in 2006, the regime took another devastating step: it shut down the University of Asmara, the only institution of higher education in the country, and it has remained closed ever since. This was not simply an administrative decision. It was a deliberate attack on academic freedom, intellectual growth, and the future of Eritrean youth.
Now, 24 years later, nothing has fundamentally changed. Eritrea remains one of the most repressive countries in the world. Thousands are still imprisoned without trial. Indefinite conscription continues. Education is stifled and militarised. Silence is enforced.
And yet, my struggle goes on. Activism is challenging and demands deep commitment. These 24 years have not been easy. There have been moments of doubt, fatigue, and heartbreak, but somehow, I thank my God for granting me the strength and courage to continue.
I continue to speak out, for Yirga, for Yemane, for the students whose futures were stolen, and for every Eritrean who dares to dream of freedom.
This day is not just a personal anniversary. It is a day of remembrance, defiance, and renewed commitment, to justice, to truth, and to a free Eritrea.
Elsa Chyrum
31 July 2025
