Twenty years and counting: gaol terms for COs in Eritrea

It's now been 20 years since three Jehovah's Witnesses in Eritrea have been imprisoned. Paulos Eyassu, Negede Teklemariam and Isaac Mogos were arrested on September 24, 1994. In the early years of their detention they were subjected to severe treatment and torture in Sawa prison camp, but their ill-treatment has lessened in recent years. They have never been charged with any crime. At least thirteen other Jehovah's Witness COs are also detained in Sawa - it is likely to be many more. Their names can be found at /inprison

A new Commission of Inquiry has just been established on Eritrea. Sheila B. Keetharuth, UN Special Rapporteur on Eritrea announced in September. The Commission will investigate “the most egregious human rights violations,” including cases of extrajudicial killing, enforced disappearance and incommunicado detention, torture, and lack of freedom of expression and opinion, assembly, association, religious belief and movement".

Sources:

• JW.org, Twenty Years of Imprisonment in Eritrea—Will It Ever End?, 24 September 2014

• United Nations, Eritrea: UN expert to investigate pervasive rights abuses as part of ‘historic’ inquiry, 29 September 2014