Eritrea: Africa’s North Korea

by Ebenezer Abraha 

Eritrea is often referred to as Africa’s North Korea due to its severe human rights violations upon its citizens. Practice of unregistered religions such as the Pentecostal Church, freedom of press and freedom of speech are forbidden. Those who try to flee the country or escape mandatory military conscription are either executed or arrested and put into prison. Since its independence from Ethiopia in 1991, Eritrea has had no national elections and been ruled by the brutal dictator, President Isaias Afwerki. 

Eritrea’s military camp, Sawa, is compulsory for all Eritreans aged between 18 to 40, with every individual expected to perform active national service indefinitely. Same-sex activity is also forbidden in Eritrea, and individuals believed to be part of the LGBTQ+ community may be subject to punishments as harsh as the death penalty. In 2021, 29,792 Eritrean citizens fled the country and applied for asylum in other countries, a growing number of refugees every year.

My parents immigrated from Eritrea to the United Kingdom 20 years ago. In recent years, Eritrea has faced open scrutiny from the WHO (World Health Organisation) and other countries for their involvement in the Tigray War. The Tigray war is believed to have left at least 1.4 million people dead, and Eritrea has been accused of committing atrocious war crimes upon the people of Tigray from the US in recent months. Eritrea is believed to have supported Ethiopia militarily in the Tigray war, sending soldiers, some conscripted from Sawa, to fight in northern Ethiopia.