1:07 PM
Admin.
 |
| Ms. Sheila Keetharuth |
New York, US - Ms. Sheila Keetharuth, the UN Special Rapporteur on the human rights situation in Eritrea, on Tuesday urged the international community to keep Eritrea under “close scrutiny”, stressing the need to fundamentally transform the East African nation’s “current culture of rights denial”.
Ms. Keetharuth made the call at the end of her 10-day mission to Ethiopia and Djibouti to collect first-hand information directly from Eritrean refugees on the human rights situation in their country.
A UN statement issued at the end of the visit, and made available to PANA in New York, quoted the UN expert as saying that blatant disrespect for human rights in Eritrea was
unacceptable.
She stated: 'Real change would require a fundamental reform process transforming the current culture of rights denial with one anchored in the rule of law, respect for and realization of all human rights and human dignity.'
She also warned that the high numbers of Eritrean refugees in neighbouring Ethiopia and Djibouti was indicative of the serious human rights violations in Eritrea, pushing people to take the difficult decision to leave their families and homes behind for an unknown future.
She said an improvement in the human rights situation in Eritrea would be crucial to allow refugees to return to their home country.
Ms. Keetharuth commended the efforts by Ethiopia and Djibouti to host the large Eritrean refugee communities.
“Many of those refugees I spoke to underlined their wish to return, should there be a significant shift from the government’s current brutal and inhumane policies and
practices,' she said.
She also disclosed that since the beginning of the year, close to 4,000 Eritrean refugees had crossed the border into Ethiopia, bringing the number of those living in the three refugee camps in the Tigray region to over 50,000.
“I am particularly concerned about the increasing number of unaccompanied children crossing the border without the knowledge of their families.
'Children regularly mentioned dysfunctional family circumstances due to the long absence of the father, most of the time because of conscription, lack of educational opportunities and the fear of forced conscription into indefinite national service as major reasons for their decisions to flee,' the UN expert said.
She further expressed concern about the indefinite national service, the ongoing practice of arbitrary arrest and incommunicado detention in inhumane conditions and widespread torture, both physical and psychological, during interrogation by the police, military and security forces.
'Mere suspicion appears to be enough for somebody to be subjected to interrogation and detention without charge or without being brought before a court of law,' she said.
Ms. Keetharuth also heard how Eritreans did not express their views or share their opinions openly for fear of reprisals.
She noted that persecution on religious grounds continued in Eritrea, saying followers of unrecognised religions faced draconian restrictions and were often arrested while worshiping.
“An all-encompassing feeling of fear and distrust, even within families, reflects the pervasive intelligence network the Eritrean government has established throughout the country,' she said.
A lawyer from Mauritius, Ms. Keetharuth was appointed to her current position by the Geneva-based UN Human Rights Council in September 2012.
She will present her first report, which would be strictly limited to the situation inside Eritrea, to the Human Rights Council in June 2013.
Pana 15/05/2013