Eritrea and Ethiopia

Baroness Kinnock of Holyhead Excerpts

Tuesday 27th January 2015 Lords Chamber

[Baroness Kinnock of Holyhead (Lab)]

My Lords, I will briefly touch on the situation in Ethiopia. With an election looming there in May, we learn that its media are being decimated. The right to free expression continues to be denied and at least 60 journalists have fled the country since 2010. The reality is that the Ethiopian Government cannot tolerate independent voices being raised or information and analysis being disseminated. Intimidation, harassment, threats and unbearable pressure are put on those whose voices are raised against policies which threaten political opposition.

Both Eritrea and Ethiopia have a Marxist-Leninist heritage. Ethiopia is still effectively controlled by the Tigrayan People’s Liberation Front, through a system of ethnic federalism. Although there has been some improvement we have to ask how it can be that, at the 2010 election, the EPRDF won 90% of the vote. At this stage, I particularly commend the work of Human Rights Watch, which argues relentlessly for recognition of the effects of the Ethiopian denial of fundamental rights and the need for its friends and donors to speak out on issues which are of life-and-death proportions to so many brave people.

In 1988 I travelled to Eritrea, which was at war at the time with Ethiopia. Since 1962 they had been deadly enemies; tensions and conflicts have characterised all the years since. It was the longest running struggle for independence in Africa and was about independence from Ethiopia. As we know, the people of Eritrea continue to suffer and such is their desperation that they seek refuge in other countries, which can mean very long journeys.

On the subject of migration, I begin with a shocking fact which serves to illustrate the desperation of Eritreans. Almost as many Eritreans fled their country—a country which, incidentally, is not at war—as Syrians fled theirs in 2014. UNHCR has said that:

“From January to October 2014, more than 60,000 Syrians, including almost 10,000 children, arrived by sea. In the same period almost 35,000 Eritreans arrived by sea in the Mediterranean, including 3,380 unaccompanied children”.

Surely, we have to ask exactly what makes people take such terrible risks to leave their country. The cruelty, tyranny and oppression of Isaias Afewerki and his regime know no bounds. Eritrea is isolated politically, regionally and internationally and it is under UN sanctions because of its alleged support for al-Shabaab in Somalia. The country is often described as Africa’s North Korea. All rights and freedoms are denied. There is no religious freedom or political pluralism, and no freedom of the media or of speech.

The 2015 FCO report has given details of Eritrean abuses: arbitrary and inhuman detention, indefinite national service, lack of religious freedom, no job prospects and much more. Indefinite national service is clearly the main driver of migration. UNHCR has confirmed that young Eritreans are conscripted into endless military service characterised by harsh treatment. They are sent to work in gold and copper mines or to camp out on the Ethiopian border. National service should be limited to 18 months but conscripts are often held for as long as 20 years. Is it surprising that they are prepared to take such risks in the hope of a chance of a better life? The number of Eritreans seeking to come to Europe has nearly tripled over the last year and is mostly made up of very young refugees. The special rapporteur says that the authorities in Eritrea show no inclination to tackle the root causes of the exodus. She confirms a lack of rule of law, and reported cases of extrajudicial disappearances, arbitrary detention and torture in detention.

Also, does the Minister agree with the suggestion made by some European Governments that it is necessary now to offer additional support and engagement to Eritrea, arguing that additional aid will lead to more openness and to change? Surely there can be no “new beginning”, as has been suggested, with this regime. As history proves, concessions to regimes such as Eritrea will achieve absolutely nothing. I ask the Minister to give some detail on the apparent willingness of the UK to have discussions with the Eritrean regime on,

“drivers of irregular migration and ways to mitigate it, asylum and returns, and potential areas for joint co-operation”.—[Official Report, 6/1/15; col. WA 136.]

What exactly does that mean? Will the UK delay any response on refugee policy until the UN commission of inquiry issues its report on the subject?

European Governments should not make major Eritrean policy changes until they see the inquiry findings. Let us see if Eritrea is prepared to co-operate with the UN commission of inquiry before taking any hasty decisions. Now there are signs of unbelievable courage and determination in Eritrea on challenging Isaias Afewerki. The people are aware of the dangers of open protest, but we have to ask just how long they—and he—can hold on. We must urge the EU and others to make sure that the UN commission is given clear and urgent access.

Isaias Afewerki’s agreement to co-operate would be the first test of whether he is ready to accept change. Whatever happens, if there is negotiation, the European Union and member states must not make quick concessions but use any momentum to ensure that there can be—and will be—fundamental change. The release of Dawit Isaak would be a welcome and symbolic victory.

My final point relates to what are routinely called “irregular migrants”. These people arrive in Calais having endured a terrifying journey and are then treated as if they are economic migrants. This is clearly not what persuades them that they must leave Eritrea. Many other African countries are just as poor as Eritrea, but their citizens do not come to Europe in their thousands, as they do from Eritrea now. Will the UK argue for their right to stay and ensure that they are treated as refugees?