From: Haile Beyene (hbeyene@gmail.com)
Date: Wed Jan 27 2010 - 10:02:46 EST
http://af.reuters.com/article/topNews/idAFJOE60Q0IC20100127
By Jeremy Clarke
ASMARA (Reuters) - Eritrea said on Wednesday that its economy will be
unaffected by the U.N. sanctions imposed on the nation, which were an
international response to Asmara's alleged support of Islamist rebel groups
in Somalia.
Punitive measures including an arms embargo, travel restrictions and asset
freezes for some of the country's top officials raised fears the limitations
may slow an economy reliant on financial and moral support from the
diaspora.
Remittances from Europe, the United States, the Middle East and other
African nations are Eritrea's biggest source of foreign exchange. Analysts
say they continue to flow because high-ranking Eritreans travel to other
countries and drum up support for the Red Sea state.
Eritrea has dismissed concerns saying sanctions would not slow development.
"The sanctions should not have any impact on investment, no impact on trade,
or Eritrea's external ties with its economic partners," Yemane Ghebremeskel,
director of the Eritrean president's office, told Reuters in an interview.
"Our development strategy is not really based on injections of development
assistance anyway. There are still extensive development plans in place
designed to enhance productivity and expand services in education and
health," he said.
The country would build more than 50 new schools this year, he said.
The U.N. imposed sanctions last month because Security Council members say
Eritrea has given support to Islamist insurgents in Somalia who are battling
the U.N.-backed transitional government. Violence in the Horn of Africa
nation has killed at least 19,000 people since the start of 2007.
IT'S WEDDING SEASON'
Yemane said average Eritreans were disappointed in the United Nations over
the sanctions but they remained fairly indifferent to the measures
themselves.
"They know these sanctions have nothing to do with justice or international
law. People don't give it undue weight -- it's January, wedding season,
people are getting on with their business and going to parties," he said.
Yemane reiterated the view of President Isaias Afwerki that the sanctions
are baseless and contravene international law.
"Those sanctions are not based on international law. The accusations have
not been proved and Eritrea has not been given the opportunity to make its
case on an independent platform."
Last week the President told local media that no solid facts have been
produced against Eritrea and no proper legal procedures have been applied to
discover the truth.
"In the final analysis, the conspiracy was essentially masterminded by U.S.
intelligence agencies, especially the CIA," the President said.
Eritrea's economy contracted sharply in 2008 while inflation surged to
double digits, according to the International Monetary Fund, but better
rains in 2009 could have boosted growth to about 3.5 percent.
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