Christian Solidarity Worldwide has expressed concern over reports that 122 Christians were detained in Eritrea in May as part of a crackdown on members of unregistered churches, calling it a “clear indication that the severe repression of freedom of religion or belief continues unabated” in the nation.
The UK-based religious freedom advocacy says the detentions mark a new phase in a crackdown that has been going on since May, 2002, when the Eritrean Government “effectively outlawed religious practices not affiliated with the Catholic, Evangelical Lutheran and Orthodox Christian denominations or Sunni Islam”.
They said arrests have taken place in the towns of Adi Quala, Gindae and in the capital of Asmara and that further arrests are expected in Asmara as local committees – made up of members of security services, the ruling party, local administrators and the Orthodox Church – continue house-to-house inquiries. In at least one case, children were reportedly left without parents when they were taken to a detention camp.
Mervyn Thomas, CSW’s chief executive, said the arrests “signify a renewed intensity in the crackdown that has been ongoing since 2002, and are a clear indication that the severe repression of freedom of religion or belief continues unabated in Eritrea”.
Noting comments from the UN special rapporteur on Eritrea, Sheila B Keetharuth, that the the ongoing practice of arbitrary arrest and detention of people based on their religious beliefs continues and that previous recommendations to address religious freedom violations have gone on unheeded, he said CSW called on the UN Human Rights Council to support the renewal of the special rapporteur’s mandate, and “to urge the international community to ensure that perpetrators of crimes against humanity are held accountable, including through universal jurisdiction, whenever this is appropriate”.
In a report to the Human Rights Council on 15th June, Ms Keetharuth said the Eritrean Government had made “no effort to end ongoing human rights violations, which the Commission of Inquiry on Human Rights in Eritrea described as amounting to crimes against humanity”.
“The time for Eritrea to take bold action for human rights protection is long overdue, and the Government has not delivered on any of its promises,” she said.