Addis Ababa, June 8 (ENA)--Despite repeated reports by the Ethiopian government that Ethiopian citizens residing in Eritrea have been the victims of gross human rights violations, the suffering experienced by Ethiopian nationals at the hands of the Eritrean government over the course of the past two years has never been given sufficient attention by the international community, the office of the government spokesperson said here on Thursday.

Following is full text of the statement:

Despite repeated reports by the Ethiopian government that Ethiopian citizens residing in Eritrea have been the victims of gross human rights violations, the suffering experienced by Ethiopian nationals at the hands of the Eritrean government over the course of the past two years has never been given sufficient attention by the international community. As has been well documented, Ethiopian citizens in Eritrea have been killed, beaten and maimed, abducted, imprisoned and tortured. The whereabouts of most of those who have disappeared remain unknown. In addition, the Issaias regime has forcefully conscripted some Ethiopian citizens into its army and has forced others to perform slave labor, such as digging trenches. While many Ethiopian nationals have tried to leave Eritrea and escape abuse during the past two years, the Issaias regime has prevented them from returning to Ethiopia. Still other Ethiopians have been forced to take up Eritrean citizenship against their will.

The Ethiopian government and people are extremely disappointed that the international community, while aware of the violations being perpetrated, has not spoken out against these human rights abuses or demanded that the Eritrean regime abide by fundamental principles of humanitarian law. As officials of the international Committee of the Red Cross have themselves acknowledged, Eritrea refuses to give the humanitarian organizations access to Ethiopian POWs and other detainees. Although this fact is widely known, Eritrea’s refusal to comply with the Fourth Geneva Convention is also widely ignored.

Given the international community’s indifference to the plight of Ethiopian citizens residing in Eritrea, the human rights situation faced by them is worsening. In fact, the latest information on the matter makes it clear that the lives of thousands of Ethiopian nationals are in immediate danger. According to reliable reports coming directly from Eritrea, recent Eritrean defeats on the battlefield have encouraged the Eritrean regime and its followers to intensify their crimes against Ethiopians who have the misfortune of living in Eritrea. The following represent only the most recent examples of cruelty:

¨ Seventy-nine Ethiopians residing in Asmara, Keren, AdiGuadad, AdiNefas and Durfo have been killed in barbaric fashion. While some of them were brutally slaughtered, others were thrown into a river after being killed.

¨ Thousands of Ethiopian detained in prisons throughout Eritrea are tortured daily in gruesome fashion.

¨ On May 17, Ethiopians residing in Asmara localities such as Gejeret, Maichuhet, Akria, and Idaga Arbi were beaten severely and some lost their sight as a result.

¨ Eritrean military police have gone door-to-door in several Eritrean towns ordering Ethiopians to vacate their homes. According to one man (BBC report, 8 June), "the police had knocked on his door in the middle of the night and ordered him to come immediately."

¨ The Military police have jailed thousands of Ethiopians ostensibly for failing to renew residence permits at a cost of 600 Nakfa. After renewing their permits, many are jailed again because the permits are only good for fourteen days. Fear of detention is widespread as many local Eritrean officials often refuse to grant the Ethiopian nationals the required permits.

In addition to these crimes, more than 7,000 of the estimated 80,000 Ethiopians living in Eritrea have been rounded up by Eritrean authorities in recent days and forcibly moved into veritable concentration camps, presumably to be deported later. On 6 June, Tesfai Ghermazien, Permanent Secretary in the Eritrean Ministry of Foreign Affairs, denied this allegation, telling the BBC that the people in one of the camps (Sheketi) were displaced from areas occupied by the Ethiopian army and that they were being taken care of by the Eritrean government. When a BBC correspondent wanted to speak with those being detained at the camp, however, she reported that „we simply were not allowed to go and talk to the people. It was not quite clear what they were doing and we were not allowed to go any further despite our request to be able to talk to the people." In addition, the Eritrean regime has refused to provide any figures on the number of camps or the number of people in them (BBC, 8 June) and has only allowed journalists to visit the Sheketi camp.

As the BBC reported on 8 June, „The camp does not have any permanent buildings-trees offer the only shelter from the heat of the sun." Most of the Ethiopians detained at the internment camp are ill with diarrhea and, as one elderly woman told a BBC correspondent, „we have nothing to eat…and we sleep on the ground like dogs." The BBC journalist also reported on 8 June that the presence of Eritrean militia at the camp demonstrated „ that the Ethiopians were not free to come and go as they please."

Tesfai Ghermazien, however, has continued to deny that the detained Ethiopians are being prepared for compulsory repatriation. On June 7, he told the BBC and Associated Press that an internal memorandum circulated among „local authorities saying Ethiopians should register for repatriation was the result of what he called ‘a communications gap’ and that forced repatriation was not official policy." Responding to allegations that the Ethiopian citizens had been rounded up in preparation for deportation, Tesfai said, „That’s totally false. Like 1.5 million Eritreans [the Ethiopians] are displaced." (Los Angeles Times, 6 June). The BBC reported today, however, that Eritrean officials have since contradicted their own assertion that the detained Ethiopians are simply displaced. „Since we cannot protect every Ethiopian, it may be better to keep them in a place where we can collectively ensure their safety," said Tesfai, admitting that Ethiopian citizens are in physical danger. Over time, perhaps the Eritrean authorities will also be forced to admit their plans to deport the Ethiopian nationals.

In the meantime, thousands of Ethiopian citizens risk being persecuted, while thousands of others are already victims of gross human rights violations perpetrated by the Eritrean authorities. Such conduct instigated and carried out by the regime and its supporters cannot go unchecked and unpunished. We appeal to all governments as well as international organizations to assist these Ethiopians who are at risk and at the mercy of a desperate government that cares little for principles of humanitarian law.