The Eritrean National Congress, which was mandated by the Eritrean National Conference for Democratic Change (ENCDC) last year, is expected to convene on November 21 in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. The 53-member commission, which was elected by the Conference, is expected to organize the congress of 553 Eritreans representing the civil … more
There is a saying in the Eritrean highlands when one observes that the effort exerted is vastly disproportionate to the puny outcome: “nezi ktg’Eta trhtSa?”—all of your sweating is for this? We had the exact same reaction after we read the Eritrean Ministry of Foreign Affairs June 7th Press Release … more
“This is like walking into Kalgoorlie before it was discovered … it’s a relatively stable country with an authoritarian government … No, we don’t expect an uprising.” That was Tim Goyder, CEO of Australian mining company Chalice Gold Mine. The “stable country with an authoritarian government” he is talking about … more
On the eve of the actualization of its long-dreamed statehood, South Sudan is showing worrying signs of hazards ahead. Each of the three driving forces in itself is a challenge, but combined they pose a threat so potent that it will require wisdom and some good fortune to avoid this … more
In five months, Eritrea will be celebrating 20 years of freedom from foreign rule. Unfortunately, that is all we will be celebrating because, certainly, we won’t be celebrating freedom. For the last 19 years, the Eritrean tyrant has addressed the nation by expressing false progress for the year that just ended … more
Eritrea, under the despotic rule of the People’s Front for Democracy & Justice (PFDJ), has rushed to war and strolled to peace, and it has always accepted peace under terms much worse—after a lot of blood, toil, tears, and expenses—than the initial peace deals. The regime has had direct wars … more
At long last, the coming together of Eritreans to discuss ways and means of bringing about democratic change in Eritrea, a dream that had been conceptualized for over a decade, is finally here. Dubbed the National Conference for Democratic Change (NCDC), the convention started on July 30 and will resume … more
19 years ago today (May 24th), Eritrean freedom fighters liberated Eritrea from Ethiopian occupation. The Eritrean people, who had been waging a struggle for liberation since 1961, when the Ethiopian government of Haile Selassie was in its last stages of flouting the Eritrea-Ethiopia Federation of 1952, breathed a sigh of … more
When it comes to the UNSC’s decision to impose targeted sanctions on the Eritrean regime, there are two narratives being presented. One, advanced by the supporters and apologists for the regime, is that the Eritrean government is being targeted because it threatens the world order with its “good example”: a domestic … more
All UN resolutions are non-binding, except when they are not. The Isaias regime has spent 17 years of miscalculation trying to figure out which is which, and there is fresh evidence that the issue is still beyond its grasp. On June 10 -11, 2008, Eritrea and Djibouti engaged in a … more
The United Nations is an imperfect institution with imprecise tools. It celebrates the dignity of man and the universality of rights; yet it says that five superpower countries—US, Russian Federation, UK, France and China—have rights that supercede those of the rest of the world. It is a club where friendship … more
Shortly after September 11, 2001, every tyrant in the world wanted to cash-in on the justified rage of the United States and tried to align himself with the United States and to classify his political opponents as “terrorists.” At the forefront of this campaign was the Eritrean regime and its … more
On October 29th, Gedab News reported about the November 9-10 conference on aligning EU and US policies towards Eritrea. We entitled the piece ”Engagement and Exclusion: US, EU & Eritrea.” The piece was almost entirely about the EU and US and almost in passing mentioned the Eritreans who will be attending. Some thought … more
Do the Eritrean regime’s policies impact all Eritrean segments equally or are they, depending on the policy, impacting one segment more disproportionately than others? If this is the case, is it intentionally so? And, whether it is so or not, is it prudent politics to discuss it or it is … more