The ancient Puntites were a nation of people that had close relations with Pharaonic Egypt during the times of Pharaoh Sahure and Queen Hatshepsut.
D'mt was a kingdom located in Eritrea and northern Ethiopia that existed during the 8th and 7th centuries BC. HP Pavilion DV9865EK Battery
With its capital at Yeha, the kingdom developed irrigation schemes, used plows, grew millet, and made iron tools and weapons. After the fall of Dʿmt in the 5th century BC, the plateau came to be dominated by smaller successor kingdoms, until the rise of one of these polities, the Aksumite Kingdom during the first century, which was able to reunite the area.[8] HP Pavilion DV9868EG Battery
The history of Eritrea is tied to its strategic position on the Red Sea littoral, with a coastline that extends more than 1,000 km. Many scientists believe that it is from this area that anatomically modern humans first expanded out of Africa.[9] From across the seas came various invaders and colonizers, HP Pavilion DV9870EA Battery
such as the South Arabians hailing from the present-day Yemen area, as well as the Ottoman Turks, the Portuguese from Goa (India), theEgyptians, the British and, in the 19th century, the Italians. Over the centuries, invaders also came from the neighboring countries in Africa, like Egypt and Sudan to the west and north, as well as Ethiopia to the south. HP Pavilion DV9870EB Battery
However, present-day Eritrea was largely affected by the Italian colonisers of the 19th century.
In the period following the opening of the Suez canal in 1869, when European powers scrambled for territory in Africa and tried to establish coaling stations for their ships, Italy invaded Ethiopia and occupied Eritrea. HP Pavilion DV9870ED Battery
On January 1, 1890, Eritrea officially became a colony of Italy. In 1936, it became a province of Italian East Africa(Africa Orientale Italiana), along with Ethiopia and Italian Somaliland. By 1941, Eritrea had about 760,000 inhabitants, including 70,000 Italians.[10] Through the 1941 Battle of Keren, the British expelled the Italians[11]and took over the administration of the country. HP Pavilion DV9870EF Battery
The British continued to administer the territory under a UN Mandate until 1951, when Eritrea was federated with Ethiopia per UN Resolution 390A(V) under the prompting of the United States adopted in December 1950.
The strategic importance of Eritrea, due to its Red Sea coastline and mineral resources, HP Pavilion DV9870EP Battery
along with their shared history, was the main cause for the federation with Ethiopia, which in turn led to Eritrea's annexation as Ethiopia's 14th province in 1952. This was the culmination of a gradual process of takeover by the Ethiopian authorities, a process which included a 1959 edict establishing the compulsory teaching of Amharic, the main language of Ethiopia, in all Eritrean schools. HP Pavilion DV9870EW Battery
The lack of regard for the Eritrean population led to the formation of an independence movement in the early 1960s (1961), which erupted into a 30-year war against successive Ethiopian governments that ended in 1991. Following a UN-supervised referendum in Eritrea (dubbed UNOVER) in which the Eritrean people overwhelmingly voted for independence, HP Pavilion DV9872EZ Battery
Eritrea declared its independence and gained international recognition in 1993.[13]
The de facto predominant languages are Tigrinya and Arabic, both of which belong to the Semitic branch of the Afro-Asiatic family. English is used in the government's international communication and is the language of instruction in all formal education beyond the fifth grade.[14] HP Pavilion DV9876EG Battery
Eritrea is a single-party state. Though its constitution, adopted in 1997, stipulates that the state is a presidential republic with a unicameral parliamentary democracy, it has yet to be implemented. In 1998 a border dispute with Ethiopia led to the Eritrean-Ethiopian War. HP Pavilion DV9880EA Battery
The war resulted in the death of as many as 100,000 Ethiopian and Eritrean soldiers, although specific casualty estimates are varied.
Eritrea is run by the People's Front for Democracy and Justice (PFDJ).[16] HP Pavilion DV9880ED Battery
Other political groups are not allowed to organize, although the unimplemented Constitution of 1997 provides for the existence of multi-party politics. The National Assembly has 150 seats, of which 75 are occupied by the PFDJ. National elections have been periodically scheduled and cancelled; none have ever been held in the country.[17] HP Pavilion DV9880EE Battery
The president, Isaias Afewerki, has been in office since independence in 1993. Independent local sources of political information on Eritrean domestic politics are scarce; in September 2001 the government closed down all of the nation's privately owned print media, and outspoken critics of the government have been arrested and held without trial, HP Pavilion DV9880EG Battery
according to various international observers, including Human Rights Watch and Amnesty International. In 2004 the U.S. State Department declared Eritrea a Country of Particular Concern (CPC) for its record of religious persecution.[18]
Human rights
The human rights record of Eritrea is considered poor. HP Pavilion DV9880EO Battery
Since Eritrea's independence from Ethiopia in 1991, Eritrea's human rights record has worsened. Several human rights violations are committed by the government or on behalf of the government.Freedom of speech, press, assembly, and association are limited. Thousands of Eritreans are arrested if they rebel against any rules held by the government. HP Pavilion DV9880EP Battery
Those that practice "unregistered" religions, try to flee the nation, or escape military duty are arrested and put into prison. Those that are arrested are held in prison indefinitely and are not legally charged. Prisoners are not well cared for. Well known prisoners are usually held in underground cells and less known prisoners are usually put together in cargo containers or in very overcrowded prisons. HP Pavilion DV9880ES Battery
Domestic and international human rights organizations are not allowed to function in Eritrea.
The registered religions are the Eritrean Orthodox Tewahedo Church (a monophysite Oriental Orthodox denomination), the Roman Catholic Church, and Sunnite Islam. HP Pavilion DV9880EV Battery
All other religions are persecuted, including other denominations of Islam, such asShi'ism, and other denominations of Christianity, such as any of the myriad Protestant denominations. Pentecostal Christians were allowed freedom of worship until 2002; after that time, the practice was prohibited by the government. HP Pavilion DV9880EW Battery
After Pentecostalism was outlawed, all groups who worship secretly in a house or other unregistered place of assembly are imprisoned in poor conditions and possibly beaten, often along with other religious prisoners. They are only released if they sign a document saying they will return to the country's predominant Christian Church,
HP Pavilion DV9880EZ Battery
the Eritrean Orthodox Tewahedo Church. If they do not sign, they are held in prison indefinitely. As a result, thousands of Eritreans leave the country in order to worship freely. There are thousands of Eritrean refugees inEthiopia and the Sudan seeking asylum in Europe or another region of the West.[19] HP Pavilion DV9885EA Battery
Eritrea is a one-party state in which national legislative elections have been repeatedly postponed.[20]
Media
In its 2010 Press Freedom Index, Reporters Without Borders classified the media environment in Eritrea at 178 out of 178, the lowest possible rating, and below that of totalitarian North Korea at 177.[21] HP Pavilion DV9885EB Battery
According to the BBC, "Eritrea is the only African country to have no privately-owned news media",[22] and Reporters Without Borders said of the public media, "[they] do nothing but relay the regime's belligerent and ultra-nationalist discourse. ... Not a single [foreign correspondent] now lives in Asmara."[23] HP Pavilion DV9885EO Battery
The state-owned news agency censors news about external events.[24] Independent media has been banned since 2001.[24]
National elections
Eritrean National elections were set for 2001 but was then decided that because 20% of Eritrea's land was under occupation, elections would be postponed until the resolution of the conflict with Ethiopia. HP Pavilion DV9888EO Battery
However, local elections have continued in Eritrea. The most recent round of local government elections were held in May 2004. On further elections, the President's Chief of Staff, Yemane Gebremeskel said, HP Pavilion DV9889EO Battery
| The electoral commission is handling these elections this time round so that may be the new element in this process. The national assembly has also mandated the electoral commission to set the date for national elections, so whenever the electoral commission sets the date there will be national elections. It's not dependent on regional elections. HP Pavilion DV9890EA Battery |
”
|
As yet, no national elections have been held since independence.
Eritrea is divided into six regions (zobas) and subdivided into districts(sub-zobas). The geographical extent of the regions is based on their respective hydrological properties. This a dual intent on the part of the Eritrean government: HP Pavilion DV9890ED Battery
to provide each administration with sufficient control over its agricultural capacity, and to eliminate historical intra-regional conflicts.
Eritrea is a full member of the African Union (AU), the successor of the Organization of African Unity (OAU). HP Pavilion DV9890EF Battery
However, it had withdrawn its representative to the AU in protest at the AU's alleged lack of leadership in facilitating the implementation of a binding border decision demarcating the border between Eritrea and Ethiopia. The Eritrean government has since January 2011 appointed an envoy, Tesfa-Alem Tekle, to the AU.[26] HP Pavilion DV9890EG Battery
Relations with the United States
Eritrea's relationship with the United States has a short yet complex history. The United States Army operated Kagnew Station in Eritrea from 1943 to 1977. Relations worsened in October 2008 when U.S. HP Pavilion DV9890EL Battery
Assistant Secretary of State Jendayi Frazer called the nation a 'state sponsor of terrorism' and stated that the U.S. government might add Eritrea to its list of rogue states, along withIran and Sudan.[27] The stated reason for this was the presence of Sheikh Hassan Dahir Aweys, HP Pavilion DV9890EO Battery
an exiled Somali Islamist leader, whom the U.S. suspects of having links to Al Qaeda, at a Somali opposition conference in Asmara.[28]
During the week of August 2, 2009, U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton claimed that Eritrea was supplying weapons to the Somali militant group al-Shabab.[29] HP Pavilion DV9890EP Battery
Although Eritrea denied this accusation in a public statement the following day,[30] the United Nations, with the backing of the African Union, imposed sanctions and an arms embargo on Eritrea under Resolution 1907 for its alleged role in Somalia and refusal to withdraw troops from the border with Djibouti. HP Pavilion DV9890ES Battery
Relations with the European Union
Eritrea's relationship with the Italian Republic and the European Union are still both reasonably strong and do not seem to be as strained as is the country's relationship with the United States. HP Pavilion DV9890EW Battery
On 27 January 2009, the Dutch Ambassador, Yoka Brandt, Director General of International Development Cooperation, paid an official visit to the country for bilateral talks with President Isaias' government, which were held in Massawa.
Relations with neighboring countries
Eritrea's relations with its neighbours have been strained due to a series of wars and disputes. HP Pavilion DV9894CA Battery
These include a break of diplomatic relations with Sudan in 1994, for hosting network of terrorists in 1994, a war with Yemen over the Hanish Islands in 1996 (the conflict was settled through the verdict of the International Court of Arbitration in 1998), and a border conflict with Ethiopia from 1997–2000. HP Pavilion DV9900 Battery
An international border commission, the Eritrea-Ethiopia Boundary Commission had delimited and virtually demarcated the border, but Ethiopia has refused to implement it.
Eritrea's relations with the Sudan have normalised. Meanwhile, Eritrea has been recognised as a broker for peace between the separate factions of the Sudanese civil war: HP Pavilion DV9901TX Battery
"It is known that Eritrea played a role in bringing about the peace agreement [between the Southern Sudanese and Government]."[31] In addition, the Sudanese government and Eastern Front rebels requested Eritrea to mediate peace talks in 2006.[32]
A dispute with Yemen over the Hanish Islands in 1996 resulted in a brief war. HP Pavilion DV9903CA Battery
As part of an agreement to cease hostilities the two nations agreed to refer the issue to the Permanent Court of Arbitration at the Hague in 1998.[33] Yemen was granted full ownership of the larger islands while Eritrea was awarded the peripheral islands to the southwest of the larger islands.[34] HP Pavilion DV9904CA Battery
At the conclusion of the proceedings, both nations acquiesced to the decision. Since 1996, both governments have remained wary of one another but relations are relatively normal.[35]
Relations with Ethiopia
The undemarcated border with Ethiopia is the primary external issue currently facing Eritrea. HP Pavilion DV9905EL Battery
Eritrea's relations with Ethiopia turned from that of cautious mutual tolerance, following the 30-year war for Eritrean independence, to a deadly rivalry that led to the outbreak of hostilities from May 1998 to June 2000 which claimed approximately 70,000 casualties from both sides. HP Pavilion DV9907CA Battery
Disagreements following the war have resulted in stalemate punctuated by periods of elevated tension and renewed threats of war.[36][37][38] The stalemate led the President of Eritrea to urge the UN to take action on Ethiopia with the Eleven Letterspenned by the President to the United Nations Security Council. HP Pavilion DV9908CA Battery
The situation is further escalated by the continued efforts of the Eritrean and Ethiopian leaders in supporting opposition in one another's countries.[citation needed] In 2011, Ethiopia accused Eritrea of planting bombs at an African Union summit in Addis Ababa, which was later supported by a UN report. HP Pavilion DV9910CA Battery
Eritrea has denied the claims.[39] U.S. diplomats in a cable leaked by Wikileaks stated that according to an embassy source, as well as clandestine reporting, the bombing may have in fact been the work of Ethiopian government's security forces.[40]
Amid fears of an emerging Islamic and nationalist Somalia, HP Pavilion DV9910EB Battery
Ethiopia invaded Somalia with U.S. assistance, putting in place the at first weak and locally unpopular UN/AU-backed Transitional Federal Government which, without Ethiopian support, had been unable to exercise any control beyond its base in Baidoa and along the Ethio-Somali border. HP Pavilion DV9910US Battery
The Transitional Federal Government as of 2011 taken full control of the capital and made significant gains on the territory of the now defunct Islamic Courts Union.[41] The United States Central Intelligence Agency also conducted a covert program of funding and assisting a coalition of Somali warlords to replace the Islamic Courts Union government in southern Somalia.[42] HP Pavilion DV9912NR Battery
On its part, Eritrea used to host members of the ousted Union of Islamic Courts and the Somali Free Parliament, including the current President of the Transitional Federal Government of Somalia, who was also the leader of the Union of Islamic Courts ousted by Ethiopia in 2007. HP Pavilion DV9913CL Battery
The Eritrean government has been accused of sponsoring, arming and hosting numerous militant leaderships and separatist rebels in the Horn of Africa.[43]
Geography
Eritrea is located in Northeast Africa and is bordered on the northeast and east by the Red Sea, on the south by Ethiopia, and on the northwest by Sudan. HP Pavilion DV9917CL Battery
It lies between latitudes 12° and 18°N, and longitudes 36° and 44°E.
The country is virtually bisected by a branch of the East African Rift. It has fertile lands to the west, descending to desert in the east. Eritrea, at the southern end of the Red Sea, is the home of the fork in the rift. HP Pavilion DV9920US Battery
The Dahlak Archipelagoand its fishing grounds are situated off the sandy and arid coastline. The land to the south, in the highlands, is slightly drier and cooler.[citation needed]
The strategically important Bab-el-Mandeb strait connects the coasts of Eritrea and Yemen. HP Pavilion DV9922US Battery
The Afar Triangle or Danakil Depression of Eritrea is the probable location of a triple junction where three tectonic plates are pulling away from one another: the Arabian Plate, and the two parts of the African Plate (the Nubian and the Somali plate) splitting along the East African Rift Zone (USGS). HP Pavilion DV9924CA Battery
The highest point of the country, Emba Soira, is located in the center of Eritrea, at 3,018 meters (9,902 ft) above sea level.
The main cities of the country are the capital city of Asmara and the port town of Asseb in the southeast, as well as the towns of Massawa to the east, andKeren to the north. HP Pavilion DV9925EZ Battery
Environment
Eritrea formerly supported a large population of elephants. The Ptolemaic kings of Egypt used the country as a source of war elephants in the third century BC. Between 1955 and 2001 there were no reported sightings of elephant herds, and they are thought to have fallen victim to the war of independence. HP Pavilion DV9925NR Battery
In December 2001 a herd of about 30, including 10 juveniles, was observed in the vicinity of the Gash River. The elephants seemed to have formed a symbiotic relationship with olive baboons. It is estimated that there are around 100 elephants left in Eritrea, the most northerly of East Africa's elephants.[44] HP Pavilion DV9927CL Battery
The endangered Painted Hunting Dog (Lycaon pictus) was previously found in Eritrea, but is now deemed extirpated from the entire country.[45]
In 2006, Eritrea announced it would become the first country in the world to turn its entire coast into an environmentally protected zone. HP Pavilion DV9930EB Battery
The 1,347 km (837 mi) coastline, along with another 1,946 km (1,209 mi) of coast around its more than 350 islands, will come under governmental protection.
Economy
Like the economies of many other African nations, the economy is largely based on subsistence agriculture, with 80% of the population involved in farming and herding. HP Pavilion DV9930EF Battery
Drought has often created trouble in the farming areas.[46]
The Real GDP (2009 est.): $1.87 billion, and the annual growth rate (2009 est.): 3.6%.[47]
The Eritrean-Ethiopian War severely hurt Eritrea's economy. GDP growth in 1999 fell to less than 1%, and GDP decreased by 8.2% in 2000. HP Pavilion DV9930US Battery
In May 2000, the war resulted in some $600 million in property damage and loss, including losses of $225 million in livestock and 55,000 homes. The war also prevented the planting of crops in Eritrea's most productive region, causing food production to drop by 62%.[48][49] HP Pavilion DV9933CA Battery
Even during the war, Eritrea developed its transportation infrastructure by asphalting new roads, improving its ports, and repairing war-damaged roads and bridges as a part of the Warsay Yika'alo Program. HP Pavilion DV9933CL Battery
The most significant of these projects was the building of a coastal highway of more than 500 km connecting Massawa with Asseb as well as the rehabilitation of the Eritrean Railway. The rail line now runs between the Port of Massawa and the capital Asmara. HP Pavilion DV9934CA Battery
Demographics
Eritrean society is ethnically heterogeneous. An independent census has yet to be conducted, but the Tigrinya people make up about 60% and Tigre people make up about 30% of the population. These form the bulk of the country's predominantly Semitic-speaking population. HP Pavilion DV9940EG Battery
Most of the rest of the population belong to other Afro-Asiatic-speaking communities of the Cushitic branch, such as the Saho, Hedareb, Afar and Bilen.
There are also a number of Nilotic ethnic minorities who are represented in Eritrea by theKunama and Nara. HP Pavilion DV9940EJ Battery
Each ethnicity speaks a different native tongue but, typically, many of the minorities speak more than one language.
In addition, there exist Italian Eritrean (concentrated in Asmara) and Ethiopian Tigrayan communities. HP Pavilion DV9940ER Battery
Neither is generally given citizenship unless through marriage or, more rarely, by having it conferred upon them by the State.
The most recent addition to the nationalities of Eritrea is the Rashaida. The Rashaida came to Eritrea in the 19th century from the Arabian Coast. HP Pavilion DV9950EF Battery
Languages
Many languages are spoken in Eritrea today. There is no official language as such, as the Constitution establishes the "equality of all Eritrean languages"[51] but Tigrinya and Arabic are the two predominant languages for official purposes. English and Italian are also widely understood. HP Pavilion DV9950EK Battery
Most of the languages spoken in Eritrea stem from the Semitic branch of the Afro-Asiatic language family.[52] The Semitic languages in Eritrea are Tigre, Tigrinya, the newly-recognized Dahlik, and Arabic (spoken natively by the Rashaida Arabs).
Other Afro-Asiatic languages belonging to the Cushitic branch are also widely spoken in the country.[52] The latter include Afar,Beja, Blin and Saho. HP Pavilion DV9950ER Battery
In addition, Nilo-Saharan languages (Kunama and Nara) are also spoken as a mother tongue by the Nilotic Kunama and Nara ethnic minority groups that live in the north and northwestern part of the country.[52]
Education
There are five levels of education in Eritrea: pre-primary, primary, middle, secondary, and post-secondary. HP Pavilion DV9950ES Battery
There are nearly 238,000 students in the primary, middle, and secondary levels of education. There are approximately 824 schools[53] in Eritrea and two universities (the University of Asmara and the Institute of Science and Technology) as well as several smaller colleges and technical schools. HP Pavilion DV9960EB Battery
Education in Eritrea is officially compulsory between seven and 13 years of age. However, the education infrastructure is inadequate to meet current needs. Statistics vary at the elementary level, suggesting that between 39 and 57 percent of school-aged children attend primary school; HP Pavilion DV9960EW Battery
only 21 percent attend secondary school. Student-teacher ratios are high: 45 to 1 at the elementary level and 54 to 1 at the secondary level. There are an average 63 students per classroom at the elementary level and 97 per classroom at the secondary level. Learning hours at school are often less than four hours per day. HP Pavilion DV9970EB Battery
Skill shortages are present at all levels of the education system, and funding for and access to education vary significantly by gender (with dropout rates much higher for girls) and location. Illiteracy estimates for Eritrea range from around 40 percent to as high as 70 percent.[54] HP Pavilion DV9970EF Battery
Barriers to education in Eritrea include traditional taboos, school fees (for registration and materials), and the opportunity costs of low-incomehouseholds.[55]
Religion
Eritrea has two dominant religions, Christianity and Islam. HP Pavilion DV9970EM Battery
Various approximations have estimated that 50 to 62.5% areChristians (mostly followers of Orthodox Christianity and, to a lesser extent, Roman Catholicism) and 36.5 to 50% of the population is Sunni Muslim.[56] The Christians are primarily members of the Eritrean Orthodox Tewahdo Church, which is the local Oriental Orthodox church, HP Pavilion DV9975EF Battery
while considerable groups of Roman Catholics (including Italian Eritreans), Protestants, and other denominations also exist. Most Muslims follow Sunni Islam.
Since May 2002, the government of Eritrea has officially recognized the Eritrean Orthodox Tewahdo Church, Sunni Islam, Catholicism, and the Evangelical Lutheran church. HP Pavilion DV9980EF Battery
All other faiths and denominations are required to undergo a registration process.[57] Among other things, the government's registration system requires religious groups to submit personal information on their membership to be allowed to worship.[57] The few organizations that have met all of the registration requirements have still not received official recognition. HP Pavilion DV9980EI Battery
The Eritrean government is against reformed or radical versions of its established religions. Therefore, radical forms of Islam, Jehovah's Witnesses, the Bahá'í Faith, the Seventh-day Adventist Church, and numerous other Protestant denominations are not registered and cannot worship freely. HP Pavilion DV9000 Battery
Three named men are known to have been imprisoned since 1994.[58] Additionally, on June 28, 2009, police raided a private home where Jehovah's Witnesses were meeting. 23 were arrested including children as young as two years old. Some of the women and children were later released, however, HP Pavilion DV9000EA Battery
two children who are now three and four years of age are still imprisoned with their mothers. None have been charged officially or given access to the judicial process. As of July 29, 2010, 52 Jehovah's Witnesses have been imprisoned in Eritrea for attending their religious meetings and engaging in religious activity.[59] HP Pavilion DV9000T Battery
In its 2006 religious freedom report, the U.S. State Department named Eritrea a "Country of Particular Concern" (CPC) for the third year in a row.[60]
Health
Eritrea has achieved significant improvements in health care and is one of the few countries to be on target to meet its Millennium Development Goal (MDG) targets in health, HP Pavilion DV9000Z Battery
in particular child health.[61] Life expectancy at birth has increased from 39.1 in 1960 to 59.5 years in 2008, maternal and child mortalityrates have dropped dramatically and the health infrastructure has been expanded.[61] HP Pavilion DV9001CA Battery
Due to Eritrea's relative isolation, information and resources are extremely limited and according the World Health Organisation (WHO) found in 2008 average life expectancy to be slightly less than 63 years. Immunisation and child nutrition has been tackled by working closely with schools in a multi-sectoral approach; HP Pavilion DV9001EA Battery
the number of children vaccinated against measles almost doubled in seven years, from 40.7% to 78.5% and the underweight prevalence among children decreased by 12% in 1995–2002 (severe underweight prevalence by 28%).[61] HP Pavilion DV9001TX Battery
The National Malaria Protection Unit of the Ministry of Health has registered tremendous improvements in reducing malarial mortality by as much as 85% and the number of cases by 92% between 1998 and 2006.[61] The Eritrean government has banned female genital mutilation (FGM), HP Pavilion DV9001XX Battery
saying the practice was painful and put women at risk of life-threatening health problems.[62]
However, Eritrea still faces many challenges. Despite number of physicians increasing from only 0.2 in 1993 to 0.5 in 2004 per 1000 population, this is still very low.[61] Malaria and Tubercolosis both are common in Eritrea.[63] HP Pavilion DV9003CA Battery
HIV prevalence among the 15–49 group exceeds 2%.[63] The fertility rate is at about 5 births per woman.[63] Maternal mortality dropped by more than half from 1995 to 2002, although the figure is still high.[61] Similarly, between 1995 and 2002, the number of births attended by skilled health personnel has doubled but still is only 28.3%.[61] HP Pavilion DV9003EA Battery
A major cause of deaths of neonates is by severeinfection.[63] Per capita expenditure on health is low in Eritrea.[63]
Culture
The Eritrean region has traditionally been a nexus for trade throughout the world. Because of this, the influence of diverse cultures can be seen throughout Eritrea.
HP Pavilion DV9003TX Battery
Today the most obvious influences in the capital, Asmara, are those of Italy. Throughout Asmara, there are small cafes serving beverages common in Italy. In Asmara, there is a clear merging of the Italian colonial influence with the traditional Tigrinya lifestyle. In the villages of Eritrea, HP Pavilion DV9003XX Battery
these changes never took hold. In the cities, before the occupation and during the early years, the import ofBollywood films was commonplace, while Italian and American films were available in the cinemas as well. In the 1980s and since independence, however, American films have become the most common. HP Pavilion DV9004TX Battery
Vying for market share are films by local producers, who have slowly come into their own. The global broadcast of Eri-TV has brought cultural images to the large Eritrean population in the Diaspora that visits the country every summer. Successful domestic films are produced by government and independent studios with revenue from ticket sales typically covering the production costs. HP Pavilion DV9004XX Battery
Traditional Eritrean dress is quite varied, with the women of most lowland ethnicities traditionally dressing in brightly colored clothes, while the Tigrinya traditionally dress in bright white costumes. Of the Muslim ethnicities, only the Arab or Rashaida tribeswomen maintain a tradition of covering their faces. HP Pavilion DV9005CA Battery
Football and cycling are the most popular sports in Eritrea.[citation needed] In recent years, Eritrean athletes have also seen increasing success in the international arena.
Politics of Eritrea takes place in a framework of a single-party presidential republic, HP Pavilion DV9005EA Battery
whereby the Eritrean President is both head of state and head of government and a single-party state, led by the People's Front for Democracy and Justice. The popularly-elected National Assembly of 150 seats, formed in 1993 shortly after independence, elected the current president,Isaias Afewerki. HP Pavilion DV9005TX Battery
There have been no general elections since its official rise to power in 1993. They are governed under the constitution of 1993. A new constitution was made in 1997, but was not implemented.
Following a successful referendum on independence for the Autonomous Region of Eritrea between 23 and 25 April 1993, HP Pavilion DV9005US Battery
on 19 May of that year the Provisional Government of Eritrea (PGE) issued a Proclamation regarding the reorganization of the Government. It declared that during a four-year transition period, and sooner if possible, it would draft and ratify a constitution, prepare a law on political parties, prepare a press law, HP Pavilion DV9006EA Battery
and carry out elections for a constitutional government. In March 1994, the PGE created a constitutional commission charged with drafting a constitution flexible enough to meet the current needs of a population suffering from 30 years of civil war as well as those of the future, when stability and prosperity change the political landscape. HP Pavilion DV9006TX Battery
Commission members have traveled throughout the country and to Eritrean communities abroad holding meetings to explain constitutional options to the people and to solicit their input. A new constitution was promulgated in 1997 but has not yet been implemented, and general elections have been postponed. HP Pavilion DV9007EA Battery
A National Assembly, composed entirely of the PFDJ, was established as a transitional legislature; elections have been postponed indefinitely following the start of the border conflict with Ethiopia.
Independent local sources of political information on Eritrean domestic politics are scarce; HP Pavilion DV9007TX Battery
in September 2001 the government closed down all of the nation's privately owned print media, and outspoken critics of the government have been arrested and held without trial, according to domestic and international observers, including Human Rights Watch and Amnesty International. HP Pavilion DV9008EA Battery
In 2004 the U.S. State Department declared Eritrea a Country of Particular Concern (CPC) for its alleged record of religiouspersecution.
At independence, the government faced formidable challenges. Beginning with a nascent judicial system, and an education system in shambles,
HP Pavilion DV9008EU Battery
it has attempted to build the institutions of government from scratch, with varying success. Since then, the impact of the border war with Ethiopia, and continued army mobilisation, has contributed to the lack of a skilled workforce. The present government includes legislative, executive, and judicial bodies. HP Pavilion DV9008NR Battery
The legislature, the National Assembly appointed in 1993, includes 75 members of the People's Front for Democracy and Justice (PFDJ) and 75 additional 'popularly elected' members. The National Assembly is the highest legal power in the government until the establishment of a democratic, constitutional government. HP Pavilion DV9008TX Battery
Within the Eritrean Constitution the Legislature would remain the strongest arm of the government. The legislature sets the internal and external policies of the government, regulates implementation of those policies, approves the budget, and elects the president of the country. Its membership has not been renewed through national elections. HP Pavilion DV9009CL Battery
Lower Regional Assemblies are also in each of Eritrea's six zones. These Assemblies are responsible setting a local agenda in the case that they are not overruled by the National Assembly. These Regional Assemblies are popularly elected within each region. Unlike the National Assembly however, the Regional administrator is not selected by the Regional Assembly. HP Pavilion DV9009NR Battery
Political parties and elections
Eritrea is a single-party state, run by the People's Front for Democracy and Justice (PFDJ). No other political groups are allowed to organize, although the non-implemented Constitution of 1997 provided for the existence of multi-party politics. HP Pavilion DV9009TX Battery
Eritrean National elections were set for 1997 and then postponed until 2001, it was then decided that because 20% of Eritrea's land was under occupation that elections would be postponed until the resolution of the conflict with Ethiopia. Local elections have continued in Eritrea. HP Pavilion DV9009US Battery
The most recent round of local government elections were held in May 2003. On further elections, the President's Chief of Staff, Yemane Ghebremeskel said,[1]
The electoral commission is handling these elections this time round so that may be the new element in this process. HP Pavilion DV9010CA Battery
The national assembly has also mandated the electoral commission to set the date for national elections, so whenever the electoral commission sets the date there will be national elections. It’s not dependent on regional elections, although that might be a very helpful process. HP Pavilion DV9010EA Battery
Multipartyism, in general principle yes, it is there but the law on political parties has to be approved by the national assembly. It was not approved the last time. The view from the beginning was that you don’t necessarily need a party law to hold national elections. HP Pavilion DV9010TX Battery
You can have national elections and the party law can be adopted at any time. So in terms of commitment it’s very clear, in terms of the process it has its own pace, its own characteristics.
Illegal opposition
- Eritrean Islamic Jihad (EIJ)
- Eritrean Liberation Front-Revolutionary Council (ELF-RC), Ahmed Nasser
- Eritrean Liberation Front-United Organization (ELF-UO), Mohammed Said Nawd
Regional issues
Eritrea has had rough relations with most of its neighbors in the 1990s and initiated both small scale and large scale battles against Sudan, Djibouti, Yemen and Ethiopia. Eritrea invaded the Hanish islands of Yemen, Sudan blamed Eritrea for attacks in Eastern Sudan, HP Pavilion DV9011XX Battery
UN commission accused Eritrea for invading Ethiopia and Djibouti officials accused Eritrea for shelling towns in Djibouti in 1996.[2][3][4][5] After this, Eritrea has made efforts to solve relations with Sudan and Djibouti, though relations with Yemen and Ethiopia remain sour. In 2008, HP Pavilion DV9012EA Battery
an attack on Djibouti led by the Eritrean Army on the tip South end of the country led to several civilians being killed, and further international tensions. Eritrea abandoned the regional bloc IGAD which is membered by the four nations and Kenya. HP Pavilion DV9012TX Battery
Judicial branch
The judiciary operates independently of both the legislative and executive bodies, with a court system that extends from the village through to the regional and national levels. The structure has three tiers, the local "community courts", the regional courts and the national High Court. HP Pavilion DV9013CA Battery
Village judges are elected, though typically they are the village elders. A community court consists of three judges/magistrates. "There are a total of 683 community courts across the country with the number of magistrates totaling to 2,049, i.e. 55 in the Central Region, 213 in the South, 178 in Gash-Barka, 109 in Anseba, HP Pavilion DV9013CL Battery
98 in the Northern and 30 in the Southern Red Sea regions."[6] The community courts work on the basis of the area, the local rules and customs. If a dispute cannot be resolved in the community courts it can be appealed to the next level of judicial administration, the regional courts. HP Pavilion DV9014EA Battery
Administrative divisions
Eritrea is divided into 6 regions (or zobas) and subdivided into approximately 55 districts or sub-zobas. The regions are based on the hydrological properties of area. This has the dual effect of providing each administration with ample control over its agricultural capacity and eliminating historical intra-regional conflicts. HP Pavilion DV9014TX Battery
Foreign relations
External issues include an undemarcated border with the Sudan, a war with Yemen over the Hanish Islands in 1996, and a recent border conflict with Ethiopia.
The undemarcated border with Sudan poses a problem for Eritrean external relations.[7] HP Pavilion DV9015EA Battery
After a high-level delegation to the Sudan from the Eritrean Ministry of Foreign Affairs ties are being normalized. While normalization of ties continues, Eritrea has been recognized as a broker for peace between the separate factions of the Sudanese civil war. "It is known that Eritrea played a role in bringing about the peace agreement HP Pavilion DV9015TX Battery
[between the Southern Sudanese and Government],"[8] while the Sudanese Government and Eastern Front rebels have requested Eritrea to mediate peace talks.[9]
A dispute with Yemen over the Hanish Islands in 1996 resulted in a brief war. HP Pavilion DV9016EA Battery
As part of an agreement to cease hostilities the two nations agreed to refer the issue to the Permanent Court of Arbitration at the Hague. At the conclusion of the proceedings, both nations acquiesced to the decision. Since 1996 both governments have remained wary of one another but relations are relatively normal.[10] HP Pavilion DV9016TX Battery
The undemarcated border with Ethiopia is the primary external issue facing Eritrea. This led to a long and bloody border war between 1998 and 2000. As a result, the United Nations Mission in Ethiopia and Eritrea (UNMEE) is occupying a 25 km by 900 km area on the border to help stabilize the region.[11] HP Pavilion DV9017EA Battery
Disagreements following the war have resulted in stalemate punctuated by periods of elevated tension and renewed threats of war.[12][13][14] Central to the continuation of the stalemate is Ethiopia's failure to abide by the border delimitation ruling and reneging on its commitment to demarcation. HP Pavilion DV9017TX Battery
The stalemate has led the President of Eritrea to write his Eleven Letters to the United Nations Security Council, which urges the UN to take action on Ethiopia. Relations between the two countries is further strained by the continued effort of the Eritrean and Ethiopian leaders in supporting each other's opposition. HP Pavilion DV9018EA Battery
Human rights in Eritrea are viewed as poor.[1] Eritrea is a one-party state in which national legislative elections have been repeatedly postponed,[2] the judiciary is weak, and constitutional provisions protecting individual freedom have yet to be fully implemented.[ HP Pavilion DV9018TX Battery
Security forces are responsible for unlawful killings. Observers in the West accuse theGovernment of Eritrea of arbitrary arrest and detentions and of detaining an unknown number of people without charge for their political activism.Freedom of speech and the press are severely constrained while freedom of assembly, association, movement, and religion also are restricted. HP Pavilion DV9019EA Battery
Eritrean government officials and NGO representatives have participated in numerous public meetings and dialogues. In these sessions they have answered questions as fundamental as, "What are human rights?", "Who determines what are human rights?", and "What should take precedence, human or communal rights?"[3]HP Pavilion DV9019TX Battery
Women were able to vote in 1955. Eritrea was under the Italian government during this time. Although women were able to voteduring this time period, Eritreans, both men and women, did not continue to have any rights due to colonization of Eritrea byEthiopia in 1961 until 1991 when Eritrea gained its independence. HP Pavilion DV9020TX Battery
More than 90% of Eritrean women have been subject to female genital mutilation.[4] In Regional Assemblies and religious circles, Eritreans themselves speak out continuously against the use of female circumcision. They cite health concerns and individual freedom as being of primary concern when they say this. HP Pavilion DV9020XX Battery
Furthermore they implore rural peoples to cast away this ancient cultural practice.[5][6]
A new movement called Citizens for Democratic Rights in Eritrea aimed at bringing about dialogue between the government and opposition was formed in early 2009. The group consists of ordinary citizens and some people close to the government. HP Pavilion DV9021TX Battery
The movement was launched at a two day conference in London, after previous attempts at dialogue failed.[7]
At the time of Independence in 1993 Eritrea was arranged into ten provinces. These provinces were similar to the nine provinces operating during the colonial period. HP Pavilion DV9021XX Battery
In 1996, these were consolidated into six regions (zobas). The boundaries of these new regions are based on catchment basins.
| Critics of this policy contend that the Government of Eritrea was erasing the historical fabric of Eritrea while proponents believe that these new Regional boundaries would ease historical land disputes.[1] HP Pavilion DV9022EA Battery |
Furthermore proponents of this policy argue that basing boundaries on an important natural resource would ease the planning of its use.
Governance
Each region has a locally elected regional assembly while the local administrator is appointed by the President of Eritrea. HP Pavilion DV9022TX Battery
During Cabinet meetings the President also meets with the Regional Administrators who report on the activities of their regions.
The Regional Assemblies are charged with developing a budget for local programs and hearing the concerns of the local populations. HP Pavilion DV9023 Battery
Local programs included cultural events, infrastructure such as feeder roads, and to promote afforestation.
The Eritrean Defence Forces military role stems from Eritrea's strategic geographical location. It is located on the Red Sea with a foothold on the Straits of Bab al-Mandeb.
Military history in Eritrea stretches back for thousands of years; during ancient times up until the current day, the society of Eritreans has dealt with war and peace. HP Pavilion DV9023US Battery
In the 16th century the port of Massawa was used by the Ottomans to protect sea lanes from disruption, while more recently it was used by the Italians during their colonial occupation. The Colony of Eritrea was founded by the Italians in 1890, shortly after the opening of the Suez Canal. HP Pavilion DV9024 Battery
The Italians then expanded their possessions into Ethiopia. Eritrean (native soldiers), along with Italian troops occupied Ethiopia in 1936, however, this was reversed by British troops in 1941. The Eritrean infantry battalions and cavalry squadrons of the "Reale Esercito Coloniale" HP Pavilion DV9024EA Battery
(Royal Colonial Army) saw extensive service in the various Italian colonial territories between 1888 and 1942.
During the war for Eritrea's independence rebel movements (the ELF and the EPLF) used volunteers. In the final years of the struggle for independence, the EPLF ranks grew to 110,000 volunteers (some 3% of the total population). HP Pavilion DV9030EA Battery
Manpower
The Eritrean Defence Forces are one of the largest in Africa alongside Ethiopia, Egypt and Morocco. The size of Eritrea's population is small, particularly when compared to its neighbours. A military composed fully of career soldiers would not be adequate to meet the nation's defence needs. HP Pavilion DV9030US Battery
During peacetime the military of Eritrea numbers approximately 45,000[3] with a reserve force of approximately 250,000.[4]
National service
Every able bodied man and woman is required to serve ostensibly for 1½ years. HP Pavilion DV9033 Battery
In this time they receive six months of military training and the balance is spent working on national reconstruction projects. This is outlined in both the Constitution of Eritrea and Proclamation 82 issued by the National Assembly on 1995-10-23.[5] However, HP Pavilion DV9033CL Battery
the period of enlistment may be extended during times of national crisis and the typical period of national service is considerably longer than the minimum. This program aims to compensate for Eritrea’s lack of capital and to reduce dependence on foreign aid, while welding together an ethnically diverse society, HP Pavilion DV9035EA Battery
half Christian and half Muslim, representing nine ethnic groups.[6]
Military training is given at the Sawa Defence Training Centre and Kiloma Military Training Centre. Students, both male and female, are required to attend the Sawa training centre to complete the final year of their secondary education, HP Pavilion DV9035NR Battery
which is integrated with their military service. If a student does not attend this period of training, he or she will not be allowed to attend university - many routes to employment also require proof of military training. However, they may be able to attend a vocational training centre, or to find work in the private sector. HP Pavilion DV9036 Battery
At the end of the 1½ year national service, a conscript can elect to stay on and become a career military officer. If the conscript elects otherwise, in theory, they may return to their civilian life but will continue to be a reservist. In practice, graduates of military service are often chosen for further national service according to their vocation - for example, HP Pavilion DV9036EA Battery
teachers may be compulsorily seconded for several years to schools in an unfamiliar region of the country. According to the Government of Eritrea, "The sole objective of the National Service program is thus to cultivate capable, hardworking, and alert individuals."[1]
The salary for National Service conscripts is typically very low. HP Pavilion DV9037 Battery
First-year conscripts are generally paid 150 Nakfa (10 dollars) per month. This rises to 500 nakfa (33 dollars) per month after the first year of service.
Current issues
As of 2009, Eritrea is embroiled in a military stalemate with its neighbour and rival, Ethiopia.
HP Pavilion DV9037EA Battery
It is estimated that Eritrea maintains a force of at least 300,000 soldiers on the border with Ethiopia. While this matches the Ethiopian side, it is done so at considerably greater proportionate expense, given the far larger population from which Ethiopia is able to draw. HP Pavilion DV9038 Battery
Branches of the EDF
The Eritrean Defence Forces (EDF) are composed of three branches: Air Force, Army, and Navy. The Army is by far the largest, followed by the Air Force and Navy. The Commander-in-Chief of the EDF is the President of Eritrea.
The Minister of Defence oversees the EDF on a day-to-day basis. HP Pavilion DV9038EA Battery
The Eritrean–Ethiopian War took place from May 1998 to June 2000 between Ethiopia and Eritrea, forming one of the conflicts in the Horn of Africa. Eritrea and Ethiopia—two of the world's poorest countries—spent hundreds of millions of dollars on the war,[13][14][15] HP Pavilion DV9039 Battery
and suffered tens of thousands of casualties as a direct consequence of the conflict,[16] which resulted in minor border changes.
According to a ruling by an international commission in The Hague, Eritrea broke international law and triggered the war by invading Ethiopia.[17] HP Pavilion DV9039EA Battery
At the end of the war Ethiopia held all of the disputed territory and had advanced into Eritrea.[18] After the war ended, the Eritrea-Ethiopia Boundary Commission, a body founded by the UN, established that Badme, the disputed territory at the heart of the conflict, belongs to Eritrea.[19] As of 2012, Ethiopia still occupies the territory. HP Pavilion DV9040EA Battery
Prelude
From 1961 until 1991, Eritrea had fought a long war of independence against Ethiopia. The Ethiopian Civil Warbegan on 12 September 1974 when the Marxist Derg staged a coup d'état against Emperor Haile Selassie, HP Pavilion DV9040EU Battery
and lasted until 1991 when the Ethiopian People's Revolutionary Democratic Front (EPRDF)—a coalition of rebel groups led by the Tigrayan People's Liberation Front (TPLF))—overthrew the Derg government (weakened by their loss of support with the fall of communism in Eastern Europe) and installed a transitional government in the Ethiopian capitalAddis Ababa.[20] HP Pavilion DV9040TX Battery
During the civil war, the groups fighting the Derg government had a common enemy, so the TPLF allied itself with the Eritrean People's Liberation Front (EPLF). In 1991 as part of the United Nations facilitated transition of power to the transitional government, HP Pavilion DV9040US Battery
it was agreed that the EPLF should set up an autonomous transitional government in Eritrea and that a referendum would be held in Eritrea to find out if Eritreans wanted to secede from Ethiopia. The referendum was held and the vote was overwhelming in favour of independence. HP Pavilion DV9041 Battery
In April 1993 independence was achieved and the new state joined the United Nations.[21][22][23]
In 1991 the EPLF backed transitional government of Eritrea and the TPLF backed transitional government of Ethiopia, HP Pavilion DV9041EA Battery
agreed to set up a commission to look into any problems that arose between the two former war time allies over the foreseen independence of Eritrea.[24] This commission was not successful and during the following years relations between the governments of the two sovereign states deteriorated.[22] HP Pavilion DV9042 Battery
The border between the two states became a major irritant, and in November 1997 a border committee was set up to try to resolve that specific dispute. After federation and before independence the line of the border had been of minor importance because it was only a demarcation line between federated provinces and initially the two governments tacitly agreed that the border should remain as it had been immediately before independence. HP Pavilion DV9042EA Battery
However on independence the border became an international frontier, and the two governments could not agree on the line that the border should take along its entire length,[22] and they looked back to the colonial period treaties between Italy and Ethiopia to for a bases in international law for the precise line of the frontier between the states. HP Pavilion DV9043 Battery
Problems then arose because they could not agree on the interpretation of those agreements and treaties,[25] and it was not clear under international law how binding colonial treaties were on the two states.[26][27]
Writing after the war had finished Jon Abbink postulates that President Isaias Afewerki of Eritrea, HP Pavilion DV9043EA Battery
realising that his influence over the regime in Ethiopia was slipping and given that "the facts on the ground, in the absence of a concrete border being marked — which anyhow lost much of its relevance after 1962 when Eritrea was absorbed by Ethiopia — have eminent relevance to any borderline decision of today" calculated that Eritrea could annex Badme.[ HP Pavilion DV9044 Battery
If successful this could be used to enhance his reputation and help maintain Eritrea's privileged economic relationship with Ethiopia. However because Badme was in the province of Tigray the region that many of the members of the Ethiopian government originate (including Meles Zenawi the Ethiopian prime minister), HP Pavilion DV9044EA Battery
the Ethiopian government came under political pressure from within the EPRDF as well as from wider Ethiopian public to meet force with force.[28]
Chronology
After a series of armed incidents in which several Eritrean officials were killed near Badme,[30] HP Pavilion DV9045 Battery
on 6 May 1998, a large Eritrean mechanized force entered the Badme region, under Ethiopian administration, along the border of Eritrea and Ethiopia's northern Tigray Region, resulting in a fire fight between the Eritrean soldiers and the Tigrayan militia and security police they encountered. HP Pavilion DV9045EA Battery
The evidence showed that, at about 5:30 a.m. on 12 May 1998, Eritrean armed forces, composed of at least two brigades of regular soldiers, supported by tanks and artillery, attacked the town of Badme and several other border areas in Ethiopia’s Tahtay Adiabo Wereda, as well as at least two places in its neighboring Laelay Adiabo Wereda. HP Pavilion DV9046 Battery
On that day and in the days immediately following, Eritrean armed forces then pushed across the flat Badme plain to higher ground in the east. Although the evidence regarding the nature of Ethiopian armed forces in the area conflicted, the weight of the evidence indicated that the Ethiopian defenders were composed merely of militia and some police, HP Pavilion DV9046EA Battery
who were quickly forced to retreat by the invading Eritrean forces. Given the absence of an armed attack against Eritrea, the attack that began on 12 May cannot be justified as lawful self-defense under the UN Charter. HP Pavilion DV9047 Battery
15. The areas initially invaded by Eritrean forces on that day were all either within undisputed Ethiopian territory or within territory that was peacefully administered by Ethiopia and that later would be on the Ethiopian side of the line to which Ethiopian armed forces were obligated to withdraw in 2000 under the Cease-Fire Agreement of June 18, 2000. HP Pavilion DV9047EA Battery
On 13 May 1998 Ethiopia, in what Eritrean radio described as a "total war" policy, mobilized its forces for a full assault against Eritrea.[34] The Claims Commission found that this was in essence an affirmation of the existence of a state of war between belligerents, not a declaration of war, HP Pavilion DV9048 Battery
and that Ethiopia also notified the United Nations Security Council, as required under Article 51 of the UN Charter.
The fighting quickly escalated to exchanges of artillery and tank fire, leading to four weeks of intense fighting. Ground troops fought on three fronts.
HP Pavilion DV9048EA Battery
On 5 June 1998, the Ethiopians launched air attacks on the airport in Asmaraand the Eritreans retaliated by attacking the Ethiopian town of Mekele. These raids caused civilian casualties and deaths on both sides of the border.The United Nations Security Council adopted Resolution 1177 condemning the use of force and welcomed statements from both sides to end the air strikes. HP Pavilion DV9049 Battery
There was then a lull as both sides mobilized huge forces along their common border and dug extensive trenches.[39]Both countries spent several hundred million dollars on new military equipment.[13] This was despite the peace mediation efforts by the Organization of African Unity (OAU) and the US/Rwanda peace plan that was in the works. HP Pavilion DV9049EA Battery
The US/Rwanda proposal was a four point peace plan that called for withdrawal of both forces to pre-June 1998 positions. Eritrea refused, and instead demanded the demilitarization of all disputed areas along the common border, to be overseen by a neutral monitoring force, and direct talks.[40][41] HP Pavilion DV9050 Battery
With Eritrea's refusal to accept the US/Rwanda peace plan, on 22 February 1999 Ethiopia launched Operation Sunset, a massive military offensive to recapture Badme. Tension had been high since 6 February 1999, when Ethiopia claimed that Eritrea had violated the moratorium on air raids by bombing Adigrat, a claim it later withdrew.[42] HP Pavilion DV9050EA Battery
Surveying the extensive trenches the Eritreans had constructed, Ethiopian General Samora Yunis observed, "The Eritreans are good at digging trenches and we are good at converting trenches into graves. They, too, know this. We know each other very well."[43]
Following the first five days of heavy fighting at Badme, by which time Ethiopia had broken HP Pavilion DV9051 Battery
through Eritrea's fortified front and was 10 kilometers (six miles) deep into Eritrean territory, Eritrea accepted the OAU peace plan on 27 February 1999.[44][45] While both states said that they accepted the OAU peace plan, Ethiopia did not immediately stop its advance because it demanded that peace talks be contingent on an Eritrean withdrawal from territory occupied since the first outbreak of fighting.[46] HP Pavilion DV9051EA Battery
On 16 May the BBC reported that after a lull of two weeks the Ethiopians had attacked at Velessa on the Tsorona front-line, south of Eritrea's capital Asmaraand that after two days of heavy fighting the Eritreans had beaten back the attack claiming to have destroyed more than forty-five Ethiopian tanks; HP Pavilion DV9052 Battery
although not able to verify the claim, which the Ethiopian Government dismissed as ridiculous, the BBC reporter did see more than 300 dead Ethiopians and more than 20 destroyed Ethiopian tanks.[47] In June 1999 the fighting continued with both sides in entrenched positions.[48] About a quarter of Eritrean soldiers were women.[49] HP Pavilion DV9052EA Battery
"Proximity talks" broke down in early May 2000 "with Ethiopia accusing Eritrea of imposing unacceptable conditions".[50][51] On 12 May the Ethiopians launched an offensive that broke through the Eritrean lines between Shambuko and Mendefera, crossed the Mareb River, and cut the road between Barentu and Mendefera, HP Pavilion DV9053 Battery
the main supply line for Eritrean troops on the western front of the fighting.[52][53]
Ethiopian sources state that On 16 May Ethiopian aircraft all returned to their bases after attacking strategic targets between Areza and Maidema, and betweenBarentu and Omohager, while heavy ground fighting continued in the Das and Barentu area and in Maidema. HP Pavilion DV9053EA Battery
The next day Ethiopian ground forces with air support captured Das. Eritrean forces evacuated Barentu and fighting continued in Maidema.[54] Also on 17 May, due to the continuing hostilities, the United Nations Security Council adopted Resolution 1298 imposing an arms embargo on both countries. HP Pavilion DV9054 Battery
By 23 May Ethiopia claimed "[its] troops had seized vital command posts in the heavily defended Zalambessa area, about 100km (60 miles) south of the Eritrean capital, Asmara".[51] But the Eritreans claimed they withdrew from the disputed border town of Zalambessa and other disputed areas on the central front as a "...HP Pavilion DV9054EA Battery
'goodwill' gesture to revive peace talks"[55] while Ethiopia claimed it was a 'tactical retreat' to take away one of Ethiopia's last remaining excuses for continuing the war,[56] ("The scale of Eritrean defeat was apparent when Eritrea unexpectedly accepted the OAU peace framework."[57]). HP Pavilion DV9055 Battery
Having recaptured most of the contested territories—and heard that Eritrean government in accordance with a request from the OAU would withdraw from any other territories it occupied at the start of fighting—on 25 May 2000, Ethiopia declared the war was over.[1][58][59] HP Pavilion DV9055EA Battery
By the end of May 2000, Ethiopia occupied about a quarter of Eritrea's territory, displacing 650,000 people[60] and destroying key components of Eritrea's infrastructure.
The widespread use of trenches has resulted in comparisons of the conflict to the trench warfare of World War I.[39] HP Pavilion DV9056 Battery
This trench warfare led to the loss of "...thousands of young lives in human-wave assaults on Eritrea's positions..."[61] The Eritrean defences were eventually overtaken by a surprise Ethiopian pincer movement on the Western front, attacking a mined, but lightly defended mountain (without trenches), resulting in the capture of Barentu and an Eritrean retreat. HP Pavilion DV9056EA Battery
The element of surprise in the attack involved the use of donkeys as pack animals as well as being a solely infantry affair, with tanks coming in afterwards only to secure the area.[62]
Regional destabilisation
The fighting also spread to Somalia as both governments tried to outflank one another. HP Pavilion DV9057 Battery
The Eritrean government began supporting the Oromo Liberation Front,[63] a rebel group seeking independence of Oromia from Ethiopia that was based in a part of Somalia controlled by Somali warlord Mohamed Farrah Aidid.[64] Ethiopia retaliated by supporting groups in southern Somalia who were opposed to Aidid, HP Pavilion DV9057EA Battery
and by renewing relations with the Islamic regime in Sudan – which is accused of supporting the Eritrean Islamic Salvation, a Sudan-based group that had launched attacks in the Eritrea-Sudan border region—while also lending support to various Eritrean rebel groups including a group known as the Eritrean Islamic Jihad.[65][66] HP Pavilion DV9058 Battery
Casualties, displacement and economic disruption
Eritrea claimed that 19,000 Eritrean soldiers were killed during the conflict;[67] most reports put the total war casualties from both sides as being around 70,000. All these figures have been contested and other news reports simply state that "tens of thousands" or "as many as 100,000" were killed in the war. HP Pavilion DV9058EA Battery
Eritrea accused Ethiopia of using "human waves" to defeat Eritrean trenches. But according to a report by The Independent, there were no "human waves" because Ethiopia instead outmaneuvered and overpowered the Eritrean trenches.[74]
The fighting led to massive internal displacement in both countries as civilians fled the war zone. HP Pavilion DV9059 Battery
Ethiopia expelled 77,000 Eritreans and Ethiopians of Eritrean origin it deemed to be security risk, thus compounding Eritrea's refugee problem.[63][75][76] The majority of the 77,000 Eritrean and Ethiopians of Eritrean origins were considered well off by the Ethiopian standard of living. HP Pavilion DV9059EA Battery
They were deported after their belongings had been confiscated.[77] On the Eritrean side, around 7,500 Ethiopians living in Eritrea were interned, and thousands of others were deported. Thousands more remain in Eritrea, many of whom are unable to pay the 1,000 Birr tax on Ethiopians relocating to Ethiopia. HP Pavilion DV9060EA Battery
According to Human Rights Watch, detainees on both sides were subject in some cases to torture, rape, or other degrading treatment.[78]
The economies of both countries were already weak as a result of decades of cold war politics, civil war and drought. HP Pavilion DV9060US Battery
The war exacerbated these problems, resulting in food shortages. Prior to the war, much of Eritrea's trade was with Ethiopia, and much of Ethiopia's foreign trade relied on Eritrean roads and ports.
Cessation of hostilities
On 18 June 2000, the parties agreed to a comprehensive peace agreement and binding arbitration of their disputes under the Algiers Agreement. HP Pavilion DV9061 Battery
A 25-kilometer-wide Temporary Security Zone (TSZ) was established within Eritrea, patrolled by United Nations peacekeeping forces from over 60 countries (the United Nations Mission in Ethiopia and Eritrea (UNMEE). On 12 December 2000 a peace agreement was signed by the two governments.[79] HP Pavilion DV9061EA Battery
On 13 April 2002, the Eritrea-Ethiopia Boundary Commission established under the Algiers Agreement in collaboration with Permanent Court of Arbitration in the Hague agreed upon a "final and binding" verdict. The ruling awarded some territory to each side, but Badme (the flash point of the conflict) was awarded to Eritrea.[2][80] HP Pavilion DV9062 Battery
Both countries vowed to accept the decision wholeheartedly the day after the ruling was made official.[81] A few months later Ethiopia requested clarifications, then stated it was deeply dissatisfied with the ruling. In September 2003 Eritrea refused to agree to a new commission,[ HP Pavilion DV9062EA Battery
which they would have had to agree to if the old binding agreement was to be set aside,[2] and asked the international community to put pressure on Ethiopia to accept the ruling.[85] In November 2004, Ethiopia accepts the ruling "in principle".[86]
On 10 December 2005, Ethiopia announced it was withdrawing some of its forces from the Eritrean border "in the interests of peace".[87] HP Pavilion DV9064 Battery
Then, on 15 December the United Nations began to withdraw peacekeepers from Eritrea in response to a UN resolution passed the previous day.[88]
On 21 December 2005, a commission at the Permanent Court of Arbitration in the Hague ruled that Eritrea broke international law when it attacked Ethiopia in 1998, HP Pavilion DV9064EA Battery
triggering the broader conflict.Ethiopia and Eritrea have since remobilized troops along the border, and as of 2006, there is new fear that the two countries could return to war.[90][91] On 7 December 2005, Eritrea banned UN helicopter flights and ordered Western members (particularly from the United States, Canada, Europe and Russia) HP Pavilion DV9065 Battery
of the UN peacekeeping mission on its border with Ethiopia to leave within 10 days, sparking concerns of further conflict with its neighbour.[92] In November 2006 Ethiopia and Eritrea boycotted a Eritrea-Ethiopia Boundary Commission meeting at the Hague which would have demarcated their disputed border using UN maps. HP Pavilion DV9065EA Battery
Ethiopia was not there because it does not accept the decision and as it will not allow physical demarcation it will not accept map demarcation, and Eritrea was not there because although it backs the commission's proposals, it insists that the border should be physically marked out.[93] HP Pavilion DV9066 Battery
Despite the peace treaty, tensions remain between the two countries. Both nations have been accused of supporting the dissents and armed opposition groups against each other. A Canadian analyst & researcher for UN news agency IRIN, John Young, reported that "the military victory of the EPRDF (Ethiopia) that ended the Ethiopia–Eritrea War, HP Pavilion DV9066EA Battery
and its occupation of a swath of Eritrean territory, brought yet another change to the configuration of armed groups in the borderlands between Ethiopia and Eritrea. Asmara replaced Khartoum as the leading supporter of anti-EPRDF armed groups operating along the frontier".[94] HP Pavilion DV9067 Battery
However, Ethiopia is also accused of supporting rebels opposed to the Eritrean government.[95]
At the November 2007 deadline, some analysts feared the restart of the border war but the date passed without any conflict.[96] HP Pavilion DV9067EA Battery
There were many reasons why war didn't resume. Former U.S. Ambassador David Shinn said both Ethiopia and Eritrea were in a bad position. Many fear the weak Eritrean economy is not improving like other African nations while others say Ethiopia is bogged down in Mogadishu. HP Pavilion DV9068 Battery
David Shinn said Ethiopia has "a very powerful and so far disciplined national army that made pretty short work of the Eritreans in 2000 and the Eritreans have not forgotten that."[96] HP Pavilion DV9068EA Battery
But he stated Ethiopia is not interested in war because America would condemn Ethiopia if it initiated the war saying "I don't think even the US could sit by and condone an Ethiopian initiated attack on Eritrea." HP Pavilion DV9069 Battery,HP Pavilion DV9069EA Battery,HP Pavilion DV9071 Battery
No comments:
Post a Comment