CPJ demands release of jailed journalists

(CPJ/IFEX) – In a 3 December 2001 letter to Eritrean President Asayas Afewerki, CPJ stated that it is deeply troubled by the government’s ongoing crackdown on the independent press in Eritrea. According to CPJ’s research, all the country’s independent newspapers have now been shut down. Eleven journalists are currently jailed without charges, while the whereabouts […]

(CPJ/IFEX) – In a 3 December 2001 letter to Eritrean President Asayas Afewerki, CPJ stated that it is deeply troubled by the government’s ongoing crackdown on the independent press in Eritrea.

According to CPJ’s research, all the country’s independent newspapers have now been shut down. Eleven journalists are currently jailed without charges, while the whereabouts of three others are unknown.

On 18 September, Eritrean authorities abruptly banned all non-state print media outlets. According to CPJ sources in the capital, Asmara, security forces sealed off the newsrooms of these publications after removing computers, phones, fax machines, and other equipment.

Publications affected by the ban include the weeklies “Meqaleh”, “Setit”, “Tsigenay”, “Zemen”, “Wintana”, and “Admas”.

A few days later, Asmara police began rounding up independent news professionals. By 25 September, officers had arrested eleven reporters, most of whom are being held incommunicado at the First Police Station in Asmara. Their bank accounts and other material assets have been frozen or confiscated, while relatives have been denied permission to visit them, CPJ sources say. The jailed journalists include:

– Medhanie Haile, assistant editor of “Keste Debena”, arrested at his home on 18 September.
– Yusuf Mohamed Ali, editor-in-chief of “Tsigenay”, arrested at his office on 19 September.
– Mattewos Habteab, editor-in-chief of “Meqaleh”, picked up on 19 September having just been released from an earlier detention.
– Temesken Ghebreyesus, a columnist and member of the editorial board of “Keste Debena”, who was arrested on 20 September.
– Amanuel Asrat, editor-in-chief of “Zemen”, picked up by plainclothes security agents during the month of September.
– Fesshaye Yohannes, publisher and editor-in-chief of “Setit”, arrested in the early hours of 27 September.
– Aaron Berhane, an editor for “Setit” and a veteran of Eritrea’s independence war, arrested on 19 September at his office.
– Said Abdelkader, a writer and editor for “Admas” and the owner of a private Asmara printing press that mostly served the independent media, picked up by security agents on 20 September.
– Selamyinghes Beyene, a journalist with “Meqaleh”, detained since 21 September.
– Dawit Habtemichael, an assistant editor with “Meqaleh”, arrested on or about 21 September.
– Seyoum Fsehaye, a free-lance photographer, independence war veteran, and former director of the state-operated Eritrean television station, arrested on 21 September.

At least ten other local reporters have fled the country, CPJ sources said. The following journalists have been missing since their arrests:

– “Tsigenay” reporter Ghebrehiwet Keleta was kidnapped by security agents on his way to work in July 2000 and has not been seen since.
– Zemenfes Haile, a former editor and co-founder of “Tsigenay”, has been in government custody for more than two years for allegedly failing to complete the National Service Program (CPJ sources maintain he completed the program in 1994). Until a year ago, Haile was incarcerated in the Zara labor camp in Eritrea’s lowland desert. But friends and relatives have not seen him since he was moved to another location.
– Fitzum Wedi Ade, an assistant editor with “Zemen”, was arrested around 20 September 2001 and has not been seen since.

Members of the president’s administration have offered various justifications for this large-scale crackdown on the press. According to Eritrea’s ambassador to the United States, the entire independent print media was suspended because newspapers failed to comply with media licensing requirements under the country’s press laws.

However, Ali Abdu, head of the state television network, told the BBC that the newspapers had been suspended in the interest of national unity in the face of mounting tensions with neighboring Ethiopia. Other government officials have stated that the journalists currently in government custody were being held for evading the National Service Program.

Based on all available evidence, CPJ believes that the Eritrean government’s onslaught against the independent press is designed to suppress public criticism of the ruling People’s Front for Democracy and Justice ahead of general elections scheduled for December.

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