Eritrea: Smith said "You Want the Truth", 'No Rule of Law' in Asmara

Asmara (HAN) March 19, 2015 – Humanitarian Security and Regional Assets Protection news. Press Release – How you can get honest feedback from the Eritrean People?. A United Nations panel investigating Eritrea says it has found “very clear patterns” of human rights violations and a total absence of the rule of law in the country, according to VOA report.

The chairman of the U.N. commission of inquiry addressed the U.N. Human Rights Council in Geneva on Monday. Mike Smith said under the Eritrean government’s rules, national service is universal and indefinite and that “most Eritreans have no hope for their future.”

He said the only thing most Eritreans can expect is life in the military or on a civil assignment for wages of less than $2 per day.

The Eritrean Ambassador Tesfamicael Gerahtu rejected the report, telling the Human Rights Council that it was based on “unreliable, unproven and sensational information.” according to Reuters.

Rights groups have long accused the government of President Isaias Afwerki of oppressing its people. Afwerki has ruled the country since it won independence from Ethiopia in 1993.

Smith said Eritrean officials are using a murky legal status called “no war, no peace” to disregard international human rights law and curtail basic freedoms, including rights to free expression, movement, association and worship.

He said to enforce the system and silence critics, authorities carry out extra-judicial executions and detain people in harsh conditions that include metal containers in extreme heat and open-air prison yards in punishing cold.

Tens of thousands of Eritreans try to flee the country each year. Eritreans currently make up the second largest group, after Syrians, trying to cross the Mediterranean Sea in order to reach Europe.

The U.N. commission of inquiry has not been granted permission to visit Eritrea. Smith said members based their findings on interviews with about 400 members of the Eritrean diaspora and 140 written submissions.

His address Monday was an interim report, ahead of a final written report the commission will submit to the Human Rights Council in June.

 

Photo: De Zayas has written and lectured extensively on human rights, including the jurisprudence of the United Nations Human Rights Committee, including Eritrea.


HAN & Geeska Afrika Online (1985-2015), the oldest free independent Free Press in the region, brings together top journalists from across the Horn of Africa. Including Ethiopia, Somalia, Eritrea, Sudan, Djibouti, South Sudan, Uganda, Kenya, Oromo, Amhara, Somali, Afar and Harari. Plus, we have daily translations from 150 major news organizations in the Middle East and East African regions. Contact at news@geeskaafrika.com


 


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10 Responses to “Eritrea: Smith said "You Want the Truth", 'No Rule of Law' in Asmara”

  1. Eritrean

    The truth is there is not entity called the United Nations., there is only the one truth super power left ,”us”, the United States of America who can use it as an instrument for OUR own nation interest when it suits us.

    United states ambassador: John Bolton.

    “From the point of view of justice, the opinion of the Eritrean people must receive consideration. Nevertheless, the strategic interests of the United States in the Red Sea Basin and world peace make it necessary that the country be linked with our ally Ethiopia.”

    (U.S. Secretary of State John Foster Dulles, 1952)

    1. PFDJ crooks

      To bring up a statement from 1952 in the year 2015 and use that as some sort of excuse to treat Eritreans in the most horrible way is disgusting. How much do they pay you? If you are Eritrean you are spitting on your own people. You are defending 100 people who are destroying Eritrea and you dont care about the millions of Eritreans who are treated as dirt by this regime.

      Everytime these fools brings up qoutes from over a half a century and says “look 70 years ago they said this, now we must stay the path”.
      Which path? The path that pays 2 dollar a day like slave? The path that makes young people leave in droves? The path that robes Eritreans of dignity? The path that leaves Eritreans with no rights and were the government can do whatever it wants to its citizens without any consequences?
      You can bring 10 or 100 more quotes from 100 years ago, that wont change that the fact that the ones treating Eritrean in the worst possible way is this regime and NO ONE ELSE!!!

  2. Not only the dictator but his foregion agents must be also be accused by the international crimininal court.Birhanu nega and his hand full allies are a play ground for the dictator to extend his power life time .Birhanu nega and his hand full elites do this by making bravery from the dictator which is looted from the ertrean people.a few days before they tried to confirm isayas is a democratic man who stand for the eritrean people living at the same time the ordinary eritrean people life on the dictators indirect satelite televition Esat.The whole eritrean people inside eritrea and outside is discussing this war issue against the eritrean people which is llllllllllaunched by the idiot birhanu.We will not forget this.eritreans are fighting you ,your family and your hand full allies.Here after you can not make a joke on the eritrean people!

    1. Gigi

      The Eritrean juntas are the same as the IS’s terrorists. The same rule should apply th them. All Eritrean supporters should be listed and their names be passed to the International criminal court. They need to be charges for crime against humanity. All supporters benefit from the regim they get funds in form of cash. UK and other European imigration need to search Eritreans for cash particulary those who travell a lot to Eritrea. They are bringing cash. We all need to campain against these people who sell their brothers /sisters for money.

  3. Alem K.

    It is a monumental leap, finally to see the UN commission of inquiry to come up with this conclusion and I hope it will follow up with decisive action to cripple down the criminal unelected regime of ISAYAS AFEWORKI.
    Hopefully this will follow by shutting down all the embassies of the murderer regime which does not represent the Eritrean people and denying all travel privileges to the thugs, thieves and criminal representatives of the criminal regime.
    Hopefully this will give a huge boost to the lawsuit against Canadian mining firm, Nevsun Resources, which is treading with our young Eritreans blood by working with criminal regime. Nevsun is sued in a Vancouver court by three Eritrean refugees alleging that Nevsun “aided, abetted, contributed to and became an accomplice to the use of forced labor, crimes against humanity and other human rights abuses” at an Eritrean mine.

    Thank you for those of you heroic tegadelti like Elsa Chirum and thousands more fighting day and night to bring peace freedom and democracy for our Eritrean people.

    Awetn selamn nhzbi Eritrea and Death to the criminal regime.

  4. kibrom

    Mf fear is if the regime stay long in power he will put for Eritrean population in violation that we can’t imagine

  5. kibrom

    May be double of of the current violation

  6. Amine Emhatsion

    Be careful people this stupid guy is bribed by weano Ethiopian to lie there is a rule of law in EritreaeEritrea is peaceful country he is a lier go do some humaniteran in Syria you will loose your head lier go home Yankee we don’t want you in Eritrea Yankee hahaha

  7. Amine Emhatsion

    You are all stinking liers you never win lieng like that eritrean people is united we don’t listen you lier son of whore you mouth stinks stupid habesha

  8. Christian

    The truth is the UN never enforce Ethiopia to respect the international court decision, Sanction Eritrea over ridicules allegation of helping extremist ( all the report is giving by Ethiopia to the Un to black mail Eritrea). Now they complaining over human right. what a Fiasco. The UN the most fake organization ever.

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