ሳልሳይን ሓድነታውን ጉባአ ሃገራዊ ድሕነት ኤርትራ-ሕድርን ሰልፊ ዲሞክራሲ ህዝቢ ኤርትራን ብ29 ሓምለ 2019 ኣብ ሃገረ ጀርመን ከተማ ፍራንክፈርት ከም ዝኽፈት ነበስር። ነዚ ጉባአ ክተዳሉ ዝጸንሐ ኣሰናዳኢት ሽማግለ፡ መጋብኢ ኣዳራሽን ኣቀባብላ ኣጋይሽን፡ ንኣጋይሽ ዘድሊ ቀረባትን፡ ኣብ ጉባአ ቀሪቦም ናይ ዝጸድቑ ሰነዳት ንድፊ ምድላው፡ ተሳተፍቲ ጉባአን ዕዱማት ኣጋይሽን ምንጻርን ዝኣመሰሉን ጉዳያታ ምሉእ ብምሉእ ዛዚማ ኣላ። በዚ መሰረት ኣብዚ እዋንዚ ኣባላት ጉባአ ካብ ኩሉ ኩርነዓት ዓለም ኣብ ቦታ ጉባአ ምእታው ጀሚሮም ኣለዉ።

ጉባአና ኣብዚ ንደንበ ተቓውሞ ኤርትራ፡ “ሓድነትን ሓቢርካ ምስራሕን” ከቢድ ብደሆ ኮይንዎ ዘሎ ግዜ ዝጋባእ ዘሎ ስለ ዝኾነ ኣገዳስነቱን ኣብነታውነቱን ዕዙዝ እዩ። እዚ ማለት ሓድነታዊ ጸዓትና ኣብዚ ዝውሰን ዘይኮነ፡ ነዚ ከም መንጠሪ ተጠቒምና፡ ክሳብቲ ኣንጻር ህግዲፍ ወቒዑ ዘድምዕ ስጡም ኤርትራዊ ናይ ለውጦ ዓቕሚ ዝፍጠር ምስ ኩሎም ኤርትራውያን ናይ ለውጢ ሓይልታት ኮይና ንክንቅጽሎ ዝሕግዝ ሓድሽ ምዕራፍ ዝኸፍት እዩ።

እዚ ጉባአ፡ ኣብ መጻኢ ዝምረሓሉ ሰነዳት ምጽዳቕ፡ ኣብ ኤርትራውን ንኤርትራዊ ኩነታትና ዝጸልዉ ከባብያዊ ጉዳያትን ምምዛንን ውሳነታት ምሃብን መሪሕነት ምምራጽን ካብ ቀንዲ ስረሓቱ ክኾኑ እዮም። ጉባአና ዝያዳ ኩሉ ኣብ  ምውጋድ ስርዓት ህግዲፍ፡ ሓቢርካ ንምስራሕ ዝሕግዝ ኩነታት ምጥጣሕ ዝያዳ ቆላሕታ ዝህቦ ከም ዝኸውን ከኣ ትጽቢት ይንበረሉ።

በዚ ኣጋጣሚ ኣሰናዳኢት ሽማግለ፡ ነቶም ጉባአና ናብዚ ደረጃ ንክበጽሕ ዝጸዓቱ ኣባላት ውድባትና ኮነ፡ በሃግቲ ሓድነት ኤርትራውያን ንዝገበሩላ ሓገዛትን ምትሕብባር እንዳመስገነት ጉባአና ዝውስኖም ውሳነታት ኣብ ምዕዋት እውን ኣብ ጐኒ ሰልፍና ክስለፉ እምነታ ምዃኑ ትገልጽ።

ውጽኢት ጉባአና፡ ኣብቲ ካብ 2-4 ነሓሰ 2019 ኣብ ከተማ ፍራንክፈርት ዝጽንበል ተወከልቲ ኤርትራዊ ውድባትን ማሕበራትን፡ ወጻእተኛታት መሓዙትን ብዙሓት ኤርትራውያንን ተዓዲመምሉ ዘለዉ፡ ዓመታዊ ፈስቲቫል ኤርትራውያን ፍራንክፈርት ክብሰር ትጽቢት ኣሎ።

July 25, 2019 News

Eritrea road buildingThe British govenment has provided clairity on just how the European Union will approach the issue of the use of National Service conscripts on the road projects that the EU is funding.

In a letter to Lord Alton, Harriett Baldwin, Minister of State for Africa at the Foreign and Commonwealth Office and Minister of State at the Department for International Development laid out how this will work.

“Whilst we must recognise that development cooperation in Eritrea, including recent cooperation on road building, is important to support increasingly sustainable and formalised relations between Eritrea and Ethiopia, we are clear that the general human rights situation in Eritrea, including the terms of national service, remains a substantial concern.

We have therefore been active within the EU to ensure safeguards are in place, including working with the UN to monitor working conditions and fair remunerations of national service workers involved in the road- building programme, and to encourage wider reform of the national service system.

Sustainable reform of the national service needs to happen in tandem with an improved economic situation and job creation that the international community can support.”

You can read the letter here:

Eritrea 1

Eritrea 2

This clarifies just how the programme of road building which the EU is planning to back – at a cost of EU20 million – will be spent.

You can read the plan here:

EU Eritrea Road rehabilitation

The road building programme depends on good relations between Eritrea and Ethiopia. As the French newsagency – AFP – has pointed out, these are hardly on a solid footing at present.

People walk on July 6, 2019 in the streets of Zalambessa, a town where battered buildings highlight the damage wrought by the Ethiopia-Eritrea border war, which erupted in 1998 and left tens of thousands of people dead.
 
People walk on July 6, 2019 in the streets of Zalambessa, a town where battered buildings highlight the damage wrought by the Ethiopia-Eritrea border war, which erupted in 1998 and left tens of thousands of people dead.
 

ZALAMBESSA , ETHIOPIA – In the heady days after longtime foes Ethiopia and Eritrea signed a peace deal a year ago, Teklit Amare’s Peace and Love Cafe near the newly-opened border overflowed with customers.

Now, he paces among empty tables, wondering aloud how to keep his business open as optimism fades, with borders again sealed and hopes of progress dashed.

The Zalambessa border crossing closed at the end of last year without explanation as leaders have remained silent. Others crossings followed suit.

“When they shut the border so soon after opening it, that was the saddest moment,” said Teklit, a former teacher who now struggles to pay his rent.

The feeling is widely shared in Zalambessa, a town where battered buildings highlight the damage wrought by the Ethiopia-Eritrea border war, which erupted in 1998 and left tens of thousands dead.

During the stalemate that followed the end of active hostilities in 2000, Zalambessa was all but abandoned, deprived of infrastructure and other investments.

“After the opening it was very obvious that everybody was happy. They want to trade, to have these connections,” said Hadush Desta, Zalambessa’s top municipal official.

“But now, because of no reason, it’s closed. People are emotional about it. They say, ‘Why is this happening to us?'”

‘Devil in the details’

The border opening was just one breakthrough in the whip-fast rapprochement between Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed and Eritrean President Isaias Afwerki that began just over a year ago.

Following Abiy’s initial overtures, the two sides embarked on a rapid mending of ties that caught even close observers by surprise, re-opening embassies, resuming flights and taking meetings across the region.

But enthusiasm for the deal has given way to frustration — and not just near the border.

On other goals too — from inking new trade deals to granting Ethiopia access to Eritrea’s ports — high initial hopes have gone unmet.

The lack of communication from both governments makes it difficult to pinpoint why the peace process appears stuck.

Abiy paid a two-day visit to Asmara last week and pledged to “further enhance” the peace process, but no detail was given of their discussions.

“As they say, the devil is in the details. We are not so clear what is going on,” said Abebe Aynete, an Addis Ababa-based senior researcher with the Ethiopian Foreign Relations and Strategic Studies think tank.

Many analysts and diplomats suspect Eritrea is guilty of foot-dragging.

Opening up to Ethiopia would force Isaias to surrender a measure of control, something his critics say he is unlikely to do.

“I personally believe that as long as the current group in Asmara stays in power, I don’t think the border will open and the two countries will not proceed to normal relations,” said Mehari Tesfamichael, chairperson of the opposition Eritrean Bright Future Movement.

Isaias’ notoriously iron-fisted government has long cited the standoff with Ethiopia in justifying harsh policies like compulsory national service, which forces citizens into specific jobs at low pay and bans them from traveling abroad.

Last October, the UN refugee agency noted a seven-fold increase in refugees fleeing Eritrea after the borders opened, with around 10,000 refugees registered in one month.

The peace deal “provided some hope that restrictions on national service would be lifted, but so far there has been little change” in Eritrea, said Human Rights Watch.

Abiy’s woes

Ethiopia’s domestic politics could also be part of the problem.

Abiy’s ambitious reform agenda has run into roadblocks, a fact underscored by the assassination last month of five government and military officials.

The changing landscape has inflamed tensions between Abiy and the Tigrayan People’s Liberation Front (TPLF), the party that dominates the northern Tigray region and was the strongest political force in the country before Abiy came to power.

Tigray’s administration of Ethiopian border areas means the TPLF should be a major player in normalizing ties with Eritrea, provided it plays along.

“Solving issues related to the border ideally needs the full cooperation of Tigray and the TPLF. That isn’t what we have right now,” said William Davison, senior analyst at the International Crisis Group think tank.

“We have significant rifts between TPLF and its ruling coalition partners and also disputes between the Tigray region and the federal government in Addis.”

‘A better place’

However observers say it’s important not to lose sight of the progress that’s been made.

“Up front we have to acknowledge that we’re in a much better place than we were before the rapprochement, when the possibility of state-on-state conflict was quite high,” said Michael Woldemariam, an expert on the Horn of Africa at Boston University.

Even at the border, the news is not all bad.

Though the Zalambessa crossing closed completely in December, soldiers on both sides have since loosened restrictions. Ethiopian traders say that on some days they cross into Eritrea unimpeded, and on others they can often get through using unofficial crossings.

Back at the Peace and Love Cafe, owner Teklit said he is not giving up just yet.

He said he is encouraged by the fact that ties between the two countries are still officially warm.

“There are rumors that the Eritrean government is fixing the road,” he said. “This gives us hope that they might one day reopen again.”


Eritrean Catholics outside Asmara March 2007. Photo credit: Aid to the Church in Need

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Asmara, Eritrea, Jul 24, 2019 CNA.- The Eritrean government’s recent closure of all Catholic-run health clinics in the country will have devastating effects for the people of the country, warned the pontifical foundation Aid to the Church in Need.

Sources in the country told the agency that the situation is dire and denounced the international indifference and lack of response.

“They are preventing us from offering what little we could give, in places where no one cares for the population, not even the state,” a source told Aid to the Church in Need, according to Vatican News.

“What will the people do?”

Last month, military forces arrived at the Church's 22 health care clinics, telling patients to return to their homes, and subsequently guarding the buildings.

The government justified its seizures of the property under a 1995 decree restricting social and welfare projects to the state. The decree has been used intermittently since then to seize or close ecclesial services.

According to the BBC, analysts believe the recent seizures were retaliatory, after the Church in April called for reforms to reduce emigration. The bishops had also called for national reconciliation.

When the government interrupts the work of the Church, it is the people who suffer, Aid to the Church in Need said.


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The agency argued that government-run hospitals lack the equipment and resources to take over the operations of the closed Church-run facilities, particularly in rural areas, Vatican News reported.

The agency also noted that the Catholic health care centers served people of all faiths. Some 95% of Eritreans are non-Catholic.

The Eritrean bishops have objected to the seizure of the clinics, stressing that the Church’s social services are not an act of opposition to the government.

“Any measure that prevents us from fulfilling … the obligations that come to us from the supreme commandment of brotherly love is and remains a violation of the fundamental right of religious freedom,” the bishops said in a statement.

Eritrea is a one-party state whose human rights record has frequently been deplored. Government seizure of Church property in the country is not new.

In July 2018, an Eritrean Catholic priest helping immigrants and refugees in Italy told EWTN that authorities had recently shut down eight free Catholic-run medical clinics. He said authorities claimed the clinics were unnecessary because of the presence of state clinics.

Christian and Muslim schools have also been closed under the 1995 decree designating the state as sole provider of social services, according to the US Commission on International Religious Freedom's2019 annual report.

Eritrea has been designated a Country of Particular Concern since 2004 for its religious freedom abuses by the US Department of State.

Many Eritreans, especially youth, emigrate due to a military conscription or a lack of opportunities, freedom, education, and health care.

A July 2018 peace agreement between Ethiopia and Eritrea, which ended a conflict over their mutual border, led to an open border which has allowed for easier emigration.

Source=https://www.thebostonpilot.com/article.asp?ID=185525

ሰልፊ ዲሞክራሲ ህዝቢ ኤርትራ (ሰዲህኤ) ብ23 ሓምለ 2019፡ ኣብ ምፍታሕ ብ21 ሓምለ 2019 ኣብ  ከተማ ካይሮ ኣብ ሰላማዊ ሰልፊ ስለ ዝተሳተፉ  ተኣሲሮም ዘለዉ 5 ኤርትራውያን ስደተኛታት ንክተሓጋገዙ ናብ ኮሚሽነር ላዕለዋይ ኮሚሽን ጉዳይ ስደተኛታትን ግብጽን ምሕጽንታ ኣቕሪቡ።

 እቲ ናብ ኮሚሽነር ላዕለዋይ ኮሚሽን ጉዳይ ስደተኛታት ፍሊፖ ግራንዲን፡ ወጻኢ ጉዳይ ሚኒስተር ሳመህ ሽኩርን ዝተላእከ ምሕጽንታ፡ እቶም ግዳያት ናይቶም ኣብ ካይሮ  ዝርከብ ቤት ጽሕፈት ሕቡራት ሃገራት ዝተዓዘብዎ ድኽመታት ንምንቃፍ ሰላማዊ ሰልፊ ብምክያዶም ጥራይ ብምእሳሮም ዝሓደሮ ሻቕሎት ኣስፊሩ።

Cairo 3

 ኤርትራውያን ምንጭታት ካብ ካይሮ ከም ዝሓበርዎ ኣብቲ መጀምርያ ግብጻውያን ሰብ መዚ ካብቶም ተሰለፍቲ 40 እዮም ኣሲሮም። እንተኾነ ንኹሎም ፈቲሐምዎም ነይሮም። እንተኾነ ናይታ ሃገር ናይ ጸጥታ ኣካላት ተመሊሶም ነቶም ሓሙሽተ ኣሲረምዎም። ናይቲ ዳግማይ ማእሰርቲ ጠንቂ ኣብታ ከተማ ናይዘሎ ኤምባሲ ኤርትራ ሰለይትን  ኣባላት ናይቲ ቤት ጽሕፈት ሕቡራት ሃገራት ዝኾነ ግብጻውያን ብዘቕረብዎ ናይ ሓሶት ሓበሬታ እዩ።

እዞም እሱራት 23 ወይ 24 ሓምለ 2019 ብዘይ ተኸላኻሊ ጠበቓ  ናብ ቤት ፍርዲ ክቐርቡ መደብ ነይሩ። በዚ ኣካይዳ ሰብ መዚ ግብጺ ነዞም ግዳያት ኣገዲድካ ናብ ኤርትራ ኣብ ምላሶም ምስቲ ኣብ ካይሮ ዘሎ ኤምባሲ ጨቋኒ መንግስቲ ኤርትራ ከይተሓባበሩ ስግኣት ፈጢሩ ኣሎ።

መዘክር ሰዲህኤ፡ እንተደኣ ተገዲዶም ተመሊሶም ህይወቶም ኣብ ስግኣት ክወድቕ ምዃኑ ስምዕታኡ ኣቕሪቡ። መልእኽቱ ክድምድም እንከሎ ከኣ ንሕና ሰዲህኤ፡ ከም ሓደ ኤርትራዊ ተቓዋሚ ሰልፊ ኣብ ስደት፡ ላዕለዋይ ኮሚሽን ጉዳይ ስደተኛታትን መንግስቲ ግብጽን ኣብዚ ህጹጽ ጉዳይ ሕያውነታዊ ኢዶም ሓዊሶም ናይዞም ብዝተዋደደ ናይ ሓሶት ክሲ ኣብ ቤት ማእሰርቲ ዘለዉ ሓሙሽተ  ኤርትራውያን ስደተኛታት  ህይወት  ከድሕኑ ንምሕጸን ኢሉ።

ጨንፈር ሰዲህኤ ቁ.2 ብዕለት 23/07/2019 ብኤለትሮኒካዊ መራኸቢ ብዙሓን 7ይ ስሩዕ ኣኼባ ናይ ምሉኣት ኣባላት ኣካይዱ። ኣቦ ወንበር ጨንፈር ብሰላምታ ከፊቱ ዝቀረባ 3ተ ኣጀንዳታት  ኣርጊኡ፡ ህልዊ ጨንፈርን ንጥፈታቱን ብጉዳይ ንብረትን ብብሩህ ሓቢሩ።

 2ይ. ኣጀንዳ  ከኣ ኮንፈረንስ ሰዲህኤ ብዕለት 20ን 21 07/2019 ሓያሎ ሰዓታት ዝወሰደ ናይ ክልተ መዓልታት ዕዉት ከም ዝነበረ ፡  ናይ 4ተ ዓመታት ጸብጻብ ስራሓት 9 ቤት ጽሕፈታት ፈጻሚት ሽማገለ  ሰ.ዲ.ህ.ኤ.ብቀደም ተኸተል ቀሪቡ። እቲ ኮንፈረንስ ኣብ ኩሉ ኩርናዓት ዓለም ዝርኸቡ ኣባላት ሰልፊ ዲሞክራሲ ህዝቢ ኤርትራ ዝተሳተፍዎ ኮይኑ ዓሚቅ ክትዓትን ርእይቶን ለወባን ሂቦም ከም ዝዛዘምዎ ሓቢሩ። ብምቅጻል ካብ ተመክሮና ናይ ስምረትን ምምርኳስን ከኣ ህልዊ ኩነታት ዝጠልቦ ብንቅሓት እሩም ዝኾነ ኣቃራርባን ኣኽብሮት ሓዘል ሃነጽቲ ዝኾኑ ልዝብ ክዋስኡ ነዚ ንምእዋጁ ተዳልዩ ዘሎ ዕዉት 3ይ ሓድነታዊ ጉባኤ ሰዲህኤን ግንባር ሃገራዊ ድሕነት ሕድርን  ንወከልቲ ጉባኤ ተላብዮም። ህልዊ ህዝባዊ ማዕበል ይኣክልን ዝኸዶ ዘሎ ናህርን ብትብባዕን፡ ከኣ ኣብ ገለ ንዉድባት ዘግለለ ኮይኑ ይንህር ስለ ዘሎ ብጥንቁቅ ኣገባብ ክጽናዕን ስጡም ሓባራዊ ክኸውንን፡  ማለት ንሕና ካብ ንግሆ ይኣክልን ዝበልና ንብል ዘሎናን ስለ ዝኾና  ናይ ሎሚ ተባዓት መንእሰያት ቀጸልቲ ድኣ እምበር  ጀመርቲ ወይ መስረቲ ከም ዘይኮኑ ከነረድኦም ኣሎና ኢሎም።  ሰ.ዲ.ህ.ኤ. ኣብ ጉዳይ ናይ ሓቢርካ ምስራሕ ዝኣወጆ እማመ መሰረት ተሰማዕነት እናረኸበ ይመጽእ ብምህላው ብዕቱብ ክቕጽሎን መሪሕ ግደ ንሓድነት ክህልዎን መሪሕነት ሰልፊ ቀዳምነት ሂቡ ንምዕዋቱ ክጽዕር ምሉኣት ኣባላት ኣስሚሮምሉ። ኣብ መደምደምታ ንናይቲ ዓመት ዓመት ዝካየድ ሰፊሕ በዓል ኤርትራ ፈስቲቫል ፍራንክፎርት 2019 ኣሳናዳኢ ሽማገለ ድሮ ምድላዋታ ወዲኣ ብምህላዋ ኩሉም  ኣባላት ከኣ ንምዕዋቱ  ዕጥቆም ክድርቡ ምኳኖም ቃል ኣትዮም ኣኼባኦም ዛዚሞም።

ሓቢርና ንስራሕ ከነድምዕ ሓቢርና ነድምጽ ከነስምዕ !!!

ነባሪ ክብርን ዝኽርን ንጀጋኑ ስዉኣትና !!!

ዉድቀት ዕንወትን ንዉልቀ መራሒ ህግደፍ።

23 / 07 / 2019

ወዲ 26 ዓመት ኤርትራዊ፡ ካብ መኪና ብዝተተኮሰሉ ጥይት ዝተሃረመሉ ቦታ ፍራንክፈርት፡ ጀርመን ሓምለ 23 2019 Image copyright Reuters ናይ ምስሊ መግለጺ እቲ ጠያይቲ ዝተተኮሰሉ ቦታ ዘርእይ ብፖሊስ ዝተገብረ ምልክት

ኣብ ጀርመን ሓደ ወዲ 26 ዓመት ኤርትራዊ፡ ካብ መኪና ብዝተተኮሰሉ ጥይት ከም ዝቖሰለ ተገሊጹ። ፖሊስ እቲ መጥቃዕቲ ካብ ጽልኢ ወጻእተኛታት ዝነቐለ ከም ዝኾነ ብምግላጽ ኮኒንዎ።

እቲ ነቲ መጥቃዕቲ ከም ዝፈጸመ ዝተገለጸ ሰብ፡ ነቲ ግዳይ ብዘይ ዝኾነ ካልእ ምኽንያት ብሕብሪ ቆርበቱ ጥራይ፡ ዕላማ ከም ዝገበሮ ኣኽባር ሕጊ ከተማ ፍራንክፈርተ ኣሌክሳንደር ባድል ሓቢሩ።

እቲ ሰለስተ ጠያይቲ ዝተተኮሶ ኤርትራዊ፡ ድሕሪ ዝተገበረሉ ሕክምና፡ ኣብ ደሓን ኩነታት ከም ዘሎ፡ ሰብ መዚ ሓቢሮም።

እቲ ጥርጡር ወዲ 55 ዓመት ኮይኑ፡ ኣብ ሓንቲ መኪና ርእሱ ብጥይት ተሃሪሙ ሞይቱ ተረኺቡ።

ፖሊስ፡ ኣብ መንበሪ እቲ ሰብኣይ ኣጽዋር ከም ዝረኸበን፡ እቲ ሰብኣይ ርእሰ ቅትለት ምፍጻሙ ከም ዝኣምንን ገሊጹ።

እቲ ኣብ ዋችተርባኽ ዝተፈጸመ መጥቃዕቲ ዓሌታዊ ምዃኑ እኳ እንተተገለጸ፡ ሰብ መዚ ጀርመን ግና ምስ ሕሉፋት የማናውያን ዝተኣሳሰር ክኸውን ከም ዝኽእል ኣጠንቂቖም።

ኣኽባር ሕጊ ባድል ኣሌክሳንደር "ዛጊት፡ ምስ የማናይ ክንፊ ምትሕሓዝ እንተለዎ ዘርእይ መርትዖ የብልናን" ኢሉ።

ኣብ ዝሓለፈ ወርሒ ሓደ ንስደተኛታት ዝጣበቕ ፖለቲከኛ ብሕሉፋት የማናውያን ምቕታሉ፡ ኣብ ጀርመን ከቢድ ስግኣት ፈጢሩ እዩ።

ኣሃዱታት ጸጥታ ጀርመን ነቲ ንናይ ሕሉፋት የማናውያን ጎንጺ ቅልጡፍ ስጉምቲ ብዘይምውሳዶም ይኽሰሱ እዮም።

ሬሳ ናይቲ ተጠርጣሪ፡ እቲ ፍጻመ ካብ ዘጋጠመሉ ሰሜናዊ ምብራቕ ፍራንክፈርት፡ ከባቢ ሸውዓተ ኪሎሜተር ርሒቑ ተረኺቡ።

ኣብ መኪንኡ ክልተ፡ ኣብ መንበሪ ገዝኡ ከኣ ካልእ ሰለስተ ብረት ክርከብ ከሎ፡ ኩሉ ብሕጋዊ መገዲ ዝወነኖ ምዃኑ ተገሊጹ።

The Eritrean People’s Democratic Party (EPDP) on 23 July appealed to the UNHCR and the Government of Egypt to help release five Eritrean refugees detained following a protest demonstration in Cairo on Sunday, 21 July 2019.

Cairo1

 

Addressed to UNHCR Commissioner Filippo Grandi and Egyptian Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry, the message expressed deep concern about the unjustifiable detention of five Eritrean refugees following a peaceful demonstration criticizing certain wrong practices of the UN office in Cairo.

 Cairo2

Eritrean sources in Cairo informed that the Egyptian authorities detained up to 40 of the demonstrators but released them although the state security apparatus later called back and detained five of the released demonstrators. Their arrest was based on false claims obtained from agents of the Eritrean embassy and certain Egyptian UN staff..

 The detainees were expected to appear in court on 23 or 24 July without any defense lawyers. It is feared that the Egyptian authorities could cooperate with the repressive regime in Asmara and forcibly extradite these activist refugees  back to Eritrea.

The memorandum noted that, if sent back to Eritrea, they will face risks to their lives. It therefore concluded: “we in the EPDP, an Eritrean opposition organization in exile, are strongly appealing to UNHCR and the Government of Egypt to kindly intervene in this urgent matter and save the lives of these five Eritrean refugees now detained on framed up allegations.”

 

 

by

In the heady days after longtime foes Ethiopia and Eritrea signed a peace deal a year ago, Teklit Amare’s Peace and Love Cafe near the newly-opened border overflowed with customers.

Now, he paces among empty tables, wondering aloud how to keep his business open as optimism fades, with borders again sealed and hopes of progress dashed.
The Zalambessa border crossing closed at the end of last year without explanation as leaders have remained silent. Others crossings followed suit.

“When they shut the border so soon after opening it, that was the saddest moment,” said Teklit, a former teacher who now struggles to pay his rent.

The feeling is widely shared in Zalambessa, a town where battered buildings highlight the damage wrought by the Ethiopia-Eritrea border war, which erupted in 1998 and left tens of thousands dead.

During the stalemate that followed the end of active hostilities in 2000, Zalambessa was all but abandoned, deprived of infrastructure and other investments.

“After the opening it was very obvious that everybody was happy. They want to trade, to have these connections,” said Hadush Desta, Zalambessa’s top municipal official.

“But now, because of no reason, it’s closed. People are emotional about it. They say, ‘Why is this happening to us?’”

– ‘Devil in the details’-

The border opening was just one breakthrough in the whip-fast rapprochement between Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed and Eritrean President Isaias Afwerki that began just over a year ago.

Following Abiy’s initial overtures, the two sides embarked on a rapid mending of ties that caught even close observers by surprise, re-opening embassies, resuming flights and taking meetings across the region.

But enthusiasm for the deal has given way to frustration — and not just near the border.

On other goals too –- from inking new trade deals to granting Ethiopia access to Eritrea’s ports –- high initial hopes have gone unmet.

The lack of communication from both governments makes it difficult to pinpoint why the peace process appears stuck.

Abiy paid a two-day visit to Asmara last week and pledged to “further enhance” the peace process, but no detail was given of their discussions.

“As they say, the devil is in the details. We are not so clear what is going on,” said Abebe Aynete, an Addis Ababa-based senior researcher with the Ethiopian Foreign Relations and Strategic Studies think tank.

Many analysts and diplomats suspect Eritrea is guilty of foot-dragging.

Opening up to Ethiopia would force Isaias to surrender a measure of control, something his critics say he is unlikely to do.

“I personally believe that as long as the current group in Asmara stays in power, I don’t think the border will open and the two countries will not proceed to normal relations,” said Mehari Tesfamichael, chairperson of the opposition Eritrean Bright Future Movement.

Isaias’ notoriously iron-fisted government has long cited the standoff with Ethiopia in justifying harsh policies like compulsory national service, which forces citizens into specific jobs at low pay and bans them from travelling abroad.

Last October, the UN refugee agency noted a seven-fold increase in refugees fleeing Eritrea after the borders opened, with around 10,000 refugees registered in one month.

The peace deal “provided some hope that restrictions on national service would be lifted, but so far there has been little change” in Eritrea, said Human Rights Watch.

– Abiy’s woes –

Ethiopia’s domestic politics could also be part of the problem.

Abiy’s ambitious reform agenda has run into roadblocks, a fact underscored by the assassination last month of five government and military officials.

The changing landscape has inflamed tensions between Abiy and the Tigrayan People’s Liberation Front (TPLF), the party that dominates the northern Tigray region and was the strongest political force in the country before Abiy came to power.

Tigray’s administration of Ethiopian border areas means the TPLF should be a major player in normalising ties with Eritrea, provided it plays along.

“Solving issues related to the border ideally needs the full cooperation of Tigray and the TPLF. That isn’t what we have right now,” said William Davison, senior analyst at the International Crisis Group think tank.

“We have significant rifts between TPLF and its ruling coalition partners and also disputes between the Tigray region and the federal government in Addis.”

– ‘A better place’ –

However observers say it’s important not to lose sight of the progress that’s been made.

“Up front we have to acknowledge that we’re in a much better place than we were before the rapprochement, when the possibility of state-on-state conflict was quite high,” said Michael Woldemariam, an expert on the Horn of Africa at Boston University.

Even at the border, the news is not all bad.

Though the Zalambessa crossing closed completely in December, soldiers on both sides have since loosened restrictions. Ethiopian traders say that on some days they cross into Eritrea unimpeded, and on others they can often get through using unofficial crossings.

Back at the Peace and Love Cafe, owner Teklit said he is not giving up just yet.

He said he is encouraged by the fact that ties between the two countries are still officially warm.

“There are rumours that the Eritrean government is fixing the road,” he said. “This gives us hope that they might one day reopen again.”
 

ኣብ ንኢሽተይ ጀልባ ተጸቓቒጦም ይጓዓዙ ዝነበሩ ስደተኛታት ብኣባላት ምድሓን ሓገዝ እናረኸቡ - 9 ሰነ 2018 Image copyright KARPOV/SOS MEDITERRANEE ናይ ምስሊ መግለጺ ኣብ ንኢሽተይ ጀልባ ተጸቓቒጦም ይጓዓዙ ዝነበሩ ስደተኛታት ብኣባላት ምድሓን ሓገዝ እናረኸቡ

ሸሞንተ ሃገራት ኤውሮጳዊ ሕብረት ኣብ ዳግመ-ምጥያስ ካብ ማእከላይ ባሕሪ (ሜዲተራንያን) ዝደሓኑ ስደተኛታት አእጃመን ንምፍጻም ኣብ ስምምዕ ምብጸሐን ፈረንሳ ሓቢራ።

ጣልያን ኣብቲ ዝተበጽሐ ስምምዕ ከም ዘይትርከብ እቲ መግለጺ ኣረዲኡ።

ፕረዚደንት ፈረንሳ ኢማኑኤል ማክሮን፡ ሃገሩ፡ ነቲ ሸኽሚ ኣብ ምቅላል እጃመን ንዘይፍጽማ ሃገራት እትገብሮ ገንዘባዊ ሓገዝ ከም ዘይህሉ ኣፍሊጡ።

ብዋሕዚ ስደተኛታት ተዕለቕልቕ ዘላ ጣልያን ግን ኣብዚ ጉዳይ ንዝግበር ዘተ ኣስተናዒቓቶ'ላ።

ናይታ ሃገር ሚንስትር ውሽጣዊ ጉዳያት ማቲዮ ሳልቫኒ፡ ጣልያን ኣብ ጉዳይ ስደት ዘለዋ ጽኑዕ ቅዋም ከይቕየር ይሙጉት ከም ዘሎ ይግለጽ።

ኣብ ዓመት ብኣሽሓት ዝቑጸሩ ስደተኛታት ንማእከላይ ባሕሪ (ሜዲተራንያን) ኣቋሪጾም ናብ ኣውሮጳ ክበጽሑ ይፍትኑ። ሊብያ ድማ ቀንዲ መበገሲ ጉዕዞኦም'ያ።

እቶም ስደተኛታት እኹል ጽገና ብዘይተገበረለንን ልዕሊ ዓቐን ሰባት ብዝጸዓናን ጀላቡ ነቲ ባሕሪ ከቋርጹ ኣብ ዝፍትኑሉ እዋን ብዙሓት ህይወቶም ስኢኖም'ዮም።

ኣብ ጉዳይ ስደተኛታት ሓድሽ ኣማራጺ ንምድላይ ዓሊሙ ትማሊ ሰኑይ ኣብ ዝተኻየ ዘተ፡ ሚንስትራት ጉዳያት ውሽጢን ወጻእን ሃገራት ኣውሮጳ ተራኺቦም።

ፕረዚደንት ማክሮን ከም ዝሓበሮ ካብ 14 ሃገራት እተን ሸሞንተ፡ ኣብቲ ዝቐረበ ኣማራጺ ሓቢረን ንምስራሕ ኣብ ስምምዕ በጺሐን ኣለዋ።

ንሱ፡ ብዛዕባ እቲ ዝተበጽሐ ስምምዕ ዝሃቦ ዝርዝር መብርሂ የለን።

እተን ሸሞንተ ሃገራት ከኣ ክሮሺያ፣ ፊንላንድ፣ ፈረንሳ፣ ጀርመን፣ ኣየርላንድ፣ ሊቱንያ፣ ላክሰምበርግን ፖርቱጋልን ከም ዝኾና ተፈሊጡ'ሎ።