Eritrea: Land of
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ERI-NEWS

National Service: A toolfor EconomicDevelopment, NationalCohesion and theDefence of Sovereignty

Bi-Weekly Newsletter
Permanent Mission of the State of Eritrea to AU
and UNECA
Press Section
President Isaias Afwerki Urges for Concerted Global
Efforts to Combat the Scourge of Human Trafficking
Drawing attention to the vexing issues
and plight of refugees and migrants,
President Isaias Afwerki has urged forconcerted international efforts to bringabout a durable and effective solution tothe malaise. President Isaias underlined
the imperative for urgent and meaningful action to combat this scourge in a
letter that he sent to various Heads ofState and Government.
The President noted that migration andinflux of refugees has become rampant
globally. This was particularly exacerbated in those regions of the world thathave been plunged into interminablecrises primarily due to misguided
policies and interventions by certain
powers. In the event, the underlying
causes and driving factors need to beaddressed fully and comprehensively,
President Isaias noted. A sober diagnosis of the underlying causes that is not
shrouded by willful propaganda is vitalso as to fully identify the intertwined
dimensions of the problem and findeffective solutions. This will require
serious and concerted action, President
Isaias emphasized.
The President’s letter also elucidates ingreater detail the genesis, ramifications,and principal actors behind the international crime of human trafficking aswell as the vilification and demonization campaigns that are routinely
conducted by the international crime

Vol 3. Issue 58
21 November 2016
Inside this issue:
Foreign Minister
Attended the Climate 2
Change Conference
held in Morocco
Eritrean Delegation
Participated in Africa- 2
Arab Ministerial
Conference

syndicate on those who raise theirmoral voice against these despicableacts.
President Isaias further underlined in
his letter the moral obligation of all
those concerned to exert unreserved
efforts for an expedited solution topromote justice by stemming this international crime that may be termed as“the globalized slavery” of the 21stcentury.
As it may be recalled, the Governmentof Eritrea has made repeated calls inprevious years for robust action to stop
human trafficking. President Isaias had
indeed written to UN Secretary General
Ban Ki-Moon in February 2013 tolaunch a legal, independent and transparent investigation of human trafficking that has victimized Eritrea. Thisrequest was also repeated on variousoccasions subsequently. Unfortunately,
these appeals have not, as yet, been
heeded.

Vol 3. Issue 58, 21 November 2016

“Changing Borders
into Bridges”

3

The UNSC Once Again
Committed Grave
5
Injustice Against thePeople of Eritrea
GhirmayGhebresellasie Won
the New YorkMarathon
Team EriTel
Dominated Tour duFaso

66

Contact Addresses:
Tel: +251-116620052
Fax:+251-116620011
Email:eritreanaumission@
gmail.com
P.o.Box: 5527
Addis Ababa, Ethiopia
Eritrean Mission toAU& ECA@EritreaAU

Page 2Eri-News

Foreign Minister Attended the Climate Change Conference held in Morocco
Eritrean delegation headed byMr. Osman Saleh, Minister ofForeign Affairs, participated at the
Climate Change Conference (COP22) held from 7 to 18 November
2016 in Marrakesh, Morocco.

During his stay in Morocco,
Foreign Minister Osman Saleh
met and held talks withMr. Salaheddine Mezouar,
Morocco’s Minister of ForeignAffairs and Cooperation, on
reinforcing bilateral ties andmutual cooperation between
the two countries. Mr. Osman
also delivered President Isaias
Afwerki’s message to King
Mohammed VI and expressed Eritrea’s readiness tostrengthen the existing bilateral ties. The two Ministers held extensive discussion on enhancing mutualcooperation.

On 13 November, Minister Osman
delivered a speech on the theme‘Solutions and Dialogue for Ocean
Economy in Africa.’ The Statement elaborated that Eritrea possesses extensive
marine resources and fishery along its coastline andislands in the Red Sea. It stressed that Eritrea’s strategic location and proximity of the Red Sea to global
markets and international maritime routes are a major
asset. Moreover, Eritrea is blessed with a united, Minister Salaheddine Mezouar on his part explainedcommitted and hardworking people, it underscored.
that his country gives due attention to the existing
brotherly relations with Eritrea and underlined thatThe Statement elaborated that Coastal Development the necessary initiatives need to be taken by both
Program has become one of the priorities in the countries to take such relationship to a higher level ofnation’s sustainable and integrated development cooperation.
agenda. The Statement underlined that measures arebeing taken to protect the marine ecosystem and The two sides agreed to prepare cooperation programs
environment, avoid over exploitation and curb illegal particularly in the domains of trade, investment,fishing. (The text of the statement is available at: http:// education, and agriculture.
shabait.com/news/local-news/22903-press-statement)

Eritrean Delegation Participated in Africa-Arab Ministerial Conference
An Eritrean delegation headed by Mr. Arefaine
Berhe, Minister of Agriculture, participated in the 3rdAfrica-Arab Ministerial Conference on AgriculturalDevelopment and Food Security that was held from31 October to 2 November 2016 in Khartoum, Sudan.
The Conference was held under the theme, “AfricaArab Trade and Investment for Accelerated Agricultural Development and Enhancing Food Security."
During his stay in Khartoum, Minister Arefaine metwith Prof. Ibrahim Adam Al- Dekheiri, Minister ofAgriculture of Sudan and discussed on reinforcing theexisting bilateral cooperation between the two countries. The two Ministers agreed on speedy implementation of programs of mutual interest.

Likewise, Minister Arefaine held talks with the Sudanese Minister of Livestock Resources, Prof. Musa
Tibin, and Dr. Hassan Abdel-Qadir Hilal, the Ministerof Environment and Urban Development. The twosides discussed and agreed to enhance bilateral cooperation through the sharing of experiences, providing
training and conducting joint agricultural research.

Vol 3. Issue 58, 21 November 2016

Page 3Eri-News“Changing Borders into Bridges”
Excerpts from a Statement delivered by Ambassador
Araya Desta, Permanent Representative of the Stateof Eritrea to AU and UNECA at the 12th Expert
Meeting on Regional Security Policy at the Greater
Horn of Africa, Nairobi, 1-2 November 2016,
Organized by the Friedrich Ebert Stiftung (FES).

In Cairo, African leaders adopted ‘colonial borders’as their own. Notwithstanding, the various theories
and motives for the decision, African leaders in asingle bold stroke tried to address the fear of‘territorial revisionism’. The leaders, to their credit,
saved the continent from breaking up further intoeven smaller states, hence, from “anarchy and disorder on a planetary scale”.

It is my humble suggestion that we go back to thefundamentals and get the basics right.
Equally important is the question: what does theAfrican Union Border Program (AUBP) mean andwhere does it leave us? In a nutshell, the AUBP, in
my opinion, is our most significant milestone, whichmarks both continuity and change. It builds on Cairo
Declaration and it strives to re-caliber it to contemporary needs.
Behind every boundary in the world there are, at least,
two stories. But behind the 109-plus African boundaries there is a single story. This universally accepted
story is: African boundaries are the product of colonial cartography. And they were drawn arbitrarily, Before the ‘Berlin Conference,’ there were no internaThe violent legacies of these boundaries are too obvi- tional boundaries in Africa; there were only cultural/
tribal areas. If we were to revert to them to create
ous to merit explanation.
smaller states out of the existing ones: we would have
The boundaries in the Horn of Africa are equally and ended up with more than 170 satellite entities in theperfectly colonial. They too were made at the drawing Horn of Africa alone.
board of the ‘Berlin Conference’. But, with an interesting twist. In the Horn of Africa the ‘scramble’ has But the Cairo Declaration goes way beyond this. For
an African touch. This African touch, unfortunately, the sake of time I will only limit myself to one cardihas made the legacies of colonial borders even worse. nal legacy of the Declaration: the principle ofThis oddity, which many have treated glibly, is at the ‘sovereign and territorial integrity.’ This principle, incore of this region’s problems. In fact, this single odd- my opinion, is the most fundamental primary normthat guided Africa’s interstate relations.
ity does tell the whole story.
Why in this region development has remained ahollow promise and peace nothing more thanextended ceasefires? Perhaps, it also explains why thenewest sovereign African nation is from this region.
This oddity, last but not the least, perhaps explains
why, this region constitutes a separate ‘security
complex’ after all.

Sadly, the Horn region has yet to establish this norm.
For this reason and for this reason only has remained
a troubled spot. One comparative study concluded:
border disputes are more likely to escalate into war in
the Horn of Africa than in West Africa. This is thereason why wars are numerous and human sufferinghas become common in this part of the continent.
(Contd. on page 4)

Vol 3. Issue 58, 21 November 2016

Page 4Eri-News“Changing Borders into Bridges” (Contd. from page 3)
Eritrea’s thirty years of war, ‘against all odds’, was
not revisionist which run against Cairo Declaration.
It was a conformist that zealously guarded it. Therefore, for us in Eritrea the principle of ‘sovereignty
and territorial integrity’ is inalienable fruit of ourlong drawn struggle for independence.

Since independence Eritrea’s foreign policy has been
based on principles capable of creating conducive
atmosphere for solidarity and cooperation amongpeoples of the Horn of Africa.
With the new challenges and trends in global governance, it has now become even more evident that astate can no longer exist in isolation. The greater
demand and advantages for regional integration havemade Eritrea pursue that policy with ever greatercommitment.
Countries of the region are bound by a common fate,history, culture and traditions. We are also connected
through ethnic, tribal, family and linguistic ties not tomention a shared sense of destiny.

For these reasons, peace, progress and prosperity inFor Eritrea the ideas of sovereignty and statehood are the region are in the strategic national interest of
intimately linked, which of course, both get their Eritrea. We have therefore made several efforts overmeaning from boundaries. The 1933 Montevideo the years to help resolve disputes and revive IGAD.
Convention on the Rights and Duties of States, forinstance, puts “defined territory,” as one prerequisite In our view: genuine cooperation and integration will
for a state to be legally recognized. This necessary not be realized in this region unless the principle ofcondition by itself is not sufficient, nonetheless.
‘sovereignty and territorial integrity’ is established asa norm.
Building upon this primary norm, respect for international laws and agreements is also paramount. A Changing borders into bridges requires soft managegood track record of respect for international obliga- ment of borders. But countries of this region are nottions in its own merit creates consistency, predictabil- there yet. The ‘final and binding’ technical blueprint
ity and trust, which are the critical recipe for regional of the bridge has long been in place. But, the Eritrean
cooperation and integration.
sovereign territory where the pile-foundation of thebridge should have stood remains under illegal occuThere are additional handicaps heaped up on this al- pation.
ready fragile security complex. One of the most important is extra-regional and extra-continental inter- If we could only get this cleared out we would beests and their attendant interventions. For this reason constructing the bridge. A bridge that, I believe,
among others, IGAD was characterized in 2008 by would lead us into new political, economic and secuthe admission of one of its own member states as “one rity partnerships.
of the weakest links in regional economic integrationon the continent”. Since then, regional states have And this would help us achieve our true potential as amade insufficient progress in strengthening this re- region.
gional organization. And nothing much has changed
since then.
I thank you.

Vol 3. Issue 58, 21 November 2016

Page 5Eri-NewsThe UNSC Once Again Committed Grave Injustice Against thePeople of Eritrea by Extending the Unjustified Sanction
In a Statement delivered during the UN Security
Council discussion on the situation in Somalia, heldon 10 November 2016, Mr. Amanuel Giorgio,
Chargé d’Affaires of the Permanent Mission ofEritrea to the United Nations, reiterated that there
was no reason to maintain sanction against Eritrea,
as the justification for its imposition had long been
proven nonexistent. He called on the UN Security
Council to lift the unfair, unjust and counterproductive sanction without further delay. The text of theStatement follows:

matters, particularly the inability of the Somalia
Eritrea Monitoring Group to visit Eritrea. If truth betold, this is not the real reason for their determination
to keep the sanction in place. In fact, some of them
have made it clear that even if the Group were to visit
Eritrea, they would still not support the lifting of thesanction.

The UN Security Council has once again committed
grave injustice against the people of Eritrea byextending the unjustified sanction.
There is no reason to maintain sanction against
Eritrea, as the justification for its imposition has long
been proven nonexistent, a fact that has been asserted
by the Somalia Eritrea Monitoring Group. In four ofits reports, including during its present mandate theSomalia Eritrea Monitoring Group, has affirmed that The sanction, which has been in place for the past“there is no evidence of Eritrean support to Al-Shabab seven years, has been detrimental not only to Eritrea,
in Somalia.”
but also to the Horn of Africa region. It has encouraged zero-sum approaches and imparted a sense of
On Djibouti, Eritrea remains committed to the mediaimpunity to some countries and emboldened them totion of the State of Qatar, which resulted in theviolate international law as well as externalize theirrelease of all Djiboutian prisoners of war last March.
problems instead of cooperating with their neighbors
The report of the Somalia Eritrea Monitoring Groupto address the serious challenges of regional peace
makes it clear that all its interlocutors only mention
and security. Unfortunately, the UN Security Council
seven prisoners of war in Eritrea, who are allhas once again missed the opportunity to contributeaccounted for. For its part, Eritrea has confirmed that
positively to regional peace, stability and amity by
there are no more Djiboutian prisoners in its hand.
maintaining the sanction on Eritrea. On its part,Eritrea
will continue making its positive contribution
In light of the reports of the Somalia Eritrea Monitoring Group and serious regional developments, it is to regional peace, stability and security in the Horn of
incumbent on the UN Security Council to lift the Africa and the Red Sea.
unfair, unjust and counterproductive sanction on
In conclusion, Eritrea wishes to sincerely thank those
Eritrea without further delay.
delegations who have advocated for the immediate
Eritrea is keenly aware that failing to find any sub- lifting of the sanction and those who have dissociatedstantive argument to continue the sanction, some themselves from this unfair and unwarranted resolution.
members of the Council have resorted to procedural

Vol 3. Issue 58, 21 November 2016

Page 6Eri-News

Ghirmay Ghebreslassie Won the New York Marathon in a Spectacular Fashion
Eritrean Ghirmay Ghebreslassie won the 2016 New
York Marathon held on 6 November 2016. The 20year-old runner won the race in 2:07:51, ahead ofLucas Rotich of Kenya. Ghirmay is the first Eritrean
and the youngest male ever to win the prestigious
race.

President Isaias Afwerki met and congratulated theathlete upon his return home. President Isaias said thatthe people and the country are proud of Ghirmay’s
victory and wished him more success in future competitions.

The Champion was awarded a warm welcome at theAsmara Stadium in a ceremony attended by senior
Government and PFDJ officials, members of thediplomatic corps as well as athletes and students.

Team EriTel Dominated Tour du Faso Cycling Competition
The 2016 Tour du Faso which was held from 28
October- 6 November, with the participation oftwelve teams, was dominated by the Eritrean cycling
team EriTel.

Eri-Tel won the Team Classification, while Zemenfes
Solomon, the 19 year-old rising-star, was the winnerof the Points Classification. The winner of the General
Classification was Harouna Ilboudoh from the hostcountry of Burkina Faso; Zemenfes Solomon clinchedthird position in this category.

The EriTel riders won six out of the ten stages of thecompetition, four of the stage wins were by Zemenfes
Solomon.

Vol 3. Issue 58, 21 November 2016