ርእሰ-ዓንቀጽ ሰዲህኤ

ኣብዚ እዋንዚ ኣብ ቅድሜና ዘለዉ ክንዘራረበሎም ዝግበኣና፡ ግን ከኣ ናይ ለውጢ መስመር ቃልስና ከየስሕቱና ክንጥንቀቐሎም ዝግበኣና እዋናውያን  ዛዕባታት ኣዝዮም ብዙሓት እዮም። “ሓይልታት ምክልኻል ኤርትራ ኣብዚ ኣብ ትግራይ ዝካየድ ዘሎ ውግእ ተሳቲፉዶ ኣይፋሉን? ኣብዚ  ውግእ  ዘስዓቦ ኣሰላልፋ መን ምስ መን ኣሎ? ካብቶም ገኒኖም ኣዛረብቲ ኮይኖም  ዘለዉ እዮም።

እዞም ኣቐዲሞም ዝተጠቕሱ ናይ ዞባን ዓለምን ኣጀንዳ’ውን ኮይኖም ዘለዉ ዛዕባታት፡ ብዝያዳ ነቶም ኣንጻር ህግደፍ ዝተሰለፍና፡ ኤርትራውያን ኣዛረብቲ ክኾኑ ግድን እዩ። ምኽንያቱ ንመጻኢ ዕድል ኤርትራን ህዝባን ኮነ ነቲ ነካይዶ ዘለና ህዝባዊ ዲሞክራስያዊ ለውጢ ናይ ምርግጋጽ ቃልስና ኣዝዮም ጸለውቲ ስለ ዝኾኑ። ኣብዚ ሓይልታት ምክልኻል ኤርትራ ኣብ ውግእ ትግራይ ምስ ፈደራላዊ መንግስቲ ኢትዮጵያ ተሰሊፉ ኣንጻር ትግራይ ምስታፉን ዘይምስታፉን፡ ብሕብእብእ ዝሕለፍ ኣይኮነን። ምኽንያቱ ኣባላት ሓይልታት ምክልኻል ኤርትራ ደቂ ውሑዳት መራሕቲ ጉጅለ ህግደፍ ዘይኮኑ፡ ደቂ ህዝቢ ኤርትራ እዮም። እቲ ጉጅለ ንኢድ ኣእታውነቱ ዝምልከት ሓቂ ክነግረና ከይተጸበና፡ ናይቶም ኣብቲ ውግእ ተሳቲፎም ዝተወግኡ፡ ዝሞቱን ሃለዋቶም ዝጠፍኡን ወለድን ስድራቤታትን ሓዘኖምን ሻቕሎቶምን ይገልጹ ስለ ዘለዉ፡ ነቲ በለካ ለኸዓካ ገዲፍና፡ ነቲ ክዉን ከም መርተዖ ምውሳዱ  ናይቲ ሕቶ መልሲ እዩ።  እቲ “መን ምስ መን ይስለፍ?” ዝብል ኣብ ዝርዝር ከይኣተናን ብስምዒት ከይተደፋእናን፡ ኣየንኡ እዩ ርትዓውን ኤርትራዊ ረብሓ ዘረጋግጽን ዝብል ሕቶ ብዝምልስ መዐቀኒ ክንመዝኖ ይግበኦ። ናይ ክሳብ ሕጂ ኣቕጣጫ ኢሳያስን ናይ ብዙሓት ንኤርትራ ካብ ርእሳ ዘይወረዱላ ኢትዮጵያውያን ተንተንትን  ጠመተ፡ ናበይ ገጹ የመዓዱ ከም ዘሎ ምስትብሃል ግና ኣዝዩ ኣገዳሲ እዩ።

“ኤርትራዊ ረብሓ” ዝብል ኣምር ብብዙሕ ኩርንዓት ዝረአ፡ ነብሱ ዝኸኣለ ዝርዝር ዘለዎ ኮይኑ፡ እቲ ኣብዚ እዋንዚ ቅድሚት ክንሰርዖ ዝግበኣና መዓቀኒ “ኤርትራዊ ህልውናን ልኡላውነትን” ክኸውን ከም ዝግበኦ ከነስተውዕል ይግበኣና። ብዝኾነ ይኹን ዝጸንሐን ዘሎን ፍልልያትን ህልኽን ኣወንዚፍና፡ ነዚ መሰረታዊ መዐቀኒ ክንስሕቶ ኣይግበኣናን። ምሕዝነት ኢሳይስ ኣፈወርቅን ዶ/ር ኣብይ ኣሕመድን ቀጻሊ መደባቶምን ሓደጋኡ ኣብ ልዕሊ ኤርትራን እንታይ ክኸውን ከም ዝኽእል ኣድቂቕካ ምግማት ከገድሰና እዩ። እዚ ንዕዘቦ ዘለና ናይ ጉጅለ ህግድፍ ከለፍለፍን ዘይምኽኑይ ኢድ ኣእታውነቱ ኣብ ውግእ ትግራይን ድሮ ህይወት ብዙሓት መንእሰያትን ንብረት ህዝቢ ኤርትራን ኣኽፊሉና ምህላዉ ውሁብ  እዩ። እቲ ክስዕብ ዝኽእል ዘስገኣና ዋጋ ምውጋዱ ኮነ ምንካዩ ከኣ ብቃልስና ዝውሰን እዩ።

እቲ ከሻቕለናን ከተሓሳስበናን ዝግበኦ ካልእ ጉዳይ፡ እቲ ብሰንኪ ኢትዮጵያዊ መግዛእቲ ካብ 1967 ጀሚሩ ካብ ኤርትራውያን ዘይለቐቐ ስደትን መሪር ሳዕቤናቱን እዩ።  ስደት ኤርትራውያን ብሰንክቲ ጉጅለ ህግደፍ ፊን ኣብ ዘዝበሎ ዝጽሕትሮ ውግኣት ክሳብ ሎሚ ኣይተገትአን። ስደት ኣብዚ እዋንዚ እዋናዊ ቀዳምነትና ዝኾነሉ ከኣ፡ ሃለዋት ኤርትራውያን ኣብ ኢትዮጵያን፡ ብፍላይ ድማ ኣብቲ ውግእ ዝካየደሉ ዘሎ ክልል ትግራይ ኣብ  መደበር ስደተኛታት፡ ሽመልባ፡ ሕንጻጽ፡ ማይ ዓይንን ዓዲ ሓርሽን እዩ። እዚ መደበር ስደተኛታት ካብ ቀደሙ ስግኣትን ናይ ቀረባት ዋሕድን ዘይተፈልዮ ምንባሩ ዝዝከር እዩ ። እዚ ሎሚ ዝያዳ ዓሪጉ ዘሎ ስግኣት ከምቲ “ጠባይ  መደበር ስደተኛ እዩ” ኢልና ክንሓልፎ ዝጸናሕና ኣይኮነን።  እቲ መደበራት ስደተኛ ዝርከበሉ ከባቢ ቀጻሊ ውግእ ዝካየደሉ ዘሎ ብምዃኑ ኣይኮነንዶ ንዓና ሰብ ጉዳይ፡ ንዓለም እውን ኣሻቒሉ ዘሎ እዩ። ኣብዚ ውግእ ሓይልታት ምክልኻል ኤርትራ ይሳተፍ ስለ ዘሎን ጉጅለ ህግድፍ ኣብ ልዕሊቶም ራሕሪሐምዎ ዝተሰዱ መንእሰያት ሕነ ካብ ምፍዳይ ድሕር ከምዘይብል ስለ እንፈልጥ  ሻቕሎትና ዝያዳ ክኸውን ግድን እዩ። ስግኣትን ሻቕሎትን ጥራይ ዘይኮነ ብግብሪ’ውን ብሰንክዚ ውግእ ኤርትራውያን ስደተኛታት ግዳይ ኮይኖም ከም ዘለዉ ከካብ ኩርናዑ ስግኣታት ይቃልሑ ኣለዉ።

ኣብዚ መደበር ስደተኛታት ብፍላይ ካብ 30 ሕዳር 2020 ንደሓር ሕክምና ኮነ ዝቕመስን ዝለሓስን የለን።  ናይቶም ስደተኛታት ንብረት ዝርካቡን ናይቲ መደበራት ኣብያተ-ጽሕፈትን እውን ተዘሚቱ እዩ። እቲ ብሕጊ ዘይምራሕን ሕጊ ዘየኽብርን ጉጅለ ህግዲፍ  ካብዚ መደበራት ስደተኛታት መንእሰያት ብሓይሊ ገፊፉ ናብ ኤርትራ ክወስድ እዩ ዝብል ስግኣት ሰማይ ዓሪጉ ዘሎ ስግኣት እዩ። ንመደብር ሽመልባ ጠቒሶም ብግብሪ ወሲዱ ኣብ ባረንቱን ከባቡኡን ኣስፊርዎም ዝብሉ ወገናት እውን ኣለዉ። ላዕለዋይ ኮሚሽን ጉዳይ ስደተኛታትን ካልኦት ሰብኣዊ ትካላትን ናይቲ መደበራት ደሃይ ዝፈልጥሉ መንገዲ ስለ ዝተዓጽወ ኣብ ሻቕሎት ኣለዉ። ኣብቲ መደበራት ሰብኣዊ ኣገልግሎት ይህቡ ናይ ዝነበሩ ትካላት ኣባላት ኣብ ሽረ ከም እተቐትሉ እውን ይንገር ኣሎ። ካብ ኤርትራውያን ስደተኛታት እውን ኣብ ከባቢ’ቲ  መደበራት ብሰንኪ ዝተኻየደ ውግእ ዝሞቱን ዝትወግኡን ከም ዘለዉ  ተፈሊጡ ኣሎ።

ዓቕሎም ዝጸበቦም ኣብቲ መደበራት ዝነበሩ ኤርትራውያን ስደተኛታት “ነብሰይ ኣውጽእኒ” ብዝብል ብሓፈሻ ናብ ሱዳን ሓዊስካ፡ ናብ ኩሉ ኩርንዓት፡ ብፍላይ ከኣ ብመንገዲ ማይ ጸብሪ፡  ለማልሞ፡ ዳባትን ጐንደርን ብዝረኸብዎ ኣጋጣሚ ብእግሪ ይኹን ብመጐዓዝያ፡ ናብ ማእከል ኢትዮጵያ ክኸዱ ዝፈተኑ ብዙሓት እዮም። በዚ ፈተነኦም ክሳብ ኣዲስ ኣበባ ዝበጽሑ ኣለዉ። ኣዝዮም ብዙሓት ከኣ ኣማኢት ብር ጨቐቕ ኢሎም ከፊሎም፡ ናብ ኣዲስ ኣበባ ገጾም ብኣውቶቡሳት እንዳተጓዕዙ ካብ ከባብታት ዓደርቃይ፡  ደባርቕ፡ ዳባትን ጐንደርን ብወተሃደራዊ ሓይሊ ተገዲዶም “ድሕሪ ሕጂ ክንሕልወኩም ኢና” ብዝብል ሸፈጥ፡ ናብቲ ውሕስነት ስለ ዝሰኣንሉ ዝገደፍዎ ናይ ትግራይን ኣምሓራን ፍሉያት ሓይልታትን መልሻን ዝዋግእሉ ዘለዉ ዝባደመ መደበራት ዝተመልሱ ኣለዉ።

ስለዚ ጉዳይ ኤርትራውያን ስደተኛታት ኣብ ኢትዮጵያ ኣዝዩ ተሃዋሲ ስለ ዝኾነ፡ እዋናዊ ቀዳምነትና ጌርና ክንወስዶ ይግበኣና። ቅድሚ ኩሉ ናብ ኤርትራ ከይዶም ግዳይ ማእሰርትን ቅትለትን ከይኮኑ ነቲ ዝምልከቶም ኣካላት ዘስምዕዎ ዘለዉ ምሕጽንታ ከነራጉዶ ንጽዓት። ካብዚ ሓሊፍና ዝዕንገልሉ ዕድል ንምፍጣር ከምቲ ሰልፊ ዲሞክራሲ ህዝቢ ኤርትራ (ሰዲህኤ) ነዚ ጉዳይዚ ብዝምልከት “ኣብ’ዛ ፈታኒት እዋን እዚኣ ነዞም ኣብ ሓደጋ ዝርከቡ ስደተኛታት ዜጋታትና ኣድላዪ ሓገዝን ሓለዋን ክግበረሎም ንኹሎም ብቐረባ ዝምልከቶምን ንኣህጉራዊ ሕብረተሰብ ብሓፈሻን ኣጥቢቕና ንሓትት። ነቶም ካብ ናይ ውግእ ዞባ ወጻኢ፡ ኣብ ካልእ ቦታታት ኢትዮጵያ ዘለዉ ድማ ንድሕነቶም ህጹጽ ኣቓልቦን ደገፍን ክግበረሎም ምሕጽንታና ነቕርብ።”  ዝበሎ፡ ካባና ዝሓሸ ዓቕምን ድምጽን ምስ ዘለዎም ሓቢርና “ኣለናልኩም” ዝብል ድምጽና ነስምዕ። ኩለን ኤርትራውያን ፖለቲካዊ ሓይልታትን ህዝባዊ ምንቅስቓሳትን ብተናጸል ኮነ ብእኩብ፡ ድምጸን ከስምዓን ተጽዕኖአን ከዛይዳን እዋኑዩ።

ኣንታ ወትሩ በትሪ ጉጅለ ህግደፍ ኮይንካ ህዝብኻ ከይትብድል እሞ ደሓር ከየጣዕሰካ እነተሓሳስበካ ሓይልታት ምክልኻል ኤርትራ፡ ሎሚ እውን ኣስተውዕል። ኣበይን ምእንቲ ምንታይ ትዋጋእ ከም ዘለኻ፡ ዋላ ተደንጐየ ኣይሓለፈን እሞ ሎሚ’ውን ሕሰበሉ። ኣብ ዘይጉዳይካ ኣንጻር ህወሓት ናይ ምውጋእ ጉጉይ መንገዲ ተጐዝጒዝካ፡ ኣብ ልዕሊ ዓለም ለኻዊ ዑቕባ ዘለዎም ኣሕዋትካን ኣሓትካን ኤርትራውያን ስደተኛታት፡ ብህግደፍ ናይ ዝፍጸም በደል ኢደበይዛ ኣይትኹን። ጽባሕ ካብ ምጠዓስ ሎሚ ሕሰብ። እንዳ ረኣኻ እንዳሰማዕካ ትወስዶ ንዘለኻ ስጉምቲ፡ ኩሉ ግዜ ነቲ ጉጅለ ጥራይ ኣላጊብናሉ እንሓልፍ  ኣይኮነን። ለኣኻይ ናቱ እጃም ኣለዎ። ተዓሚቱ ዘዝተላእኮ ዘዕኑ ኣካል’ውን ብጽሒት ከም ዘለዎ ኣይትዘንግዕ። ስለዚ ከምቲ ስምካ ዝሕብሮ፡ ናይ ህዝብኻ ተኸላኻሊ እምበር ናይቲ ጉጅለ ተለኣኣኺ ኣይትኹን።

Saturday, 12 December 2020 23:54

Radio Dimtsi Harnnet Sweden 12.12.2020

Written by

UN’s refugee agency says it received large number of reports of Eritrean refugees in Ethiopian region being killed, abducted and forcibly returned to Eritrea.

UNHCR and other aid agencies have not had access to the four main camps hosting for Eritrean refugees [File: Tiksa Negeri/Reuters]

UNHCR and other aid agencies have not had access to the four main camps hosting for Eritrean refugees [File: Tiksa Negeri/Reuters]

UNHCR and other aid agencies have not had access to the four main camps hosting for Eritrean refugees [File: Tiksa Negeri/Reuters]

The United Nations refugee agency (UNHCR) said it has received an “overwhelming” number of reports about Eritrean refugees in Tigray being killed, abducted or forcibly returned to Eritrea since fighting in Ethiopia’s northernmost region began more than a month ago.

“If confirmed, these actions would constitute a major violation of international law,” UNHCR head Filippo Grandi said in a statement on Friday, adding his agency has met some refugees in Ethiopia’s capital, Addis Ababa.

“It is vital that Eritrean refugees be able to move to safe locations, and receive protection and assistance wherever possible, including outside of Tigray, given the traumatic events they report to have witnessed or survived,” he added.

UNHCR and other aid agencies have not had access to the four main camps hosting for Eritrean refugees – Shimelba, Hitsats, Mai-Ayni and Adi Harush – inside Tigray, since fighting erupted in early November between the government and the region’s former ruling Tigray People’s Liberation Front (TPLF).

Ethiopia’s army has captured the regional capital Mekelle and declared victory, but TPLF leaders said they are fighting back on various fronts around the highland city. Most communications in Tigray are down and access to the area is severely restricted, making it hard to verify either side’s statements.

TPLF leader Debretsion Gebremichael said in text messages to Reuters News Agency this month that Eritrean soldiers had raided two camps in Tigray and abducted some residents, but provided no evidence. Eritrea has denied this.

The refugees living in camps in Ethiopia near the border of their homeland are in an especially precarious position. Eritreans often leave to escape mandatory, indefinite military service and repression or search for better opportunities out of what has long been one of the world’s most isolated countries.

Earlier this week, Ethiopia’s government admitted federal troops fired at and briefly detained UN workers in Tigray region, blaming them for trying to reach areas where “they were not supposed to go”.

In his statement on Friday, Grandi called on the Ethiopian government to implement steps to ensure safe access for humanitarian workers in Tigray.

“Such access is urgently needed so we can provide desperately needed assistance to refugees and other vulnerable populations.”

Refugees returned back

Grandi’s statement came hours after Ethiopia’s government said it was returning Eritrean refugees to the Tigray camps, asserting that its recently completed military offensive against the forces loyal to TPLF “was not a direct threat” to the 96,000 Eritrean refugees registered in Ethiopia – even as aid groups said four staffers had been killed in the fighting, at least one in a refugee camp.

“A large number of misinformed refugees are moving out in an irregular manner,” the government said in a statement.

“The government is safely returning those refugees to their respective camps,” the statement said, adding that food was being transported to the camps.

The UNHCR was not informed of any planned relocation of refugees in Ethiopia, Babar Baloch, a UNHCR spokesman, told reporters in Geneva. He called the reports “alarming”.

He added, “While we cannot speculate at this time, any refoulement would be absolutely unacceptable.” Refoulement means forcing refugees to return to the country they fled from.

Ato Addisu, deputy head of Ethiopia’s state-run Agency for Refugee and Returnee Affairs, said, “A return to Eritrea would never happen unless they request by themselves – this is against international law”.

Approximately 580 refugees were on the buses to Tigray, he told Reuters.

‘We were getting so scared’

The news agency reported receiving frantic calls from refugees in the capital who had been told they would be bused back to Tigray but feared they were being taken back to Eritrea.

“Please come, please come, the buses are here!” one woman yelled as children wept in the background. Another woman said Eritreans faced mounting hostility from Tigrayans who accuse Eritrea of sending troops into Ethiopia to help Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed’s government battle the TPLF.

Both countries have denied this, although the US State Department said on Thursday that it believes reports of Eritrean military involvement in the conflict in Ethiopia are “credible”.

“Some Tigrayan people beat up my husband,” the refugee said. “People there were saying – ‘your country is coming here and attacking us. So you – we will kill you too.’ We were getting so scared.”

The International Organization for Migration said it was “extremely concerned” about the refugees’ “forced” return and denied it was involved, saying Ethiopia took over one of its transit centres in Addis Ababa on December 3.

An Eritrean who lives in Ethiopia’s capital, Addis Ababa, told Al Jazeera last month the camps were in “big trouble”.

Even before the conflict, people there were complaining about poor services, and a lack of food or electricity, which led many refugees in the Tigray region to move to cities to try and find work.

Eritrea has long faced accusations of large-scale rights abuses. It has accused Western powers of smear campaigns and luring Eritreans abroad, which they have denied.

Source=‘Overwhelming’ reports of killings of Eritreans in Tigray: UN | Humanitarian Crises News | Al Jazeera
 

Source: IOM email

Friday December 11, 2020

IOM Refutes Allegations Eritreans Held, Processed for Forced Return

Geneva – The International Organization for Migration (IOM) strongly refutes allegations that a group of Eritrean refugees are being held by IOM and being processed for forced return in one of its transit centres in the Ethiopian capital, Addis Ababa. The Organization equally rejects allegations that IOM buses have been used to transport the refugees to an unknown destination.

One of three IOM centres in Addis Ababa was taken over by the Ethiopian Government’s Agency for Refugee and Returnee Affairs (ARRA) on 3 December. IOM has had no management authority, oversight or involvement in any activities undertaken by the authorities in the centre since that time.

IOM does not under any circumstances conduct the forced return of migrants and refugees. The Organization’s approach to return assistance for migrants relies on the pillars of protection, human rights and voluntariness and in full respect of International Law.

The Organization is extremely concerned about these reports and appeals to States to ensure the protection of all civilians, including migrants and refugees. International Law and its Conventions, including the Principle of Non-Refoulement, must be respected at all times.

For more information, please contact: Safa Msehli, IOM Spokesperson in Geneva; Tel: +41 79 403 5526, email: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

By 

The United Nations and other aid agencies say they have been denied access to some 96,000 refugees in Tigray since fighting erupted on Nov. 4 between the government and a rebellious regional force. They are concerned about food and security in the camps, which they have not been permitted to visit since the conflict broke out.

The government says it has now defeated forces loyal to the region’s former ruling Tigray People’s Liberation Front (TPLF), and it is safe for refugees who fled to the capital Addis Ababa to return to Tigray.

“A large number of misinformed refugees are moving out in an irregular manner,” the government said in a statement on Friday.

“The government is safely returning those refugees to their respective camps,” the statement said, adding that food was being transported to the camps.

TPLF leaders say they are fighting back on various fronts. Claims by all sides in the conflict are near-impossible to verify because most communications to Tigray are down and the government tightly controls access.

FRANTIC CALLS

Reuters received frantic calls from refugees in the capital who had been told they would be bussed back to Tigray but feared they were being taken back to Eritrea - the neighbouring country they originally fled.

“Please come, please come, the buses are here!” one woman yelled as children wept in the background.

Another woman said Eritreans faced mounting hostility from Tigrayans who accuse Eritrea of sending troops into Ethiopia to help Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed’s government battle the TPLF.

Both countries deny this, although the U.S. State Department said on Thursday it believes reports of Eritrean military involvement in the conflict in Ethiopia are “credible”.

 

“Some Tigrayan people beat up my husband,” the refugee said. “People there were saying – ‘your country is coming here and attacking us. So you - we will kill you too.’ We were getting so scared.”

Refugees may be facing additional dangers.

TPLF leader Debretsion Gebremichael said in text messages to Reuters this month that Eritrean soldiers had raided two camps in Tigray and abducted some residents, but provided no evidence. Eritrea denies this.

The U.N. High Commissioner for Refugees Filippo Grandi said on Friday the agency had received similar reports.

“Over the last month we have received an overwhelming number of disturbing reports of Eritrean refugees in Tigray being killed, abducted and forcibly returned to Eritrea. If confirmed, these actions would constitute a major violation of international law,” he said in a statement.

The presence of Eritrean troops on Ethiopian soil would alarm Western allies and risk further inflaming the conflict.

Eritrea has long faced accusations of large scale rights abuses. It accuses Western powers of smear campaigns and luring Eritreans abroad, which they deny.

France, Britain, Germany, the United States, Estonia and Belgium plan to raise the humanitarian situation in Tigray during a closed-door U.N. Security Council meeting Monday and have asked for a U.N. aid official to brief, diplomats said.

FOOD FOR REFUGEES

There are four main camps for Eritrean refugees in Tigray - Shimelba, Hitsats, Mai-Ayni and Adi Harush.

The UNHCR was not informed of any planned relocation of refugees in Ethiopia, Babar Baloch, a UNHCR spokesman, told reporters in Geneva. He called the reports “alarming.”

He added, “While we cannot speculate at this time, any refoulement would be absolutely unacceptable.” Refoulement means forcing refugees to return to the country they fled from.

Ato Addisu, deputy head of Ethiopia’s state-run Agency for Refugee and Returnee Affairs, said, “A return to Eritrea would never happen unless they request by themselves – this is against international law”.

Around 580 refugees were on the buses to Tigray, he told Reuters.

The prime minister’s office dismissed concerns that the war was preventing aid reaching civilians.

“Suggestions that humanitarian assistance is impeded due to active military combat ... within the Tigray region is untrue and undermines ... work to stabilise the region,” it said in a statement on Friday.

Reporting by Addis Ababa newsroom and Emma Farge in Geneva; Additional reporting by Nairobi newsroom and Michelle Nichols in New York; Writing by Tim Cocks; Editing by Alexandra Zavis, William Maclean and Frances Kerry

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News and Press Release
 
Source
 
Posted
11 Dec 2020
 
Originally published
 
11 Dec 2020
 
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Ethiopian refugees rest and prepare food near UNHCR’s Hamdayet border reception centre after crossing into Sudan, 13 November 2020. © UNHCR/Hazim ElhagEthiopian refugees rest and prepare food near UNHCR’s Hamdayet border reception centre after crossing into Sudan, 13 November 2020. © UNHCR/Hazim Elhag

This is a summary of what was said by UNHCR spokesperson Babar Baloch – to whom quoted text may be attributed – at today's press briefing at the Palais des Nations in Geneva.

UNHCR, the UN Refugee Agency, working with the local authorities, has now registered nearly 50,000 Ethiopian refugees who have crossed into eastern Sudan, with some reporting having to evade armed groups to reach safety.

Since 6 December, the number of refugees escaping ongoing conflict in the northern Tigray region have been trending downward to under 500 per day.

The recent groups coming from areas deeper inside Tigray are arriving weak and exhausted, some reporting they spent two weeks on the run inside Ethiopia as they made their way to the border.

They have told us harrowing accounts of being stopped by armed groups and robbed of their possessions. Many have spent time hiding in fields and bushes to avoid being spotted. Without access in Ethiopia we are unable to verify these disturbing reports.

UNHCR remains very worried about the safety and condition of the Eritrean refugees in Tigray that have been caught in the conflict and have had no access to services and supplies for more than a month. We echo the UN Secretary-General’s call for unfettered access to Tigray in order to reach people in need.

We repeat the joint UN call for all parties to allow freedom of movement to affected civilians seeking assistance, safety, and security within the Tigray region or outside the affected areas. This includes respecting and upholding the right to cross international borders to seek asylum.

Inside Sudan, UNHCR is working with the local authorities and partners, and continues to scale up its humanitarian response to assist Ethiopian refugees.

We have seen increasing requests for family tracing, as many were separated at the start of the conflict or during flight and have not been able to get in contact since. More medicines are needed, especially for those who were taking chronic medication for diabetes, HIV and other illness.

UNHCR and its partners also need support to preventCovid-19 outbreaks, including more handwashing stations, PPE kits and information campaigns as refugees continue to be in overcrowded conditions.

As of Wednesday (9 Dec.) the first of five additional chartered flights began bringing more urgently needed humanitarian supplies into Sudan. In total, the airlifts from Dubai and Nairobi will bring in some 3,225 tents, 75,000 blankets, 45,000 sleeping mats, 20,000 solar lamps, 17,000 mosquito nets and 8,250 plastic sheets. With these flights, we have airlifted 440 metric tonnes of humanitarian relief since 27 November.

UNHCR also continues to move refugees away from the border with some 14,000 relocated to the Um Rakuba refugee settlement so far.

UNHCR and partners have appealed for US$147 million to cover the needs and to support the government of Sudan, which continues to welcome and host refugees.

For more information on this topic, please contact:

  • In Sudan, Dana Hughes, This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it., +249 96 701 9105
  • In Ethiopia, Chris Melzer, This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it., +251 97 819 9207
  • In Ethiopia, Juliette Stevenson, This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it., +251 944 109 031
  • In Geneva, Babar Baloch, This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it., +41 79 513 9549
  • In New York, Kathryn Mahoney, This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it., +1 347 443 7646

DECEMBER 11, 2020  ETHIOPIANEWS

The U.S. called for the immediate withdrawal of Eritrean troops from neighboring Ethiopia’s Tigray region, following “credible” reports of their involvement in a civil conflict.

Source: Simon MarksBloomberg News

Eritrea

The U.S. called for the immediate withdrawal of Eritrean troops from neighboring Ethiopia’s Tigray region, following “credible” reports of their involvement in a civil conflict.

The reports relate to an assault that Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed ordered on the northern regional state Nov. 4, after blaming it for an attack on a military base to try and steal weapons. Eritrea’s involvement would confirm that the conflict has become regional.

“This is a grave development,” a U.S. State Department spokesperson said in an emailed statement.

The U.S. adds credence to accusations by the former rulers of Tigray that Eritrea is supporting the Ethiopian army against them. United Nations officials said earlier they’ve observed troops wearing Eritrean uniforms in the region.

Abiy has stressed that the conflict in Tigray is an “internal affair” and a “law enforcement operation.” At the onset of the fighting, Abiy accused the Tigray People’s Liberation Front of manufacturing uniforms resembling those of Eritrea’s army to “implicate the Eritrean government in false claims of aggression against the people of Tigray.” Abiy’s spokesperson didn’t immediately respond to a message requesting comment on Friday.

Eritrea hasn’t commented on whether its forces are involved in the conflict. The nation’s information minister didn’t immediately respond to a message seeking comment.

The U.S. said it’s also aware of reports of human rights violations in the region, and called for an independent investigation of the matter.

“All parties must respect human rights and international humanitarian law,” the Sate Department said.

ኣብ መንጎ ሃገራት፡ ብሄራት፡ ሕበረተሰብኣዊ ጉጅለታት፡ ሰልፍታት፡ ውድባት ኮነ  ውልቀሰባትን፡ ዝተፈላለየ ምኽንያታት ዝመንቀሊኡ ናይ ኣተሓሳስባ ፍልልያትን ምስሕሓባትን ከጋጥም ባህርያዊ እዩ። እዚ ኣብቶም ዝፈሓፍሑ ኣካላት ዘጋጥም ንጉዳያት ከከም ኣረኣእያኻ ካብ ምሓዝ ዝነቅል እዩ። ፍልልያት ንሰባት መናብርቶም እምበር፡ ዘሰንብድን ሃንደበት ዘጋጥምን ኣይኮነን። ለባማት ናይ ምስሕሓብን ናይ ኣተሓሳስባ ፍልልይን ንቡርነት ክገልጹ እንከለዉ፡ “ኣሽንባይዶ ሰብስ  እምኒ ምስ እምኒ’ኳ ይጋጮ” ዝብሉ ካብዚ ነቒሎም እዮም።

እቲ ዘሰሓሕብ ጉዳይ መንቀሊኡ ኮነ ሸቶኡ ብዙሕ ኮይኑ፡ ፖለቲካዊ ልዕልናን ቁጠባዊ ረብሓን ምውሓስ ልዕልና ይሕዝ። እቶም ዝሰሓሓቡ፡ ኣብ ናይ መን ካብቲ ምስሕሓብ ረብሐ ህልኽ ክኣትዉ ልሙድ እዩ። እንተኾነ ክልቲኦም ወገናት ናይ ኣርሒቕካ ምርኣይን ናይቲ ምስሕሓብ ሳዕቤንን እንተተረዲኦም፡ እንተኸኣኢልካን ተጸዋዊርካን ዘይፍታሕ ወጥሪ የለን። ምናልባት ኣብ ነናቶም ምርጫ ጥራይ ሒዞም ኣብ “ወይ እታ ፈትሊ ትብተኽ ወይ እታ ዕንቊ ትስበር” ዕጽዊ ህልኽ እንተደቂቖም ግና እቲ ሳዕቤን ሓደገኛ እዩ ዝኸውን። እቲ ሓደገኛ ሳዕቤን ንኹሎም ዘረኻኽበሎም እምበር ኣብ ሓዲኦም ጥራይ ዝድረት ኣይኮነን።

ናይ ጐንጽን ምስሕሓብን ዝበልሐ ጥርዚ ውግእ እዩ። ውግእ ከይፈተኻ ተገዲድካ እትኣትዎ ናብ ቀጻሊ ፍታሕ ንምብጻሕ ተጽዕኖ እትፈጥረሉ እምበር፡ ናይ መወዳእታን ዘተኣማምንን ፍታሕ ኣይኮነን። ምኽንያቱ ናይ ዝኾነ ጐንጺ መወዳእታ ኣብ ዓውዲ ውግእ ዘይኮነ፡  ኣብ ዙርያ ጠረጴዛ ስለ ዝኸውን። ውግእ ብኹሎም በቶም ዝተሃላለኹ ጽቡቕ ድሌትን ቅሩብነትን እንተልዩ ምዕጋቱ ዘይከኣል ኣይኮነን። ሓዲኦም ካብቶም ዝዋጠጡ ቅሩብ እንተዘይኮይኑ ግና፡ ብሓደ ኢድካ ምጥቓዕ ከምዘይከኣል፡ ብጽቡቕ ድሌት ሓደ ኣካል ኣይወሓስን። እቲ መሰሉ ብመንገዲ ውግእ እንተዘይኮይኑ ካልእ መንገዲ ዝተዓጽዎ ወገን ናብ ፍትሓዊ ውግእ ክኣቱ ዝግደደሉ ኩነታት ኣሎ።

እቲ ህዝቢ ኤርትራ ኩሉ ናብ ውግእ ዘይወስድ መንገድታት ፈቲኑ ምስተዓጽዎ፡ ጐነጻዊ ቃልሲ ከካይድ ዝተገደዶ መስርሕ ቃልሲ ምእንቲ ናጽነት ብመንጽርዚ ዝረአ እዩ። ውግእ ብኹሉ መልክዑ ኣኽሳርን፡ ከምቲ “እምንስ ተወደቐትካ ኮነ፡ ተወደቕካያ ትሰብረካ።” ዝበሃል፡  ንሰዓራይ ኮነ ንተሰዓራይ ዘረኻኽበሉ እዩ። ኩሉ ኣብ ከባቢና ቀደም ዝተኻየደ ኮነ፡ ሎሚ ዝካየድ ዘሎ ውግኣት ዝምስክሮ ሓቂ ከኣ ንሱ እዩ። ውግእ ዘለኣለማዊ ስኒትን ሰላምን ኣየውሕስን እዩ። ካብቲ ውግእ “ተረባሕቲ ኢና” በሃልቲ ግና ነቲ ክሳራ ሓቢኦም፡ ከምቲ ጠላም ኢሳያስ ዝበሎ “ኣይከሰርናን” እንዳበሉ ነብሶም ከደዓዕሱ ልሙድ እዩ።

ውግእ ምስ ተኣጉደ ኣብቶም ስሞም ገኒኑ ዝጽዋዕ ጀመርቲ ጥራይ ኣይድረትን እዩ። ኣብቲ ውግእ ነናቶም ሕሳብ ዘለዎም ናይ ቀረባን ርሑቕን ዘራያት እውን ይሳተፍዎ እሞ መሊሱ ይጉህር። ኣብዚ እዋንዚ ዝካየዱ ዘለዉ ናይ ሱርያ፡ የመንን ሊቢያን ውግኣት መነመን ጀሚረምዎ፡ ደሓርከ በዓል መን የጋድድዎ ኣለዉ ምዕዛብ ይከኣል። ኣብዚ ጐረቤትና ትግራይ ዝካየድ ዘሎ ሓድሽ ውግእ እውን፡ ካብዚ ዝተፈልየ መልክዕን ዕድልን የብሉን። ድሮ ኤርትራን ሕቡራት ዓረብ ኤምረትን ኣብ ውግእ ትግራይ፡ ብሰራዊት ድዩ ብኣጽዋር ከም ዝተሳተፋ ይኽሰሳ ኣለዋ ጥራይ ዘይኮነ፡ ብፍላይ ናይ ኤርትራ ብግብሪ እውን ተረጋጊጹ እዩ። ብዙሓት ኤርትራውያን ስድራቤታት ኣባላት ሓይልታት ምክልኻል ደቆም ናብ ውግእ ትግራይ ስለ ዝኣተዉ ብሻቕሎት ተዋሒጦም ኣለዉ። ነዚ ሓቂ ጓሲና ሰራዊ ኤርትራ ኣብቲ ውግእ ከም ዝኣትወ፡ ዓበይቲ ማዕከናት ዜና ወይ ፖለቲከኛታት ተዓዘብቲ ከጻርዩልና ንጽበየሉ ምኽንያት የብልናን። ናይ ሱዳን ናብ ኢትዮጵያ ውጥም ቅልቅል እውን ናይቲ  ውግእ ናይ ምስፋሕ ምልከትዩ ዝመስል።

እቶም ንህዝቢ ዘየረብሕ፡ ዘየርብሕ ጥራይ ዘይኮነ ንመጻኢ’ውን መዘዝ ዘምጸኣሉ ክነሱ፡ ንናቶም ዝናን ጸቢብ ረብሓን ኣብ ናይ ዘራይ ውግእ ዝኣትዉ ወገናት እቲ ክሳራ ኣብኣቶም ዝድረት ዘይኮነ ናይ ህዝብን ሃገርን ዕዳ እዩ። ንኣብነት ጉጅለ ህግዲፍ ኣብ ጉዳይ የመን ዘራይ ኣትዩ። መራሕ እቲ  ጉጅለ ከኣ፡ ሳላ ዘራይ ኮይኑ ዝኣተወ በቶም ዝዘረየሎም ተነኢዱን ተመጒሱን። ኣብዚ ናይ ኢትዮጵያ ውግእ እውን ኣትዩ ኣሎ። ምናልባት ካብ ኤርትራውያን ዝሰኣኖ ደገፍ ካብ ደገ ማእሪሩ፡ ዕደመ ስልጣኑ ናይ ምንዋሕ ዕድል ይውስኸሉ ይኸውን። ህዝቢ ኤርትራ ግና ካብ ናይ የመን ኮነ ናይ ትግራይ ውግእ ክሳራን ኣራግጽን እምበር ዝረኽቦ ረብሓ የብሉን። ከምዚ ካብ ኮነ ከምቲ ሰልፊ ዲሞክራሲ ህዝቢ ኤርትራ (ሰዲህኤ)፡ ኣብዚ ቀረባ ግዜ ኣብ ዘውጸኦ መግለጺኡ “ስርዓት ህግደፍ ንባዕዳውያን ሓይልታት ናብ መሬትና ከምዝኣትዉ ምግባሩ ከይኣኽሎ፣ ንሰራዊት ኤርትራ’ውን ብዘይድልየቱን እምነቱን……ኣብ ዘይምልከቶ ውግእ ኣእትዩ ንኸቢድ ሓደጋ ኣቃሊዕዎ። ……………ስለ’ዚ፡ ብሓደ ወገን እቲ ሰራዊት ባዕሉ ካብቲ ኣትዩዎ ዘሎ ዘይቅኑዕ ውግእ ነብሱ ከውጽእ ክጽዕር፣ ብኻልእ ወገን ድማ፡ ህዝቢ ኤርትራ እዞም ኣብ ዘይምልከቶም ውግእ ተኣጒዶም ዘለዉ ደቁ ብዝቐልጠፈ እዋን ናብ ሃገሮም ክምለሱ ብኹሉ ዝከኣሎ መገድታት ክቃለስ ጻውዒትና ነቕርብ።” ዝበሎ፡ ህዝቢ ኤርትራ ነዚ ሓደገኛ ኢድ ኣእታውነት እውን ከም ኣካል ናይቲ ምእንቲ ለውጢ ዘካይዶ ዘሎ ዘቤታዊ ቃልሲ ክሕዞ ይግበኦ።

ሓይልታት ምክልኻል ኤርትራ፡ ኣብቲ ውግእ ምስታፉ ጥራይ ዘይኮነ፡ ብዝምታ ንብረት እውን ብብዙሓት ወገናት ይሕመን ይኽሰስን ኣሎ። እዚ ክሲ ምጽራይ ከም ዘድልዮ ርዱእ ኮይኑ፡ እንተደኣ ውዒልዎ ግና ንዓኡ ጥራይ ዘይኮነ፡ ንምስሊ ናይቲ “ናቱ ዘይህብ ዘይናቱ ግና ዘይደሊ” ህዝቢ ኤርትራ እውን ዝድውን እዩ። መግለጺ ሰዲህኤ፡ በዚ ብዛዕባ ዝምታ ንብረት ምክልኻል ሓይልታት ኤርትራ ኣብ ውግእ ትግራይ ሻቕሎት ስለ ዝሓደሮ እዩ፡  “ሰልፍና ንዝዀነ ይኹን ኣብ ልዕሊ ህዝቢ ዝግበር ዝምታን ሲቪላዊ ዓመጽን ኣይቅበልን። ……… ኣየናይ ሸነኽ ይገብሮ ብዘየገድስ ዝዀነ ሰብ ካብ ናይ ዝምታን ዓመጽን ተግባራት ክቑጠብ ኣጥቢቕና ነተሓሳስብ።” ዝበለ።

DECEMBER 11, 2020  ETHIOPIANEWS

Ethiopia threatens hundreds of Eritrean refugees with enforced return to Eritrea

IOM Office Bole Airport Addis Ababa

(London 11/12/2020) Arbi Harnet (Freedom Friday) has received disturbing information from Addis Ababa the capital of Ethiopia.

The news relates to around 300 Eritrean refugees who fled the fighting in Tigray.

Some were working in various capacities in Tigray region and some are from the refugee camps that are home to thousands of Eritrean refugees.

Once in Addis they were detained at the offices of International Organisation for Migration  in the area of Bole in Addis and have been threatened with forced return to Eritrea.

The process is presented as voluntary return and they are being held in the voluntary return registration centre of IOM.

In a message smuggled out of the centre the refugees have asked for help in stopping this injustice that is about to be perpetrated against them. They asked for pressure on IOM to not be complicit to this crime of returning them to the brutal regime they had fled from.

Many in the group had arrived in Tigray in the last couple of years and some have been taking advantage of the opportunity to work and settle in the region and live outside the refugee camps.

If returned to Eritrea they will be considered absconders from the national service and be punished for that and the circumstances under which they fled.

In addition, under the current circumstances of active war with Tigray that Eritrea is participating in together with the Federal government of Ethiopia, they might even be considered as agents and collaborators as they had been living and working in Tigray.

Arbi harnet believes that this return that is being orchestrated by the Federal Government of Ethiopia is against the principle of “non-refoulement” which prohibits States from transferring or removing individuals from their jurisdiction when there are grounds for believing that the person would be at risk of irreparable harm upon return, including persecution, torture, ill treatment or other serious human rights violations.

The Group calls for UNHCR to intervene and protect the refugees in accordance to the refugee convention and prevent their return to a certain ill-treatment in Eritrea.

IOM should also be aware that none of the refugees have consented to this return and thus their return is a contravention of their stated objectives.

Friday, 11 December 2020 10:37

Radio Dimtsi Harnnet Kassel 10.12.2020

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