Eritrea is an African country occupying a strategically important area in the Horn of Africa, bordered by Sudan, Ethiopia, and Djibouti. The nation gained independence in 1993 after a 30-year war, but its political and social situation has been turbulent for several years. On March 6^th, a U.N. Human Rights Council (U.N.H.R.C.) report stated that Eritrea’s human rights record “remains dire and shows no sign of improvement.”

Eritrea’s government responded by calling the assessment “unrelenting harassment” and “the crudest form of weaponization of human rights against a developing country,” but the tiny Horn of Africa state is considered the most militarized and repressive on the continent, thanks in part to its unscrupulous and forcible military recruitment tactics. The U.N.H.R.C. report cited the testimony of one Eritrean, referred to by the fictitious name “Gojtom” for protection, who is one of thousands of Eritrean refugees stuck in limbo in Ethiopia as they strive for asylum. Gojtom would like to seek legal avenues to move to a Western country where he has relatives, either by public means, like re-unifications, or private ones, like the humanitarian corridors of the I.E.C. and Sant’Egidio. No civilized country in the world could deny him refuge – Gojtom is fleeing indefinite conscription, a human rights violation condemned by the U.N. However, Eritrea has been hampering legal emigration routes. As a result, Gojtom has spent three years now living in hiding in Addis Ababa.

The Ethiopian paradox also complicates the situation for Eritrean refugees there. Until a few years ago, Ethiopia was one of the most welcoming and generous countries to arrive in as a refugee, hosting nearly 900,000 people fleeing South Sudan, Somalia, and, indeed, Eritrea. But since then-new Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed signed the Joint Declaration of Peace and Friendship Between Eritrea and Ethiopia at the 2018 summit in Eritrea’s capital, tens of thousands of Eritrean refugees have been left in legal limbo so as not to impact Asmara. Arra, the national agency that handled the bureaucratic procedures and livelihoods of refugees, was changed – now called Rrs – and suspended refugee registration (and thus, the disbursement of permits).

“Since 2018 and even more so since the end of 2020,” Gojtom charges, “that is since the civil war broke out in Tigray and Eritrean troops allied with Ethiopian federal troops to fight Tigrayan regional forces, Ethiopia no longer registers refugees.” Legally, these people no longer exist.

The daily consequences are severe. “We don’t exist, we can’t work or study, and those who run into an Ethiopian police raid also risk being repatriated,” Gojtom confirms. “This happens in Addis Ababa as in refugee camps.”

Thousands of Eritreans housed in the two unofficial U.N.H.C.R. refugee camps relocated by Tigray (Alem-Wach in the Amhara region, which houses 32,000 people, and Logya in the Afar region, which houses more than 14,000) have been assaulted by the plastic sandal-clad soldiers of the Asmarine regime and forcibly repatriated, in defiance of international law. A report written about these camps in late 2020 and sent to the U.N.H.C.R. describes unsafe conditions and a harsh, bleak situation. Although the U.N. has provided the refugees with tents, the camps are not recognized or protected by the state, and no one seems to be responsible for their safety. The Ethiopian government does not help refugees with food supplies, and those who arrived after 2018 receive no documents. The local population targets these camps to rob them and frequently carries out raids.

The consequence, in Addis Ababa as in the camps, is a desperate exodus. Many refugees without help from relatives had to return to Eritrea. Those who do have resources pay their way with traffickers in Sudan, then look for passage to Libya to try to reach Europe via the Mediterranean. Others flee south, moving on to Kenya, Uganda, and even impoverished Malawi, where they try to enter South Africa.

From Eritrea itself, meanwhile, come reports that young people are running to Sudan to escape forced recruitment roundups ordered by the regime. Many want to continue to Libya because kidnappings perpetrated by bandits and even the border guards themselves are frequent in Sudan, but Libya offers a new season of torture at the hands of Eritrean and then Libyan traffickers, along with increased departures and deaths both in the desert and at sea.

All of these human rights crimes are taking place in an atmosphere of utter impunity. Despite being required to engage on crucial human rights concerns through communication with the U.N.H.C.R. and full co-operation with international rights organizations, Eritrea has not demonstrated any action to guarantee accountability for either its past or current rights abuses.

To resolve the sickening lack of concern for human rights, a radical change in government officials and policies towards the population is needed: no more militarization and repression. Eritrea must devote time and resources in its transition towards a truly democratic regime. Investments in education and police reform could be a positive starting point.

Furthermore, the international community should acknowledge the extreme situation in which refugees from Eritrea find themselves. From pressuring Addis Ababa to return to registering refugees and providing recognition from neighboring countries to giving resources to the Eritrean state for structural investments, the role of foreign states could be pivotal in ensuring Eritreans receive fair and humane treatment.