Peer accuses UK of aiding Eritrean government

Labour peer and former Foreign Office minister Baroness Kinnock has demanded an explanation of why the UK "facilitated meetings between the Eritrean government and a range of mining and investment companies".

Lady Kinnock wanted to know if the government had been helping an administration she called "one of the most secretive and repressive regimes in the whole world".

Foreign Office Minister Baroness Warsi admitted such a meeting was "not something I'm aware of" and said Lady Kinnock was "more well-informed than I am on this issue" but promised to write to her.

The issue was first raised at questions on 30 January 2013 by Lib Dem Lord Chidgey, vice-chair of the all-party group on Africa.

Lord Chidgey said the appointment of Ethiopia's new prime minister as chair of the African Union represented "shifting political ground" and an opportunity to "unlock the security stalemate" between Ethiopia and Eritrea.

The Bishop of Wakefield added it was a chance to "reset and promote regional reforms".

Lady Warsi told peers the situation in Mali and Algeria "shows the importance of stable government" and stressed that Eritrea and Ethiopia "should continue to speak".

There is a fragile peace in the one-party state of Eritrea following decades of fighting with Ethiopia and Yemen.

In late January, state television was temporarily taken off air when dissident soldiers reportedly stormed the ministry of information, calling for the implementation of the country's 1997 constitution.

The Eritrean ambassador to South Africa told news agencies there was no sign of a coup.

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FIRST INTERVIEW WITH ERITREA’S ALI ABDU: INFORMATION MINISTER CONFIRMS: HAS LEFT THE REGIME

Expressen newspaper interview translated by Google Translate from Swedish, 30 January 2013

Ali Abdu

BEIRUT. Eritrean dictator Isaias Afewerkis Information Minister Ali Abdu Ahmed has fled the country and is living today in a secret location.

It confirms himself today in a world exclusive interview with Expressen Kassem Hamade.

Ali Abdu says he is surprised that the Swedish authorities did not seek him for information about what happened to the imprisoned journalist Dawit Isaak.

But he dare not give any hope to Isaak’s family in Sweden.

Neither I nor any other minister dared to ask what happened to Isaak says Ali Abdu.

Eritrea’s information minister, Ali Abdu, 47, disappeared without a trace during a business trip to Germany in november.

Since then, not a sign of life heard from the Minister, who has been one of the dictator Isaias Afewerkis closest men for many years.

Now confirm Ali Abdu himself for the first time that he has fled Eritrea and left the regime.

He chooses to do it in an interview with Expressen.

Living on secret location

Ali Abdu live today at a secret location. He dares not speak on the phone with journalists, so he responds to Expressen questions via his brother Saleh Younis, who lives in the U.S..

Ali Abdu says that he very well knows who Dawit Isaak is.

- I’m surprised that Sweden has not heard from himself than to me to ask questions about Isaak. No one from the Swedish government or authorities have been trying to contact me about Dawit Isaak, says Ali Abdu told Expressen.

In Dawit Isaak’s family in Sweden and among the thousands who committed his release brought the news that Ali Abdu dropped out of the hope that they will finally get an answer about Dawit Isaak still alive.

But Ali Abdu says he and the other ministers do not have to know anything about what happened Dawit and other imprisoned journalists and politicians.

- Neither I nor any other minister dared to ask what happened to Dawit Isaak. It is taboo to ask about things that are not related to one’s job to do. There is an old guerrilla culture in the country. It carries out orders without asking why, he says.

“Can oral orders”

Ali Abdu says it is routine to suspected dissidents arrested without court papers, without any documentation.

- Those who do the work, oral orders. Sometimes, there is over the phone and in coded language. They are afraid of being intercepted by Western intelligence services, he says.

He says he is sorry about what happened Dawit Isaak and other journalists.

- But it is only the president himself and his closest security that has information about Isaak. Not even the police chief know anything about it, he says.

Ali Abdu live under great pressure. Immediately after his defection in November arrested his father, his 15 year old daughter and his brother, who were all left in Eritrea, the Security Service. He says he does not know where they are kept under lock and key today.

He does not want to answer questions about what prompted him to drop out or how he lives today.

- My brother is in shock right now. He is sad and feeling disappointed at how an entire generation in Eritrea has been lost, says the renegade minister brother Saleh Younis.

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Hadas Eritrea January 26-29, 2013

Hadas Eritrea January 29, 2013

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Hadas Eritrea January 28, 2013

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Hadas Eritrea January 27, 2013

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Hadas Eritrea January 26, 2013

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ወግዓዊ ሓበሬታ ፍጻሜ ጥሪ ኣብ ሚኒስትሪ ዜና ብ መንገዲ ማሕብረኮም ኤርትራ ኣብ ኦክላንድ ኣሜሪካ

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Italian, Eritrean scientists uncover million-year-old fossil

Milan, January 28
An Italian-Eritrean research team has discovered skull fragments of a human ancestor dating back approximately one million years.

The fossils were found at Muhuli Amo in Eritrea, which lies in the Horn of Africa, at an archaeological site where a wealth of early tools have been found. The international research team, led by paleoanthropologist Alfredo Coppa of Rome's University Sapienza, says the skull fragments belong to the same individual whose remains have been previously discovered by researchers.

This time, the fossil fragments will help researchers put together a larger section of the skull. That, said Coppa, will lead to a better understanding of man's origins. "These new findings confirm conclusively that the area that we are investigating is one of the areas with the highest potential for research dealing with the origins of our species 'sapiens', whose direct ancestors appear in the region of about 400,000 years later"

Source: http://www.gazzettadelsud.it

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Senior diplomat denies there was attempted coup in Eritrea, describes such reports as wishful

A senior Eritrean diplomat denies there was an attempted coup early this week in the Horn of Africa nation and says reports to the contrary are a deliberate disinformation campaign.

Girma Asmerom, Eritrea's ambassador to the African Union, said in a statement Saturday that coup reports were "wishful thinking" by people he did not name.

Without explaining the incidents on Monday, Asmerom wrote of "terrorist acts" being called an attempted coup.

But activists and experts said about 100 dissident soldiers stormed the state broadcasting at Ministry of Information in the capital, Asmara, and read a statement vowing to free all political prisoners and implement country's constitution.

Eritrean President Isaias Afworki took power when the country broke away from Ethiopia in 1991. His regime is seen by rights groups as repressive.

Associated Press

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Hadas Eritrea January 22-25, 2013

Hadas Eritrea January 25, 2013

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Hadas Eritrea January 24, 2013

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Hadas Eritrea January 23, 2013

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Hadas Eritrea January 22, 2013

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Short-lived Takeover of Eritrea’s State Media Not a Coup Attempt, Says Journalist

Eritrean-born journalist Tewolde Tesfagabir says the brief seizure of the Information Ministry and state media in Asmara Monday was an effort by dissident soldiers to focus government attention on issues of concern to many Eritreans.

Political Prisoners 
The release of political prisoners is one of the demands issued by the dissident soldiers. Tewolde, who works for the VOA’s Horn of Africa service, says civil society and the Eritrean government do not agree on who is considered a political prisoner.

“In a country where the constitution is not effectively implemented, political movements can be considered as paramount to treason,” he says. “In a democratically-elected government where the term of the president in limited by the constitution, it’s another issue.”

Freedom of Speech 
Human rights and media watchdog groups have long documented what they see as the lack of press freedom and freedom of assembly in Eritrea. Tewolde concurs that private media is non-existent, but explains what surprised him during his recent trip to Eritrea.

“In Asmara cafes, I was amazed to hear people criticize the government. I also see people criticize the government in state media,” he says. “But again, I haven’t noticed a self-organized group of people or associations discussing politics.”

The Eritrean-born journalist says even where people appear to freely express their political views, they do so in the company of those they know well and feel comfortable with.

Elections 
Eritrea became officially independent in 1993 and has had only one president, Issayas Afeworki. Based on his interviews with the long-time president, Tewolde sees the prospects for democratic elections close to nill.

“According to the president, 20 years is very short. And he seems to understand that it should take 100 years (to hold elections.) He cites as a new country, Eritrea is not ready for democracy,” says Tewolde.

And when elections do take place, Tewolde adds, “the type of democracy President Issayas wants to implement is different in its description and meaning from what we know here,” he says.


Listen to interview with Tewolde Tesfagabir

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Nevsun beats 2012 guidance, mid-year transition to copper on track

TORONTO (miningweekly.com) – Eritrea-focused miner Nevsun Resources beat its upwards-revised gold production guidance of 300 000 oz for 2012 at 313 000 oz, which was mainly attributable to processing higher grades.

During the fourth quarter ended December 31, the company produced 46 000 oz of gold and the company said it expected to continue producing the yellow metal up to the second quarter this year, by which time construction and commissioning of its copper expansion project would be complete and the company would switch to producing the red metal.

The company said most of the fresh ore was mined from the low-grade areas of the Harena satellite pit and Bisha’s main pit. Cleanup and selective mining of the Bisha main acid and transition ores continued.

Waste mining to expose copper supergene and the push-back of the north-east (NE) hill remained on plan. The NE push-back had exposed additional gold-bearing oxide ores on the periphery of the pit that would be accessed during the first half of the year, while opening the pit for additional supergene ores later in the mine plan.

The mill was on plan for recovery despite blending ultrahigh-grade Bisha main transition ores with lower and subgrade Harena and other stockpiled ores. The ore was highly variable and the company had to carefully manage it to avoid losses to tailings.

The copper plant expansion project was reported to progress on schedule and budget with concentrate production expected in mid-2013.

Nevsun on Wednesday said it expects to produce between 80 000 oz to 90 000 oz of gold during the first half of the year. During the second half of the year, the company expect to produce between 60-million and 80-million pounds of copper, on track to achieve the 200-million pounds of copper the company expects to produce in 2014, which would be the first full copper-producing year.

“Following a very successful 2012, Nevsun looks forward to starting up a world class copper-concentrate production operation and continued expansion of its resources portfolio through generative exploration programmes. Nevsun will also continue to actively evaluate potential acquisition opportunities,” CEO Cliff Davis said.

Nevsun’s NYSE-listed stock on Wednesday traded at $4.55 apiece, having risen in value by 3.17% during morning trade. The company has a market capitalisation of $900.96-million.

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Dissident soldiers take over Eritrea’s ministry of information

ASMARA, ERITREA (Aljazeera) — A group of dissident soldiers have laid siege to the Eritrean information ministry and forced the state media to announce a call for the release of political prisoners, according to a senior Eritrean intelligence official.

The renegade soldiers forced the director of state television to make an announcement, the intelligence official said.

“The soldiers have forced him to speak on state TV, to say the Eritrean government should release all political prisoners,” the source said on condition of anonymity.

There was no immediate official comment.

Dozens of soldiers with two tanks surrounded the ministry building in Asmara, regional diplomatic sources said.

They said state television and radio had gone off air.

There was no immediate indication it was an attempt to overthrow the government of Eritrea, which has been led by Isaias Afewerki, 66, for some two decades since it broke away from bigger neighbour Ethiopia.

The UN last year estimated that 5-10,000 political prisoners were being held in the secretive Horn of Africa country, which is accused by human rights groups of carrying out torture and summary executions.

The Red Sea state, which declared independence from Ethiopia after a long war, is one of the most opaque countries on the continent and it restricts access to foreign reporters.

Eritrean opposition activists exiled in neighbouring Ethiopia said there was growing dissent within the Eritrean military, especially over economic hardships.

“Economic issues have worsened and have worsened relations between the government and soldiers in the past few weeks and months,” one activist said.

The UN Security Council imposed an embargo on Eritrea in 2009 over concerns its government was funding and arming al-Shabaab rebels in neighbouring Somalia – charges Eritrea denied.

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Ambassador Girma Asmerom’s interview with Bloomberg Reporter

Eritrean Permanent Mission to AU and UNECA: H.E. Girma Asmerom's inverview with Bloomberg News

Ambassador Girma Asmerom, Eritrea's Permanent Representative to the African Union and ECA gave an hour long interview to Mr. William Davidson, Bloomberg Correspondent in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia on the latest Human Rights Watch (HRW) report concerning the Eritrean Mining Sector and the National Service programme. 

Below is excerpt from the interview that was held on 16 January 2013. 

* The recent HRW report on the Eritrean Mining Sector and National Service programme is financially and politically motivated cheap shot, and is replete with distortions and lies. 

* The report defied elementary methodology of research. No wonder after compiling their baseless and criminal, cut-and-paste 29-page report the originators of this document have no option but to conclude their hollow report by saying that "they are not sure whether Nevsun has used or not used national service conscripts for its mining activity in Eritrea".

* It is full of sound-bites that have been spined by different quarters for the last ten years to create confusion and wrong perception about Eritrea. It contains no new or substantial information. 

* It is a criminal report that is meant to interrupt and derail Eritrea's economic development activities. It targets the basic interest and welfare of the Eritrean people, not of the Government. 

* It is meant to intimidate and scare-away potential foreign investors. It is also meant to deprive the country its sources of hard currency which is crucial to import necessary materials and products which are essential for agricultural and industrial development of Eritrea. 

* The main sources of foreign exchange for all countries that are at a developmental stage are their raw materials and natural resources. There is no way that the Eritrean Government which is not dependent on foreign aid can undertake programmes aimed at the eradication of poverty and diseases; expansion of schools, hospitals, electricity, and telecommunications services; building of roads, dams etc… without utilizing its human and God/Allah given natural resources. 

* Eritrea's vision and the objectives of its national service program is almost similar to that of the Turkish, Swiss, Israeli, Egyptian, Brazilian, South Korean, Singaporean… etc national service programmes. Manifesting the highest form of hypocrisy and deliberate ignorance the report has the audacity to call the agricultural and infrastructural projects – such as road and dam building activities – carried out by the national service participants "forced labour", and the miliary deployment at the border with Ethiopia as "indefinite". 

* According to the Eritrean National Service Proclamation, all Eritrean men and women above the age of 18 have to take part in the national service programme. The programme is designed to protect the nation's security and sovereignty, consolidate ethnic and religious harmony, and enhance economic development. 

* During peace time, the length of the national service programme is only one year and half. The graduates automatically become part of the reserve army. 

* As is the case in all the countries that have national service or reserve army programmes, at the time of war or threat of war or natural disasters all able bodied national service participants – active and graduates- as members of the reserve army, are obliged by law to be mobilized to defend the sovereignty and territorial integrity of their country. That is what Eritrea did when war broke- out between Eritrea and Ethiopia in 1998, and when a volcanic eruption took place in the Southern Red Sea Region of Eritrea in 2011. 

* Today, due to Ethiopia's continued occupation of sovereign Eritrean territory including the town of Badme, the Eritrean people and Government have no other option but to be vigilant and maintain a strong and disciplined army. Therefore, there is nothing wrong with Eritrea mobilizing its entire human and natural resources for its national development activity and the protection of its sovereignty. Surrender is not an option! 

* Military institutions all over the world have their own rules and regulations and modus operandi. The Eritrean army can not be an exception when it deals with military discipline and engagement. 

* During the 30-years struggle for independence as well as today the guiding principle, motto and slogan of the Eritrean people has been perseverance and determination. We believed in ourselves and the justness of our cause. We fought and succeeded against all odds. We had and still have confidence in what we do and what we want to achieve. This is clearly reflected in the music and songs of our nine ethnic groups. Popular Tigrigna songs such as 'Ykealo' and 'Kekewn Eyu' which literally mean 'Yes We Can;' and 'Nikid Teray Brhan Eyu Kedmena' which also means 'Forward!' can be cited as examples. These songs and the confident attitudes are internalized in the psyche of almost every Eritrean wherever he/she might be, and whatever he/she is doing. It is then appropriate for Eritreans to rightly brand their country as "ERITREA: THE LAND OF THE CAN-DO PEOPLE". 

* For the record, I want to say that every Eritrean was surprised when President Obama used "Yes We Can" and "Forward" slogans and sound bites in his first and second presidential campaign, respectively. Today, it is President Obama who has used the Eritrean motto, tomorrow we don't know who will follow. Therefore, it is about time for the Eritrean People and Government to assume exclusive ownership of their thirty-year old motto, "ERITREA: THE LAND OF THE CAN-DO PEOPLE," as their national motto. 

* Today National service participants in Eritrea whether they are engineers, doctors, construction workers, farmers or pastoralists are diligently, confidently and equally contributing for the realization of Eritrea's self-reliant model of economic development. 

* All national service participants, whether they are deployed at the border in the trenches or in sectoral Ministries and Departments, or construction companies, have equal rights and get equal stipend. 

* As is the case in every country, companies who invest and operate in Eritrea, including mining companies, are required to abide by the domestic investment code, and other relevant rules and regulations. 

* The officials of HRW and other similar organizations and the architects of this report who earn six-digit salaries have to produce monthly, quarterly and annual reports to satisfy and impress their funders and handlers. That is their main job and the reports are considered their outputs. They have to compile this kind of reports about different countries and governments for a living and to secure additional funding. Their motivation has never been and will never be the protection of human rights. If they get a better salary offer from another organization which has nothing to do with human rights advocacy, they have no qualm to immediately submit their resignation to their current employer and to accept the new offer. 

19 January 2012 

Press Section 

Eritrean Permanent Mission to AU and UNECA

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Hadas Eritrea January 21, 2013

Hadas Eritrea January 21, 2013

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Hadas Eritrea January 20, 2013

Hadas Eritrea January 20, 2013

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La Tropicale Amissa Bongo (2.1) Stage 7 Result

stage 7 Winner
DOCKX Gert

Rank  Rider Name Team 1  DOCKX Gert Lotto Belisol Team 2  GRMAY Tsgabu Gebremaryam Team MTN Qhubeka 3  ROBERT Frederique Lotto Belisol Team 4  PALINI Andrea Lampre - Merida 5  PETIT Adrien Cofidis Solutions Credits 6  GENE Yohann Europcar 7  OUEDRAOGO Rasmane Burkina Faso 8  TEWELDE WELDEGABER Jani Team MTN Qhubeka 9  BEN YOUCEF Abdellah Groupe Sportif Petrolier Algerie 10  HADDI Soufiane Marocco 11  TESHOME Meron Eritrea 12  NGUE NGOCK Yves Cameroon 13  BILLE Gaetan Lotto Belisol Team 14  LAMOISSON Morgan Europcar 15  KUDUS Merhawi Eritrea 16  AADEL Reda Marocco 17  AGORIR Paul Kenya 18  JELLOUL Adil Marocco 19  BERHANE Natnael Europcar 20  ABELOUACHE Essad Marocco

** Yohann Gène final winner


@tropicale2013

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La Tropicale Amissa Bongo (2.1) Stage 6 Result

Yohann Gene Stage 6 winner

Rank  Rider Name Team Time 1 GENE Yohann Europcar 3:09:24 2 HADDI Soufiane Marocco ,, 3 BILLE Gaetan Lotto Belisol Team ,, 4 REYNES MIMO Vicent Lotto Belisol Team ,, 5 OUEDRAOGO Rasmane Burkina Faso ,, 6 TESHOME Meron Eritrea ,, 7 GRMAY Tsgabu Team MTN Qhubeka ,, 8 JELLOUL Adil Marocco ,, 9 SONGEZO Jim Team MTN Qhubeka ,, 10 ZINGLE Romain Cofidis SolCredits ,, 11 BELLEMAKERS Dirk Lotto Belisol Team ,, 12 NGUE NGOCK Yves Cameroon ,, 13 LAGAB Azzedine Group Spor Petro Alge ,, 14 ABELOUACHE Essad Marocco ,, 15 AIT EL ABDIA Anass Marocco ,, 16 CATTANEO Mattia Lampre - Merida ,, 17 CISSE Issiaka Ivory Coast ,, 18 MEINTJES Louis Team MTN Qhubeka ,, 19 KERN Christophe Europcar ,, 20 BERHANE Natnael Europcar 0:07 21 MOUKAGNI Leris Gabon 6:22 22 BEKELE Binyam Fitsum Ethiopia 6:25 23 AGORIR Paul Kenya 6:44 24 DEBESAY Mekseb Eritrea 6:47

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Berhane and Kudus: Eritrea's champions of the future

Kudus Merhawi, Tour of Rwanda 2012

Photo by Gregor Brown

The buzz at the Tropicale Amissa Bongo stage race in Gabon is all about the Eritreans.

Four days into the race, the national squad leads the African teams' classification and have five riders in the top twenty overall, having matched strong European squads like Europcar and Lotto-Belisol blow for blow.

And all with a six-man team born entirely in the 1990s.

"They're the next Colombians," five-time Tour de France champion Bernard Hinault says.

Sitting in the Horn of Africa, Eritrea was colonised by the Italians in the late 19th century, who brought with them a love of ciclismo that has stuck.

The country now has two professionals in Daniel Teklehaimanot (Orica-GreenEdge) and double African champion Natnael Berhane, riding his first race with Europcar here in Gabon.

"They're going to have a lot more too," Hinault, at La Tropicale in an ambassadorial role, adds.

Softly-spoken Berhane is the shy neo-professional among his garrulous teammates, quiet at the dinner table with his hesitant future. But his ability on the bike makes him a serious prospect for the future.

Five months after starting training on a mountain bike in the capital Asmara, he won his national junior championships in 2006.

Last year, as part of the UCI World Cycling Centre team, he was up there in all the big U23 races, challenging at the Tour of Flanders, Giro della Toscana and Tour de l'Avenir.

"Cycling is like my bread and water," he tells CW under the shade of a giant manguiner tree before the start of stage four in Oyem.

"When I was little, only having dinner in Asmara, I first saw the Tour of Eritrea and I loved it."

So, what are his ambitions? "I want to improve in the Giro, though not this year, but we have to wait. Then there's the Tour of France. I think every day that one day I'll go and ride there.

For now, the 22 year old treats his first year "like school".

Berhane is based in Les Essarts - home to a recent Tour de France TTT and the Chrono des Nations - in Brittany, with Thomas Voeckler virtually on his doorstep and half of Europcar also nearby.

He is a graduate from the Eritrean national team, which trains daily on the roads around the altitude-high capital Asmara.

Arguably the most precocious from the current crop at La Tropicale is also the youngest: 18 year old Merhawi Kudus.

After winning a stage in his first UCI-rated race, the Tour of Rwanda, last November, the lanky teenager has continued to impress here, making a decisive eleven-man break on stage three among top riders Anthony Charteau (Europcar), Adrien Petit (Cofidis) and race leader Andrea Palini (Lampre-Merida) to sit sixth overall.

In March, the climber hopes to go to the UCI World Cycling Centre in Switzerland in March to continue his development.

Whether he maintains his high overall placing or not, there's another thing on Kudus's mind: his 19th birthday on Wednesday.

"I'm hoping to go and celebrate with my family," he said.

Eritrean cyclists have already taken Africa by storm in recent years, sweeping the board in the continental championships a few months ago.

In the not-too-distant future, Berhane, Kudus and a growing number of their compatriots could be making their presence felt at Europe's biggest races.

Source: http://www.cyclingweekly.co.uk

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La Tropicale Amissa Bongo (2.1) Stage 5 Result

ROBERT Frederique stage 5 winner

Rank		Rider Name	Team
1		ROBERT Frederique	Lotto Belisol Team
2		PALINI Andrea	Lampre - Merida
3		DOCKX Gert	Lotto Belisol Team
4		PETIT Adrien	Cofidis Solutions Credits
5		GENE Yohann	Europcar

Source: http://www.precyclingstat.com

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CPC official meets with Eritrean delegation

BEIJING, Jan. 16 (Xinhua) -- A senior official of the Communist Party of China (CPC) on Wednesday met with a delegation of the People's Front for Democracy and Justice (PFDJ) of Eritrea, pledging topromote party-to-party ties.

Liu Qibao, a member of the Political Bureau of the CPC Central Committee and head of the CPC Central Committee's Publicity Department, commended the relationship between China and Eritrea as wellas the ties between the CPC and the PFDJ during his meeting with Yemane Ghebreab, head of political affairs of the PFDJ.

Liu said the two countries have enjoyed sound development in bilateral relations since the establishment of diplomatic ties.

He noted that the two sides have expanded cooperation in political, economic and cultural fields, maintained coordination on regional and international affairs and provided mutual support on issues of coreinterests.

China is willing to work with Eritrea to bring bilateral relations to a higher level, he said, adding that the CPC attaches great importance to developing relations with the PFDJ, and it is ready to exchangeinformation with the PFDJ on governance experience and boost the two parties' relations.

Liu also briefed the guests on the 18th CPC National Congress.

Yemane thanked China for its help in Eritrean economic and social development as well as its support in international affairs.

Yemane said the PFDJ hopes to continue to learn from the CPC's successful governance experience, strengthen cooperation with the CPC in all fields and make progress in the two countries' relations.

Source: Xinhua

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Eritrea Slams Group’s Report of Forced Labor at Nevsun Mine

Girma Asmerom

Eritrea’s government rejected as “cheap shots and lies” a report by Human Rights Watch that said forced labor was used to construct a gold mine it owns with Canada’s Nevsun Resources Ltd. (NSU)

Segen Construction Co., a sub-contractor owned by the ruling People’s Front for Democracy and Justice that worked on the project, used conscripts during the building of the Bisha Mine from 2009 to 2011, the New York-based advocacy group said in a report released Jan. 15. “Conscripts are regularly subjected to torture and other serious abuses,” it said.

HRW’s report is a “distortion” of Eritrea’s national- service program, said Girma Asmerom, the nation’s ambassador to the African Union. “They call it forced labor,” he said in an interview yesterday in Ethiopia’s capital, Addis Ababa. “That shows deliberate ignorance.”

Eritrea, which became independent from Ethiopia in 1993 after a 30-year war, is “one of the most closed and repressive countries in the world,” according to HRW. Former rebel leader President Isaias Afewerki’s government has banned private media and the Horn of Africa country hasn’t held national elections since independence.

Mining companies in Eritrea risk involvement in “gross human-rights abuses” unless they take strong preventative measures, HRW said. One former Segen conscript out of two interviewed said he was imprisoned for four months after he ignored the refusal of a request to attend a grandparent’s funeral, it said.

‘Not Allowed’

Segen may have used conscripts in early 2009 when Nevsun didn’t check whether sub-contractors’ workers had been released from national service, the Vancouver-based company said in a statement e-mailed on Jan. 11.

“The use of conscripted labor at the Bisha site is not allowed,” it said. The company “acted quickly” to start checks and to obtain a written assurance from Segen that no conscripts would work at the mine, it said.

The Bisha mine produced $614 million of gold in 2011, according to Nevsun. Since early 2011, Nevsun has paid the Eritrean government $400 million, the company said.

Segen Managing Director Tesfay Goitom and Eritrean Mines Minister Tesfai Ghebreselassie declined to comment when contacted by phone.

All 18-year-old Eritreans do national service, which is designed to protect the nation’s security and sovereignty, encourage ethnic harmony and assist economic development, Girma said. Participants have been “permanently mobilized” since a two-year war broke out with Ethiopia in 1998, he said.

Mining Growth

Chalice Gold Mines Ltd. (CHN), an Australian explorer for the metal, sold its Zara Project in Eritrea to China SFECO, a unit of Shanghai Construction Co., last year before construction started, Chief Executive Officer Doug Jones said.

“Chalice has not and does not use state-run firms in its activities in Eritrea,” he said in a Jan. 11 e-mailed response to questions.

South Boulder Mines Ltd. (STB), based in Perth, has had no exposure to the national-service program at its Colluli potash project, which is at a “feasibility” stage, Managing Director Lorry Hughes said in a Jan. 11 e-mail. It plans to produce $500 million a year of the fertilizer ingredient from 2016, it said in April.

The state-owned Eritrean National Mining Co. owns 40 percent of Bisha, which is about 150 kilometers (124 miles) west of the capital, Asmara. Mining-led growth in Eritrea is expected to slow to 3.4 percent this year from 7.5 percent in 2012, according to the International Monetary Fund.

Source: http://www.bloomberg.com

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La Tropicale Amissa Bongo (2.1) Stage 4 Result

Stage 4 winner Adrien Petit-Cofidis Solutions Credits Rank Rider Name Team 1  PETIT Adrien Cofidis Solutions Credits 2  PALINI Andrea Lampre - Merida 3  REYNES MIMO Vicente Lotto Belisol Team 4  BILLE Gaetan Lotto Belisol Team 5  AMANUEL Meron Eritrea 6  GENE Yohann Europcar 7  HANNACHI Abdelbaset Group Sport Petrolier Algrie 8  TEWELDE Jani Team MTN Qhubeka 9  CAMMAERTS Edwig Cofidis Solutions Credits 10  ABRAHA Tesfay Eritrea 11  KUDUS Merhawi Eritrea 12  OKUBAMARIAM Tesfom Eritrea 13  OUEDRAOGO Rasmane Burkina Faso 14  DEBESAY Mekseb Eritrea 15  BYUKUSENGE Nathan Rwanda 16  HADDI Soufiane Marocco 17  AGORIR Paul Kenya 18  KAHSAY Afewerki Ethiopia 19  JELLOUL Adil Marocco 20  ABEBE Alem Grmay Ethiopia Source: http://www.procyclingstat.com

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