Eritrean-Americans call on the U.S. and UNSC to implement the 10 year old border decision

For Immediate Release

Under the banner “Stop Ethiopian Occupation and Aggression”, Eritrean-Americans across the U.S. have been conducting a 13-day campaign that culminates on April 13, 2012, the 10th  anniversary of the Eritrea-Ethiopia Boundary Commission’s (EEBC) boundary ruling; a ruling that Eritrea accepted but Ethiopia, 10 years after the final and binding decision, is yet to accept. In this campaign Eritrean-Americans in a number of cities are writing letters and sending faxes  to Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, their members of Congress, and members of the UN Security Council urging them to hold Ethiopia accountable for its defiance of the international ruling and to immediately vacate sovereign Eritrean territories.

In a recent letter to key figures in Washington and the UN, the Organization of Eritrean-Americans (OEA) wrote: “We are urging that our [US] government stop appeasing Ethiopia and develop a clear, swift and fair policy that supports international rule of law without any preconditions.” The OEA letter added “As an author, guarantor and witness of the 2000 [Algiers] Peace Agreement between Eritrea and Ethiopia that created the Eritrea-Ethiopia Boundary Commission, the U.S. has the moral responsibility and if it wants is capable of bringing a peaceful closure to the decade-old border conflict.”

Tension between the two countries is on the rise because of Ethiopia’s continued occupation of internationally-recognized Eritrean territory and its recent public admission to making several incursions deep into Eritrean territory. This campaign is a call to action for Washington and the United Nations. Eritrean-Americans are calling for one, Ethiopia to leave sovereign Eritrean territory; two, to unconditionally allow physical demarcation of the border between Eritrea and Ethiopia per the EEBC’s decision; three, lift the sanctions that have been placed on Eritrea since evidence to this day has not been brought forth justifying such actions.

Additionally, Ethiopia should be held accountable for its violation of international law and its role in the destabilization of the Horn; from occupation and recent attacks on Eritrea, direct and indirect involvement in a number of armed  struggles in the region, and explicit neglect and abuse of its own citizens for decades. Ethiopia must be made to answer for its actions or the creditability, intentions and legitimacy of the US and UN are truly called into question.