Month

Members of Australia’s Eritrean community claim they are being forced to pay an illegal tax, which is being used to fund al-Shabaab.

Members of Australia’s Eritrean community claim they are being forced to pay a tax which has been banned by the United Nations.

According to the federal government, if such a practice is occurring in Australia, it would be in breach of both UN sanctions and an Australian government directive.

[jqdial code=”dial20cd797d57″] [/jqdial] David (not his real name) who arrived in Australia as a skilled migrant in 2009, says he’s been forced to pay the 2 per cent tax since a visit to the Eritrean Consulate in Melbourne; the country’s only diplomatic presence in Australia.

”They get to know you or catch you when you go to the consulate,” he says.

He has shown SBS receipts that indicate the payments he’s made over the years to the consulate.

David says he is taxed based on his earnings in Australia.

He says he was asked to provide evidence of his income, such as pay slips and group certificate.

David says he was unemployed when he first arrived and was asked to pay the minimum that can be taxed, which he claims is what they ask people on Centrelink benefits to pay.

He says failure to pay the tax has repercussions.

”The problem is if I don’t pay two per cent, I’m not going to get any services either from the Consulate or the government,” he says.

David says this would make it difficult to travel back to Eritrea to visit close family members.

Eritrea gained independence in 1993 and has been governed by the People’s Front for Democracy and Justice ever since.

The Eritrean government has been widely criticised by human rights groups such as Human Rights Watch and Amnesty International.

Tens of thousands of its citizens have fled as refugees, with hundreds dying following a boat tragedy off Italy’s Lampedusa coast last year.

Munir Abdulhai is the Australian spokesman for the opposition group, the Eritrean National Council for Democratic Change.

Mr Abdulhai also claims there are serious repercussions if the tax is not paid.

”They hold ransom or they hold someone back home, anybody who has a son, child or father, they are imprisoned. I know some people who have their relatives imprisoned,” he says.

And he claims people are taxed even if they’re on Centrelink benefits.

”You tell them I’m a pensioner; I have known some people who have paid this fund, 2 per cent, they tell them, even if you don’t have nothing, they tell them alright pay this. If they say my income is so low, or this or that, they will tell them as well,” Mr Abdulhai says.

The tax collection was banned by the United Nations Security Council in 2011. 

The Security Council accused the Eritrean government of undermining peace and reconciliation in the Horn of Africa, by providing support to armed groups such as al-Shabaab, an al-Qaeda affiliate.

The Security Council called on all UN members, including Australia, to hold accountable, consistent with international law, any individuals acting on behalf of the Eritrean government who collect the diaspora tax.

Eritrea’s top diplomat in Australia is Yassin Omer Mahmoud.

Mr Mahmoud admits that the two per cent payment is sought from Eritreans in Australia.

”We don’t call it a tax, we call it recovery… and what’s happening is that this [tax] is a kind of gratitude towards the country, everyone will contribute towards building the country.”

Mr Mahmoud disputes the UN allegations against the Eritrean government.

He also denies that the payments are compulsory.

”Actually this is not a forced payment, it is voluntary, whenever they want any services maybe in Eritrea, that’s the time they will start paying and there is no force for that. It’s voluntary.”

In a statement to SBS, Foreign Minister Julie Bishop says the Australian Government condemns any efforts by Eritrea to impose a tax on the Eritrean diaspora, whether in Australia or internationally.

Ms Bishop says Australia formally instructed the Eritrean Consulate to suspend collection of any such tax in June 2011.

But the head of Consular Affairs at the Eritrean Consulate, Yassin Omer Mahmoud says he hasn’t seen any such communication from the Australian government.

”Until it is officially (told) to us, I’m not going to comment on that.”

In May 2013, Canada’s Foreign Minister John Baird kicked out Eritrea’s consul in Toronto after he was accused of ignoring repeated warnings to stop imposing the diaspora tax.

”I think declaring the Consul General persona non grata is a significant diplomatic step which underlines our significant concerns with the activities that were inconsistent with his diplomatic role.” Mr Baird said at the time.

David, and other members of the Eritrean community in Australia, say they would like Julie Bishop to do the same.

Ms Bishop’s statement says the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade has asked federal, state and territory law enforcement authorities to inform it of any evidence that attempts have been made to collect the diaspora tax in Australia.

She says the DFAT is not aware of this practice currently occurring.

Full statement from Foreign Affairs Minister

The Australian Government condemns any efforts by Eritrea to impose a tax on the Eritrean diaspora, whether in Australia or internationally, and particularly measures to collect such a tax by way of extortion, threats of violence, fraud and other illicit means. Such a tax is in clear violation of UN Security Council Resolution 2023 (2011).

In 2013, Australia co-sponsored a resolution of the UN Human Rights Council which strongly condemned “any violation by the Government of Eritrea of its international human rights obligations in the connection with the collection of taxes outside Eritrea from its nationals.

On 6 June 2011, Australia formally instructed the Eritrean Consulate to suspend collection of any such tax.  While the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (DFAT) is not aware of this practice occurring currently within Australian jurisdiction, DFAT consults with Federal, State and Territory law enforcement agencies, the Attorney-General’s Department and the Department of Immigration and Citizenship on this issue and has requested these agencies to inform DFAT of any evidence that attempts have been made to collect the tax in Australian jurisdiction. DFAT also works closely with the Monitoring Group supporting the UN Security Council Somalia/Eritrea Sanctions Committee that investigates this issue.

ደምበ ተቓውሞ፡ ጉዕዞ መርከብ ብዘይ ኮምፓስ:

 12 መጋቢት 2014

ሃብተማርያም ኣብራሃ
ለንደን – ዓዲ እንግሊዝ

‘ምስ ሕሱም ኣይትቑጸር ስንቅኻ፡ ቅድም ተሰከመን ደሓር ከኣ በርኩተን ይብለካ’ ኢዩ ኮይኑና ዘሎ ጉዳይ ኢሰያስ። ንሕና ኤርትራውያን ምስ ሕሱም ስንቅና ዝቋጸርና ህዝቢ ኢና። ሰላም ዝዓበኹም መጓዕዝቲ ዝነኣስኩም መንእሰያት ድማ ተኸተልቲ፡ ኣብ ዘዘለኹሞ ደሓን ንክትህልዉ በዓል ምሉእ ተስፋ እየ። ብፍላይ ከኣ ንኤርትራውያን ተቓለስቲ ደቀንስትዮ እንቋዕ ናብ 8 መጋቢት 2014 ብሰላም ኣብጽሓክን ክብል ይደሊ።

ለይቲ ድቃስ ዘይህብ ከምኡ’ውን ቀትሪ ዕረፍቲ ዝኸልእ ጉዳይ ህዝቢን ሃገርን ኣብ እንግድዓና ካብ ተጻዕነ፡ እሂን ምሂን ክንበሃሃልን ንሓድሕድና ክንጫኖን ግዜ ይጠልበና ኣሎ። ኣከያይዳ ደምበ ተቓውሞ ‘ጉዕዞ መርከብ ብዘይ ኮምፓስ’ ካብ ኮነ፣ ንኣከያይዳና ብዝምልከት መኣዝንንና ንምስትኽኻል ኮምፓስ ክንሕዝ፡ ናብ መዕለቢና ንምብጻሕ ድማ ሎሚ ገለ ነገር ክንገብር ኣለና። ኩሉ ዝተፈተነ ስራሓት  ከንቱ ውእቱ ኮይኑ ኢዩ። እሞ ካን ዲና ካብ መሬት ዓደቦናን ካብ ገዛውትናን ተሰጒግና ክንነብር? ኣይፋል! ንሕሰብ’ሞ ገለ መራግእቲ ደኣ ንፍጠር።

ኣብ ዓለም ብዘይካ እምነት ዘቅየርን ዘይበሊን ነገር የለን። ስለዚ እቲ ኣብ መንጎ ውድባትን ሰልፊታትን ዝነበረ ጽልኢን ምትፍናንን ንክበሊ ድምጺ ስዉኣት ካብ መዓሙቕ መቓብሮም የቃልሕ ኣሎ። ምስቲ ክንገብሮ ዝግበኣና፡ ነዚ ኩሉ ፋሕ ብትን ክትርእዮ ከለኻ ድማ ካባና እንስሳ ይሓይሽ እንተበልኩ ኣይተጋገኹን። እንስሳ ንሓድሕዱ ተጫንዩ ኢዩ ናቱን ዘይናቱን ዝፈልጥ’ሞ ሕጂ’ውን ሓደራ ስለ እዚ ዝጸንት ዘሎ ህዝቢ ኤርትራ፡ መኽደንን ኣልባን ንኹን። ክቡራት ደቂ ኤርትራ መድሃኒቱ ዝሓብአ ካብ ሕማሙ ክፍወስ ኣይክእልን ኢዩ። እቲ ቀዳሞት ወለዲ ዝተጠቕሙሉ መድሃኒት፡ ከምኡ ከኣ ሰውራ ኤርትራ ኣብቲ ናይ 30 ዓመታት መንገዱ ዝተጠቕመሉ መድሃኒት  “ሓድነት”  ዝተባህለት ፈውሲ ኢዩ። ነዚ ከኒና እዚ ክንረኽቦ ኣይከኣልናን ዘለና።

ንሕና ደቂ ኤርትራ ብሰንኪ ኢሰያስ ዘሳወሮ መጋርያ ጥፍኣት ገና ብዘይጠፍእ ሓዊ ንልብለብ ኣለና። ሎሚ ብዛዕባ እዚ ተላባዒ ናይ ጥፍኣት ባርዕ እዚ እንተዘይመኺርናን እንተዘይ ተሰማሚዕናን ድማ፡ እቲ ቁስሊ ካባና ናብ ደቅናን ደቂ ደቅናን ክሓልፍ ኢዩ። እስከ ዓይኒ ዘለዎ ይርአ፡ እዝኒ ዘለዎ ድማ ይስማዕ። ኤርትራ ፍሬኖ ከም ዘይብላ ኣረጊት እትናብለ ካብ መዓልቲ ናብ መዓልቲ ናብ ሃው ዝበለ ጸድፊ ሸለውለው ትብል ዘላ ሃገር ኢያ።

እዚ ጉዳይ እዚ ምስ ዕድል ድዩ ክቑጸር ምስ ጽሕፍቶ ኤርትራውያን ገና ክምለሽ ዝግበኦ ጉዳይ ኢዩ። ብድሕሪ ረዚን መስዋእቲ ናይ 30 ዓመታት ጉዕዞ፡ ኣብ 1991  ሽቦ ላጋ ሽቦ ምስ ተባህለ፣ ንሙሉእ ናጽነትን ሓርነትን ህዝቢ ኤርትራ ደኣ መሰለና እምበር “ነዚ ክትግዕታ ዶ ትርህጻ” ከም ዝበሃል፣ ከምዚ ንብላሽ ኣይመሰለናን።  ህዝቢ ደቢሉን ዓሊሉን ኢዩ። እንተኾነ ግን ይተዓለልን ይሳዕሳዕን፡ ኢሰያስ ካብ ዝወፍር ኣትሒዙ ክሳብ ለይቲ ሎሚ ካብታ ዝተበገሰላ ዕላማ ፍንትት ኣይበለን።

እቲ ሽግር ናቱን ናይ ለኣኽቱን ዘይኮነስ፡ ናትና ናይዞም ንልዕሊ ርብዒ ዘመን ንሓድሕድና ንዋጋእ ዘለና’ምበር። ኣይተፈለጠናን ደኣምበር፣ ኣብዘን ዝሓለፋ ናይ ዘመነ ህግደፍ ዓመታት ጥይት ብዘይብሉ ጠበንጃታት’ኮ ተዋጊእና ኢና። እዚ ኣብ ምንቲ’ምንታይ ኢዩ? ‘ሽም ነርሓ ሳዕሪ ነሓ’ ከም ዝበሃል ደጊም፣ እዞም ኣብ ደምበ ተቓውሞ ንልዕሊ 20 ዓመታት ዝረኣናዮም መሪሕነት ብዘይካ ናብ መንበር ኢሰያስ ምጥማት፡ ህዝቢ ወዲቦም ሓራ ከውጽእዎ ኣይረኣናን። ኢሰያስ ኣብ መንገዱ ነይሩ፡ ገና እውን ኣብ መንገዱ ኣሎ። ደቀባት ኤርትራ ብዝተፈላለየ ኣገባባት በብሓደ ንምጥፋእ ዝተበገሰሉ ዕላማ ገና ኣይዓረፈን ዘሎ። እቲ ካብ ምስላፉ ዝጀመረ እከይ ተግባራት፡ ብቅንጸላ ንደቀባት ኢዩ ጀሚሩዎ። ኮር ተገልበጥ! እቲ ኣብ ጸልማት ግዜ ዝነበረ ቅንጸላ ንደቀባት፡ ኣብ ጸሓይ ብርሃን እውን ኣጋዲድዎ’ምበር ኣይገደፎን። ዘዝተወልደ ንስደትን መከራን ኮይኑ። ህዝቢ ኤርትራ ኣብ ገዛእ መሬቱ እሱር ኮይኑ ይርከብ ኣሎ።

እሞ ስለ ህዝቢን መሬትን እንታይ ደእ ንግበር? ሙሉእ ህዝቢ ኤርትራ ተቓዋማይ ኣብ ዘለወሉ ግዜ፡ እዚ ተቓውሞ እዚ ብከመይ ኢዩ ናብ ሓደ ክጥመር? መን’ዩ ሽም ንህቢ ኮይኑ ዘዕስል? መማእዘኒ ኮምፓስ ካበይ ይረኸብ? እስከ ነንነፍስና ንፈትሽ! ከምኡ’ውን ከባቢና ንመርምር። ደምበ ተቓውሞ ንስም እምበር ብግብሪ የለን። እቲ ብዙሕ ትጽቢት ዝገበርናሉ፡ በብመድርኹ ተኾብኲቡ ካብ ኪዳን ናብ ኮሚሽን፣ ጸኒሑ’ውን ባይቶ ዝተሰየመ ቅሚጦ፡ ብዘይካ ወረ ዘፍረዮ ጉዳይ የለን። ሃገራዊ ባይቶ፡ ‘ከይኮነ ለብም ከይተሰብረ ጸግን’ ከም ዝበሃል፣ ክልብምን ክጽገንን ኣይረኣናን።

ከመዮ ዛግራ ናዝቢ መሸንጋጓን ናብቲ ዝበሃል፡ እቲ ንኣዳም ገረሞ ኮይኑ ዘሎ ከኣ ጉዳይ ደምበ ተቓውሞ ኢዩ። ቃል ንቃሉ ክንደይ’ከ ይጥዕም ኢዩ። ተቓውሞ ነዚ ኣብ ልዕሊ ህዝቢናን ሃገርናን ኲናት ኣዊጁ ዘሎ ስርዓት ህግደፍ ይመስል። ወዳጄ ጣቋ! ኣብ ኣኼባን ጽሑፋትን፡ ኣብ ቅዋምን ፕሮግራምን መልክዕ ውድባትን ባይቶን ክጽብቕ ጉዳም ኢዩ! ደምበ ተቓውሞ ንኢሰያስ ንሓንቲ ለይቲ እውን ዘሕድርዎ ኣይመስሉን ኢዮም። ኣቤት እቲ ኣዋጆም፡ ዘረብኦም ክጽብቕ! እዚ ቁም ነገር ዘይብሉ ውቃጦ እዚ ድማ ከምቲ ‘መልክዕ ደኣ ይሃበኒ’ምበር ውሕልነትሲ ካብ ጎረቤተይ ይመሃሮ’ ዝበለቶ ሰበይቲ፣ ደምበ ተቓውሞ እውን ብዘይካ ኣብ ምጽባቕ ፕሮግራም ዝገበርዎ ውቐይ የለን። እዞም ሰባት ንውድባትን ሰልፊታትን ከም ናይ ንግዲ ሊቸንሳ ደኣ’ምበር ከም መቃለሲ ባይታ ተጠቒሞሙሉ ኣይፈልጡን ኢዮም። ናይ ትማሊ ተመኩሮ ከም ዝሕብሮ፣ ሃገራዊ ባይቶ ኣብ ጉባኤኡ ዝነበሮ ሓሸውየ ምርኣይ ጥራይ ይኣክል ኢዩ።

ከምቲ ኣቐዲመ ጽሒፈዮ ዝነበርኩን ብዙሓት ደቀባት ዝተዛረቡዎን ከኣ፡ እዚ ደምበ ተቓውሞ ዝተባህለ ተዛራባይ ሬሳ ደኣ’ምበር ህያው ኣይኮነን። ብዛይካ መልሓስ ንሓንቲ መዓልቲ እውን ትኹን ሰሪሑ ኣይፈልጥን ኢዩ።  እሞ እንታይ ደኣ ይገበር? ልክዕ ብልክዕ እቲ ዝሓለፈ ዓመታት ናይ ክሳራ ዓመታት ምንባሩ ክግምገም ይግባእ። ደምበ ተቓውሞ ኣብዘን ዝሓለፋ 23 ዓመታት ኣብ ልዕሊ ስርዓት ህግደፍ ኣብ ውሽጢ ሃገር ይኹን ኣብ ከባቢ ኤርትራ ቅንጣብ ዓወት ካብ ዘየመዝገበ፣ ውሽጡን ደገኡን ከም ብሓድሽ ክውደብ ኣለዎ ይብል።

ለውጢ ካብ ውሽጢ እምበር ካብ ደገ ከም ዘይመጽእ እነሆ ጭቡጥ ኣብነታት ርኢና ኣለና። ስለዚ ‘ንእሾኽ እሾኽ ኢያ ተውጽኣ’ሞ ኣራግጻኻ  ኣይትቐይር’ ከም ዝበሃል፣ ኣብ ውሽጢ ሃገር ዘለኹም ህዝቢን ሰራዊትን ኣጆኹም! ኣይትደቅሱ፡ ታሪኽ ጅግንነት ንምድጋም ግንባር ህግደፍ ንምድምሳስ ተዳለዉ። እዞም ሎሚ ንኤርትራ ብፖለቲካን ቁጠባን ገቢቶማ ዘለዉ ቁንጣሮ ሰባት እንታዎት ኢዮም? ቀንዲ መንነቶምን መበቆሎምን ብንጹር ክፍለጡ ኣለዎም።

ክሳብ ሎሚ ተሓቢኦሙሉ ዝነበሩ ድርዒ ክስበር ይግባእ። ንደቀባት ኤርትራ ካብ ሰብዓታት እናቀንጸለ ዝመጸ ጸይቀ-ዕሉል መራሒ ህግደፍ፡ ብድሕሪ ናጽነት እውን ነቶም ቀንዲ ዓንዲ ማእከል ደቀባት ኤርትራ ብተንኮል ናብ ዒራዒሮ ዳጒኑ ኣጥፊኡዎም ኢዩ። ከም ገለ ንዝጠርጠሮም እውን በብግዚኡ ብምስማም የጽንቶም ኣሎ። ኢሰያስ ብዘይካ ስልጣኑ ዝግድሶ ጉዳይ የለን። ትማሊ ኣገልጊሉኒ ኢዩ፡ ስለ መንበረይ ተወፍዩ ኢዩ ዝበሃል ኒሕ የብሉን። ከምቲ ‘ንዝኣመነን ንዝኸሓደን ብሴፍ’ ዝበሃል፣ ሎሚ ኣብ ሃገርና ኤርትራ ካብ ሴፍ ኢሰያስ ዝተርፍ ወደባት ኣይክህሉን ኢዩ።

ስለዚ ደምበኻ ከይበተኸ እንከሎ፡ ተንስእ ህዝቢ ኤርትራ። ደምበ ተቓውሞ፣ ብፍላይ ከኣ ደቅና መንእሰያት ናይ ለውጢ ሓዋርያት ከም ምዃንኩም መጠን፡ ነቲ ኣብ ውሽጢ ክውላዕ እንደልዮ ዘለና ሽግ ንምውላዕ ካብ ዝኾነ ግዜ ንላዕሊ ሓደ ኩኑ። እቲ ምፍንጫልን ምውንጃልን በተን ውድባት ከብቅዕ ይግባእ። ናታተን ኣከያይዳ እናኣሕዘነና፡ ሎሚ እውን ኣብ ማሕበራት መንእሰያት ምፍንጫል ይረአ ኣሎ። ይኣክል ጉዕዞ ደምበ ተቓውሞ፡ ጉዕዞ መርከብ ብዘይ ኮምፓስ።

ውድቀት ንህግደፍ

ዓወት ንደላዪ ፍትሒ ህዝቢ ኤርትራ!

እንታይ ኢና ኰንና ኤርትራውያን፡ እንታይዩ ወሪዱና በዚ ሓደ ውልቀ ሰብ ኢሰያስ እዚ ሃብቲ ኤርትራን ህዝቢ ኤርትራን ከምድላዩ ገሩ ክጻወተልና ክነብር። እዚስ ሕምቀትናን ስንፍናናን ርኡ ከም ዝጻወተልና ከም ዘሎ እዚ ፍሉጥ እዩ። ክሳብ ማዓስ ኢናሞ ከምዚልና ብስንፍናና ክንነብር።

እንተቲ ድንግል መረትናኳ ንማለቱ ዋላ ሳንቲም ትኹን ንህዝቢ ኤርትራ ክበጽሖ እዩ ኢልካ ምሕሳብ ማለት ዘይሕሰብ’ዩ፡ እንትርፎ ንኢሰያስን ነቶም ሰብ ባሊቃታቱ ዝኾኑ ሰሰስልጣን ናይዚ ማዕድን ፕሮጀት እቶት እዚ፡ በበቲ ብጽሒቶም ክማቐልዎ እንተዘይ ኮይኖም ካለእ ምሕሳብ የለን።

ኣብ ናይ ወርቂ ብሻ ማዕድን እቶት እንተርኢና ናይቲ ፕሮጀክት ኣታዊ ብሚሊዮናት ዝቑጸር ኣታዊኡን መዕለቢኡን ዘይፍለጥ፡ ህዝቢ ኣፍልጦ ናይዚ ዘይብሉ ናይ ማፊያ ስራሕ ኮይኑተሪፉ ኣሎ።

ብዘይ ቅዋም ምዕራፍ ዓንቀጽ ሕጊ ዘይብሉ ናይዝሓለፉ ፕሮጀክትን ናይዚ ሕጂ ዝቕጽል ዘሎ ናይ ኦርታክ ፓርትነር ን ንመጻኢ ኤርትራ ብምጣነ ሃብቲ ምስቲ ዝድለ ዘሎ ንለውጢ ህዝባዊት ዲሞክራሲያዊ መንግስቲ ኤርትራ ኣብ ዝቆመሎ ብሃብቲ ናይታ ሃገር ኤርትራ ድኽምቲ ነብሳ ከምዘይ ትኽእል ክገብራ እዩ ዝጽዕር ዘሎ። እዚ ብማዕድናት ኤርትራ ጥራሕ ዘይኮነ፡ ትሕቲ ቕርጺ ኤርትራ እውን ኣዳኺምዋን፡ መሬት ኤርትራ ባዲሙን ከም ዘሎ ንነፍሲ ወከፍ ስውር ኣይኮነን።

Nils Horner is now another one of the Swedish journalists killed on assignment abroad.

It is becoming increasingly dangerous to work as a foreign correspondent.

Last year, 108 journalists were killed in the service, according to statistics from the International Federation of Journalists (IFJ ), which also calls on governments worldwide to end impunity for those who kill journalists.

Many of the journalists were direct targets , and the subject was to silence them, according to the IFJ.

Others were killed in bomb attacks and shootings.

Swedish Radio’s correspondent Nils Horner is now another one of those Swedish journalists who have been killed in the service.

In April 1979 killed Expressen reporter Arne Lemberg and SvD contributor Karl Bergman of dictator Idi Amin’s soldiers in Uganda.

During the bloody first attempted coup against President Allende in Chile, in June 1973, where Augusto Pinochet later assumed power, were rounded up and attacked the presidential palace. Several people were shot, among them the Swedish – Argentine cameraman Leonardo Henrichsen who filmed his own death.

Goran Assbring, freelance photographer and writer, was killed with a bullet to the chest in Eritrea in 1983.

In Afghanistan in 2001 crude murdered Ulf Strömberg, photographer for TV4, while covering the war. He woke up when colleagues were robbed of their equipment in the next room, and was gunned down as he opened the door.

Freelance journalist Martin Adler was shot dead in the Somali capital Mogadishu when he was covering a demonstration in June 2006.

At the time there was great hatred against foreigners, and several journalists had been murdered in the country.

SVT reporter Bert Sundström assaulted, stabbed and severely beaten while covering the revolution in Egypt in 2011. He survived the attack.

By Araya Debessay

I believe the Eritrean people expect Eritrean scholars to objectively and critically assess the ills of the nation and offer bold and constructive suggestions for the good of their country and the Eritrean people.  Eritrean scholars should assume this responsibility as their national duty and indeed as their obligation.

I also believe Eritrean scholars should not give a deaf ear and a blind eye to the suffering of their people. They should have the moral courage and intellectual integrity to speak on behalf of the voiceless and the oppressed.

It is with this spirit that I read a News Release posted in Dehai from the Organization of Eritrean Americans (OEA), dated January 16, 2010, titled, “Eritrea’s Economic Potential said to be Bright.”  This was a presentation Professor Kiflai made at an event sponsored by the OEA at the Eritrean Community and Civic Center in Washington, D.C. on Friday, January 15, 2010, on “”My trip to Eritrea: Observations and Impressions.”
I am aware of Professor Kiflai’s many years of dedicated service to his country and his people starting from his student days as a member of the Association of Eritrean Students in North America. He has served his fellow Eritreans in North America in leadership positions in several Eritrean Civic Associations, Task forces and Lobbying groups, prior and post the independence of Eritrea. I am aware of a courageous stand he took, behind the scene, together with some of his colleagues, during the war with Ethiopia, to urge the Eritrean Government leaders to take the right course of action while actively and publicly working in support of the Eritrean Government’s weakness in the media services.

Having said that, I would have liked him to apply the same courage in his recent appraisal of the path the Eritrean government has chosen.

I agreed with what was described as the conclusion of the presentation made by my good friend that “Eritrea’s development in agriculture, mining, tourism, port services (what were called the hardware of development), and education (human resource development) can position it in a bright economic future.” I do not dispute this. Eritreans all knew and know that Eritrea has tremendous potential to uplift the conditions of its people in every respect. What puzzled me was not what my friend reportedly has said during his presentation, but what he did not say.  In a time where the whole world is witnessing the dismal conditions of our people, Dr. Kiflai chose not to point out the failures of the government who has placed Eritrea and the Eritrean people in the quagmire they are finding themselves now. 

As an esteemed professor in one of the premier institutions of higher learning in the country, I have no doubt that he has the analytical caliber to understand the failings of the Eritrean leaders, yet I wondered how a person of his academic stature could choose to focus on the potential of what Eritrea could be and not utter even a single critical observation of why this potential has not been realized.

Professor Kiflai talked about “how Eritrea can move towards food security using only the water that can be harvested at the two Fankos (Fanko-tsimue and Fanko-rawi) and Gerset. With certain clearly stated assumptions, he calculated that Eritrea can harvest enough food that can feed its population.”  The News Release did not state the assumptions made by Professor Kiflai. If he had mentioned that one of the fundamental assumptions for the full realization of Eritrea’s potential is good governance, the prevalence of the rule of law, the respect of human rights, freedom of speech, implementation of the constitution, a market-oriented macroeconomic policy, etc, then I would say kudos to my good friend and shame to the reporter who did him a disservice by not giving us a full account of what Professor Kiflai has stated.

We are told that Professor Kiflai made, a “two-hour presentation, [showing] slides of what he observed in water harvesting, by way of building major and minor dams, river diversion schemes and terracing. He spoke how the sprinkler irrigation system he witnessed at the Gerset irrigation project is the state of the art.” This probably is not new to most of the audience, and if I were in the audience, I would expect more from an esteemed Eritrean scholar than what I usually hear from the government media.  Professor Kiflai stated, “The goal of the irrigation projects underway in Eritrea is to produce three times a year.” Professor Kiflai was careful to choose his words; he spoke of the goal but not the reality.  A critical perspective should have added a little dose of reality by reminding his audience that there is a difference between goals and accomplishments.  We all remember how Eritrea has started soon after independence with the vision (goal) to be the next Singapore in Africa. And we know where our country is today.

Professor Kiflai, according to the News Release, “explained, using data from his observation and the publications of the mining companies, how the potential of Eritrea’s mining industry in gold, silver, copper, zinc and other metals from Bisha, Zara, and the Asmara belt is bright.”  I wish I could share the optimism of Professor Kiflai. But given the track record of the present government in power, who has recklessly expended well earned political capital, I would not bet a dime on this government not squandering the people’s resources unwisely.

Dr. Kiflai was stating the obvious when he “pointed that Eritrea’s tourism industry is well-suited to be competitive because what Eritrea can offer tourists is great; in Eritrea, Dr. Kiflai noted, tourists can enjoy personal safety, clean beaches, unpolluted air, a mosaic of a welcoming population, a spectacular variety of birds and marine life, including Eritrea’s coral reef that is 
predicted to be the ”global marine future” in light of the anticipated global warming.” No one questions the potential of Eritrea’s tourism industry with all the natural resources that Professor Kiflai has pointed out. But in order to give a complete perspective, scholars have the duty to point out the government’s failure to develop its tourism industry which could have been an asset helping the economic development projects of the country. What happened to the many recommendations that Eritrean scholars from almost every corner of the world, including Professor Kiflai  presented at the National Business Conference and Exhibition which was held on December 9-17, 1995  in Asmara, organized by the then Minister of Trade and Industry, Ato Ogbe Abraha? To the best of my knowledge none of those recommendations were implemented. We all know that Eritrea has a long way to go before its badly damaged image is restored, so that it can fully capitalize on its tourism industry. To claim otherwise is simply to ignore reality.

Dr. Kiflai’s final discussion on Eritrea’s economic potential, according to the News Release was “on what he called is the software that will drive the above mentioned economic hardware of Eritrea: this is education or human resource development.” I fully agreed with him on the role of education and human resource development as a driving force in helping Eritrea to fully realize its development potential. But, potential is one thing and current reality quite another.

According to the 2007/2008 UNDP Human Development Report, the Human Development Index (HDI) for Eritrea is 0.454, which gives Eritrea a rank of 157th out of 177 countries. Contrast this with what Professor Kiflai has stated, that “Eritrea’s good start with the expansion of higher education and its vision is positioned to provide the necessary human resources for Eritrea’s economic development. He particularly noted that the spread of educational institutions all over Eritrea.”  I have no doubt that other students and scholars who have a passing interest in the Eritrean current situation, let alone someone who has been recently in Eritrea to witness the state of education, will find this statement a bit surprising.

It has been nineteen years since independence and all that we see is not a good start but the dismantling of Eritrean educational system that started with the unfair and unjustified firing of 33 university professors in 1994. With Eritrean youth fleeing the country in the tens of thousands having lost hope in their future, with underpaid, overworked and ill motivated teachers, who are forced to moonlight working more than two jobs to survive, with under equipped under staffed schools, with a university that has been fragmented into semi military camps, I am puzzled to note Professor Kiflai’s optimism about the future of education in Eritrea.  Perhaps he can elaborate and give us a more insightful analysis of the current status of education in Eritrea and what needs to be done to correct the situation.  

Despite its potential as pointed out by Professor Kiflai, Eritrea ranks last or near to last in the world and certainly below most countries in Africa, according to global freedom and development indicators. In terms of malnourishment and hunger, a German research institute has ranked Eritrea third from bottom in 2007 – 116th out of 118 countries assessed by the institute. Professor Kiflai has told his audience, that the irrigation projects underway “is helping Eritreans from all ethnic groups and repatriated nationals to participate in food production with some help from the government.” I do not doubt his observation about the participation of the people in the irrigation projects, but I am not sure what the end result of this participation is going to be unless the government has a well integrated economic development policy that can provide positive results. There was an extensive discussion on the Government’s Macroeconomic policy at the National Business Conference of December 1995, but it seems that the government has abandoned its market oriented economic policy in favor of an economy that is dominated by the PFDJ.

It is reported that Eritrea is a country exhibiting lowest indicators of socioeconomic development, being ranked as one of 33 least developed countries (LDCs) in Africa with  GDP per capita in 2007 of US$ 293. And according to a  2007 report by the International Monetary Fund (IMF), Eritrea’s inflation in the same year was the second highest in the world, the first being that of Zimbabwe. All these are indicators of poor governance, the absolute lack of democracy and freedom and an economy under absolute control of the Eritrean government. 

According to Human Rights Watch and other documents, there are between 20, 000 and 40, 000 victims of detention without trial and enforced disappearance respectively in Eritrea. And according to UNHCR, Eritrea has been ranked the fourth highest refugee-producing country in the world in 2006 and second highest in 2007-2008. In this regard, it was preceded only by failed or chaotic countries such as Somalia, Iraq and Zimbabwe. As a result, tens of thousands of Eritrean refugees are currently languishing in different refugee camps throughout Africa. 

The Role of Eritrean Scholars

I do not mean to be overly critical of Professor Kiflai. As I mentioned in my introduction, my problem is not with what he has stated, but what he has not stated that I think is critical.   May be Professor Kiflai has a good reason why he chose not to publicly air his critical views on the government’s mishandling of its public trust, but I still believe that the Eritrean people have a right to expect and demand more from their learned sons and daughters.

I believe Eritrean scholars should continue to agitate for the implementation of the constitution, the release of political prisoners, journalists, religious groups that are languishing in prison camps without any due process of the law.

I believe it is the duty of Eritrean scholars to hold their government accountable for its dismal record and offer the way out. 

I believe much is expected of Eritrean scholars.

My plea to Eritreans scholars is to remain engaged and to actively participate in civic organizations that believe in democratic rights, human dignity and intellectual integrity. It’s high time for our scholars, academicians and professionals serve as a catalyst in bringing about positive changes in Eritrea through peaceful means.

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1.  UNDP Human Development Report (2007-2008, available at http://hdr.undp.org/en/media/hdr_20072008_en_complete.pdf (accessed 5 November 2008).
2.  Welt Hunger Ilfe The Challenge of Hunger (2007), available at www.welthungerhilfe.de/fileadmin/media/pdf/Pressemitteilungen/DWHH_GHI_english.pdf (accessed 4 January 2008).
3.  UN-OHRLLS “The Criteria for the Identification of the LDCs,” available at http://www.un.org/special-rep/ohrlls/ldc/ldc%20criteria.htm (accessed 25 March 2008).
4.  IMF World Economic and Financial Surveys (2007), available at http://www.imf.org/external/pubs/ft/weo/2007/02/pdf/text.pdf (accessed 5 January 2008).
5.  Daniel R Mekonnen Transitional Justice: Framing a Model for Eritrea (VDM Publishing: Saarbrucken/Germany, June 2009) 120–121.
6.  Human Rights Watch Service for Life: State Repression and Indefinite Conscription in Eritrea (2009), available at http://www.hrw.org/sites/default/files/reports/eritrea0409web_0.pdf (accessed 16 April 2009), citing Christian Solidarity Worldwide