The UN Security Council has imposed sanctions against
\nEritrea that include an arms embargo, asset freezes and a
\ntravel ban, all based on an unfounded allegation that
\nEritrea is supporting extremists in Somalia. Eritrea\u2019s
\nconsistent stand is against all forms of extremism in the
\nregion. This is a reckless move without any foundation.
\nEritrea, itself a victim of Terrorism and at the forefront in
\nfighting international terrorism, surely doesn\u2019t deserve
\nthis sanctions. Even the thought of it is offensive!
\nHere are answers to some Frequently Asked Questions
\npertaining to the unjust and reckless UN sanctions that we
\nhope will clear the fog.<\/p>\n
Q:Why are these UN sanctions unjust and reckless?<\/b><\/p>\n
A: They are unjust because they were based on charges long
\nproven to be untrue; they are unfounded allegations
\nfabricated, orchestrated, and pushed by Ethiopia. The root of
\nthe charge is fabricated by the so-called U.N. Somalia
\nMonitoring Group going to 2006 when, in an attempt to provide
\ncover for Ethiopia\u2019s invasion of Somalia, tried to place 2000
\nphantom Eritrean troops in Somalia. This turned out to be pure
\nfabrication. Furthermore, the plane that Eritrea was supposed to
\nhave used to transport weapons and fighters to Somalia turned
\nout to be another fabrication; the plane was found crashed in
\nUganda while being used by DynCorp, a contractor for the US
\nmilitary and Intelligence service. The UN Secretary-General\u2019s
\nSpecial Representative for Somalia, Mr. Ahmedou Ould-
\nAbdallah, has also publicly admitted that there is no evidence
\nlinking Eritrea to the Monitoring Group\u2019s charges.<\/p>\n
Q: What could be the consequences of these sanctions?<\/b><\/p>\n
A: Plenty! (1) These sanctions will be seen as a green light for
\nEthiopia to attack Eritrea; Ethiopia has yet to implement the
\nfinal and binding EEBC Demarcation ruling. The sanctions are
\ndesigned to weaken Eritrea and prop up the regime in Ethiopia.
\n(2) These sanctions will also accelerate the spread of terrorism
\nin the region; the sanctions are targeting the only credible force,
\nEritrea, that has checked terrorism for more than two decades.
\nThis together with the deteriorating situations in Yemen and
\nSomalia will plunge the Horn into more instability threatening
\nthe vital shipping lanes along the Red Sea, a lifeline to all the
\noil supply to economies of the West.<\/p>\n
Q: Aren\u2019t these sanctions an African Initiative?<\/b><\/p>\n
A: No! This is a bold lie. The regional organizations that were
\nclaimed to be the source for this initiative IGAD and the Africa
\nPeace and Security Committee called for this action under the
\nchairmanship of Ethiopia when the meetings were held inside
\nEthiopia. That is why 1) the current chair of the African Union
\nopposed the sanctions at the UN Security Council, 2) The fact
\nthat the twenty-eight member regional organization, CENSAD,
\nwith members like Egypt, Ghana and Nigeria, has
\ncondemned the unjust sanctions.<\/p>\n
Q: Is this the first time the UN is victimizing Eritrea?<\/b><\/p>\n
A: No! This is the latest in a series of UN injustices against
\nEritrea starting from the 1950 unjust UN decision that federated
\nEritrea with Ethiopia. For nearly sixty years Eritrea didn\u2019t see a
\nsingle day of peace and as a consequence it was forced to
\nsacrifice too many of its bright sons and daughters. Eritrea also
\nfaces a continuous threat from terrorist organizations, like the
\nEritrean Islamic Jihad Movement based in, trained and armed
\nby Ethiopia.<\/p>\n
Q: Does Eritrea support extremists in Somalia?<\/b><\/p>\n
A: No! There is absolutely no basis for this. Accusing Eritrea
\nof arming extremists in Somalia is irresponsible and completely
\nfar from the truth. Such lies are orchestrated by enemies of
\nEritrea, Ethiopia being a prime one. Eritrea has never supported
\nterrorists and will never support any organization that has links
\nwith terrorism anywhere in the world.<\/p>\n
Q: Who is arming extremists in Somalia then?<\/b><\/p>\n
A: Ethiopia, the TFG and AMISOM are among the suspects!
\nAccording to the U.N. Security Council’s Somalia sanctions
\ncommittee, “elements of the African Union peacekeeping
\nmission in Somalia known as AMISOM, and Somalia’s
\nTransitional Federal Government (TFG)” are involved in arms
\ntrafficking activities.\u201d Furthermore, \u201ceighty percent of
\nammunition available at the Somali arms markets was supplied
\nby the TFG and Ethiopian troops.” The Committee also reported
\nof getting \u201cdetails of some 25 military flights by Ethiopia into
\nSomalia and knew that Ethiopian troops had brought military
\nequipment into the country to arm friendly clans.\u201d<\/p>\n
Q: What is Eritrea\u2019s position on the Somali problem?<\/b><\/p>\n
A: Eritrea\u2019s stand on Somalia has been consistent for nearly
\ntwo decades. It believes: (1) foreign involvement cannot solve
\nbut worsen the Somali predicament; (2) the Somali people
\nshould be encouraged to solve their problem on their own; (3)
\nsupporting or excluding one Somali party over another is not a
\nsolution; (4) external intervention designed to tip the delicate
\nbalance of power in favor of one faction at the expense of
\nanother only fuels the problem.<\/p>\n
Q: Is Somalia a proxy battlefield for Eritrea and Ethiopia?<\/b><\/p>\n
A: Absolutely not! This is purely an Ethiopian induced media
\nfabrication. Eritrea has never taken Somalia as a proxy
\nbattlefield to settle a score with Ethiopia. Eritrea gains nothing
\nby engaging Ethiopia in Somalia. As grave as Ethiopia\u2019s refusal
\nto implement the final and binding boundary decision is, it is a
\nproblem between Eritrea, Ethiopia, and the international
\ncommunity. It cannot be played out in Somalia at the expense of
\nthe Somali people. All Eritrea wants is for Ethiopia to vacate
\nsovereign Eritrean territories.<\/p>\n
Q: Has Eritrea been a victim of terrorism?<\/b><\/p>\n
A: YES! Numerous times! In the first year of its independence,
\nBin Laden and his young organization (Al Qaeda) tried to
\ninfiltrate into and attack Eritrea from the Sudan. Terrorists from
\nmany countries were in the group and many were killed by
\nEritrean forces. In 1994, six Belgian tourists were killed, and in
\n2004 about eighty people, many among them school children,
\nwere attacked in western Eritrea during independence-day
\ncelebrations. One of the accomplices was captured and
\nconfessed to the details of how the group was directed and
\nfinanced by an Ethiopian officer working with the Al Qaeda
\ngroups.<\/p>\n
Q: Has Eritrea been fighting terrorism?<\/b><\/p>\n
A: An Africa specialist for the Congressional Research Service
\nhas put it this way to the New York Times on Sept. 18, 2007: “If
\nthere is one country where the fighting of extremists and
\nterrorists was a priority when it mattered, it was Eritrea.”<\/p>\n
Q. Is Eritrea fighting against terrorism?<\/b><\/p>\n
A: YES! Eritrea is still subjected to threats of attack from two
\nAl Qaeda linked organizations: the Harakat Al Khalas al Islam
\n(Eritrean Salvation Islamic Movement) and Eritrean Islamic
\nJihad and their umbrella organization the Eritrean Democratic
\nAlliance. These groups are all based in Ethiopia and are armed
\nand supported by the Ethiopian government. These groups a day
\nafter the UN sanctions were imposed announced they will use
\nthis to attack Eritrea. True to their threat they launched a foiled
\nattack against Eritrea on January 1, 2010.<\/p>\n
Q: Does Eritrea cooperate with other in fighting terrorism?<\/b><\/p>\n
A: YES! Eritrea believes that international terrorism can only
\nbe defeated when countries cooperate and form a joint front
\nagainst it. To this end, Eritrea was a leading member of the
\nfrontline countries against Bin Laden\u2019s Al Qaeda group.
\nPresident Isaias of Eritrea puts it this way: “We believe we have
\na stake in working together with our partners, and particularly
\nthe United States, to make this region peaceful and safe.”
\nEritrea has limited resources, but is \u201cwilling and prepared to use
\nthese limited resources in any way useful to fight terrorism.”
\nFurthermore, former Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld
\nhad this to say: \u201cWe have in Eritrea a country that is
\ncooperating in the global war on terrorism and has offered a
\nvariety of areas of assistance, \u2026 a country that has been
\nforthcoming.\u201d According to Jim Garamone of the American
\nForces Press Service, \u201cEritrea has cooperated in the war of
\nterror and has offered facilities, intelligence, and other help such
\nas over-flight and mooring permissions to the United States.\u201d
\nEritrea, according to Mr. Rumsfeld, \u201chas considerably more
\nexperience than the U.S.\u201d when it comes to fighting terrorism
\nand the United States \u201ccan benefit from that knowledge and
\nfrom that experience.\u201d<\/p>\n
Q: What are Ethiopia\u2019s intentions in Somalia?<\/b><\/p>\n
A: Ethiopia and Somalia had fought three major wars. The
\ncurrent state of disorder was brought by Ethiopia\u2019s intervention
\nis Somalia in 1990 as well as invasion and occupation in 2006.
\nEthiopia is making sure Somalia does not get reconstituted as a
\nfunctioning state.<\/p>\n
Q: What can you do to help?<\/b><\/p>\n
A: As you know the real image of Eritrea is not like what its
\ntraditional enemy, Ethiopia, and its supporters would have
\nmany believe. Eritrea is a peaceful country that is only trying to
\nsurvive. No nation in the Horn of Africa yearns and works for
\npeace and respect for international law and treaties more than
\nEritrea.
\nWrite to your government representatives and urge them to push
\nthe UN Security Council (1) to immediately annul and repeal
\nthese unjust and reckless sanctions against Eritrea. (2) to
\nshoulder its responsibility as a guarantor of the Algiers
\nAgreement to do whatever it takes to make Ethiopia vacate
\nsovereign Eritrean territories it is occupying illegally in breach
\nof international law and its treaty obligation.<\/p>\n
Furthermore, you can join the Eritrean-SMART (Eritrean
\nSanctions Must be Annulled and Repealed Today) Campaign
\nby visiting and signing the petitions at www.eritrean-smart.org.<\/p>\n
Organization of Eritrean-Americans (OEA)
\n600 L Street NW, Washington, D.C. 20001
\noea@eritreanamerican.org
\nhttp:\/\/www.eritreanamerican.org\/<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
The UN Security Council has imposed sanctions against Eritrea that include an arms embargo, asset freezes and a travel ban, all based on an unfounded allegation that Eritrea is supporting extremists in Somalia. Eritrea\u2019s consistent stand is against all forms of extremism in the region. This is a reckless move without any foundation. Eritrea, itself a victim of Terrorism and at the forefront in fighting international terrorism, surely doesn\u2019t deserve this sanctions. Even the thought of it is offensive! <\/p>\n
Here are answers to some Frequently Asked Questions<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[1],"tags":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/dehai.org\/esmart\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5"}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/dehai.org\/esmart\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/dehai.org\/esmart\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/dehai.org\/esmart\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/dehai.org\/esmart\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=5"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"http:\/\/dehai.org\/esmart\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/dehai.org\/esmart\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=5"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/dehai.org\/esmart\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=5"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/dehai.org\/esmart\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=5"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}