Eritrea Files Claim Against Ethiopia with International Court of Justice

February 16, 1999--The State of Eritrea yesterday filed a claim against Ethiopia in the International Court of Justice (the World Court), accusing Ethiopian security forces of taking over the Eritrean embassy residence in Addis Ababa and detaining Eritrean embassy personnel. The case cites violations of well-established international legal rules protecting diplomatic premises and embassy personnel.

In its application to the Court, filed at The Hague, Netherlands, Eritrea describes an escalating campaign of harassment against its diplomatic officials and embassy personnel in Ethiopia. Since the beginning of June 1998, Ethiopian security agents stationed outside the embassy have severely limited access to the premises. Eritreans attempting to enter the building have been detained and taken away by Ethiopian forces. Delivery persons have been stopped and interrogated.

According to the Eritrean application, the current crisis began when the Ethiopian government cut off telephone service to the embassy on the morning of Tuesday, February 9. At 2:00 p.m. that day, Eritrean Ambassador Girma Asmerom was informed by the Ethiopian Ministry of Foreign Affairs that he was persona non grata in the country. Ambassador Girma, who is also the Eritrean representative to the Organization of African Unity as well as the UN Economic Commission for Africa (both headquartered in Addis Ababa), was given 24 hours to leave the country. When the Ambassador attempted to board a flight to Jeddah the next day, he was seized by four Ethiopian agents. According to the Ambassador's affidavit submitted to the Court:

"These four security agents included the Chief of Security for Addis Ababa, Mr. Makonnen ("Wedi Cobal"). All were armed. They personally knew me and knew I was the Eritrean Ambassador, but they said they were going to search my person, my garment bag and my briefcase. I protested that I had diplomatic immunity and cited the Vienna Convention. They simply laughed at this and said, 'Your immunity has expired.'"

The security agents confiscated papers and correspondence the ambassador was carrying as well as his luggage.

The next morning, February 11, Ethiopian officials confronted the Eritrean Charge d'Affaires, Mr. Saleh Omer, and demanded he hand over possession of the embassy residence. The Charge objected, arguing that the embassy residence was an official embassy premise. Immediately the embassy residence was surrounded by a large number of Ethiopian armed forces, who eventually broke into and occupied the embassy residence. Five embassy employees and one of their children were detained.

Despite numerous inquiries by Mr. Saleh, Ethiopian officials have refused to disclose their whereabouts. Because of communication difficulties between Asmara and Addis Ababa, the Eritrean government has been unable to determine the current location of the Charge himself. The embassy residence remains occupied by Ethiopian armed forces.

The Vienna Convention mentioned by Ambassador Girma is a multilateral treaty guaranteeing the inviolability of diplomatic personnel, premises and documents. One hundred seventy eight states have ratified the Convention, including Eritrea, Ethiopia and the United States. The Eritrean claim asserts that thirteen separate articles of the Convention have been violated by the take-over of the embassy residence and other acts. The Convention provides in Article 45 that states must "respect and protect the premises" of a diplomatic mission "even in the case of armed conflict."

The Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations is the same treaty relied upon by the United States in its 1980 case in the World Court against Iran. The United States brought the case after Iranian militants occupied the US embassy and took 52 Americans hostage, including members of the diplomatic staff. The Court, in ruling for the United States, strongly affirmed the fundamental importance of rules of diplomatic immunity.

"Such events cannot fail to undermine the edifice of law carefully constructed by mankind over a period of centuries, the maintenance of which is vital for the security and well-being of the complex international community of the present day, to which it is more essential than ever that the rules developed to ensure the ordered progress of relations between its members should be constantly and scrupulously respected."

The Eritrean application also claims violations of the Charter of the Organization of African Unity, the Convention between Ethiopia and the Organization of African Unity granting immunity to OAU ambassadors, and the international law of human rights. In addition, Eritrea has filed an application seeking "provisional measures," immediate orders designed to address emergency situations. Eritrea seeks a number of remedies from the Court, including restoration of the occupied embassy premises, the release of detained embassy staff and an order ensuring the inviolability of the embassy premises in the future.

The World Court's jurisdiction to hear Eritrea's claim is based on the agreement of both parties. In its application, Eritrea declared its willingness to have the case go forward before the Court and invited Ethiopia to do the same. Ethiopia has not yet responded to this invitation.

For additional information, contact the Information Officer of the Eritrean Embassy to the United States, Veronica Rentmeesters, at 202 588 7587.