(eritrea.facts@gmail.com & HRCE, January 31, 2017) Eritrea is a one-party state and it has been ruled by a transitional government since 1991. Ironically enough the name of the ruling party is: People’s Front for Democracy and Justice (PFDJ) and it has been mis(led) by President Isaias Afewerki since the specified period. Considering that Mr. Afewerki was the head of the then Eritrean People Liberation Front (EPLF) for twenty years one can safely say that he is one of the long serving dictators Africa has to grapple with.
The Eritrean constitution that was drafted and ratified by the National Assembly in May 1997 was put on hold; the national election scheduled for December 2001 was indefinitely postponed; and The National Assembly was, in effect, nullified.
Full Report: Report on the State of Eritrea 2016-3
At a time when the world is respecting even animal rights, Eritrea is still lagging in the human rights front. All sorts of freedoms – of press, worship, association, etc. have been brutally suspended. There is no single private or independent media outlet in Eritrea. The private newspapers have been closed from 2001 and its journalists have been languishing in jail ever since, and some are presumed to be dead. The state-owned media is the mouthpiece of the government, and it controls every public outlet of information. There is no right to gather in Eritrea, no rights to protest peacefully; and no form of free speech whatsoever. There is no religious liberty, and the Eritrean government ranks internationally amongst the worst violators of religious freedom.
Furthermore, National Human rights groups cannot operate and international human rights organizations are banned from entering the country. There is no tolerance for NGOs. There are no political parties, no unions, no protection of workers’ rights, nor an independent judiciary system. Tens of thousands of men, women and children have been imprisoned without trial and are languishing there in terrible conditions. They are subjected to brutality on a regular basis, including electric shocks, genital torture, rape and sexual slavery, sleep deprivation, starvation, exposure to extremes of hot and cold temperatures, and no medical care.
Thousands risk their lives to leave the country illegally every month, despite the shoot-to-kill policy reported to be in force on the border. This is fueling a demand for people smugglers. Unable to leave by normal means, many Eritreans decide to risk kidnap, extortion, rape and death at the hands of the smugglers in order to reach a safer country. Some end up having their organs removed and sold against their will.
Read the full report below:
