Source : Eritrea Focus – written submissions to the Transnational Repression in the U.K. Inquiry

24 February 2025

Submission scope

  1. This submission is made in response to the call for evidence of the Treasury Committee inquiry into transnational repression in the UK. It aims to respond to the following questions to the Committee’s call for evidence:
    1. How does transnational repression impact those targeted and their wider communities?
    2. How effective is UK domestic legislation in preventing instances of transnational repression?
  2. This submission is made in response to the call for evidence of the Treasury Committee inquiry into transnational repression in the UK. It aims to respond to the following questions to the Committee’s call for evidence:

Introduction

  1. Strategically located by the Red Sea with approximately 1,700 Km1 of coastline and untapped natural resources, Eritrea is one of the smallest and poorest countries in Africa. The country has been ravaged by many years of war and after it gained independence from Ethiopia in 1993, it has been ruled by a self-appointed President, Isaias Afeworki, who is accountable to no one. He rules the country with an iron fist as his own fiefdom with no constitution or parliament and with tens of thousands of Eritrean citizens languishing in his gulags for decades2 . Its youth are enslaved in perpetuity inan inept national service that does no good for the country but serves the dictator in his never-ending regional wars3.
  1. Not many people know about Eritrea. In 2024, Human Rights Watch published a succinct, two-page piece titled “Why you should know about Eritrea” that sums up what is happening in Eritrea under President Isaias Afeworki’s rule4 Grotesque human right abuses have been and continue to push the Eritrean people to flee their homeland to bordering countries and beyond with some lucky ones reaching European shores.
  2. What happens in Eritrea and its prisons were graphically articulated by Fred Harter of the Guardian in his article of 20 January 20255
    . The piece titled “It was almost a relief when someone died’: former prisoners on the torture and terror of Eritrea’s secret prisons” provides horrific details of the torture Eritrean prisoners endure in the hands of the regime. No wonder Eritrea’s main “export” is refugees with young children aspiring to become refugees rather than doctors and engineers to help rebuild their nation.
  3. Even after leaving their homeland for safety in Europe and elsewhere the long arm of the regime6 continues to mercilessly harass and intimidate Eritreans. Eritrean Embassies/Consulate and Government agents, including the so-called 4 th Front (set up by the regime to monitor its diaspora) actively roam across western countries masquerading as refugees harassing innocent members of the diaspora.
  1. Harassment of anti-government diaspora can be physical (beatings and bullying) and psychological i.e. isolation (e.g. exclusion from social events). Through its Embassies and Consulates, the Eritrean regime can reach anyone, anywhere at will7 with an absolute disregard to the laws and norms of host countries. Not even churches are spared where the regime demands contribution from the congregation. Those who refuse to pay are denied service and excluded from churches. Young worshipers and others were kicked out of churches because they opposed the detention of his holiness Abune Antonios, the Patriarch of the Eritrean Orthodox Church8 [now deceased].
  2. The Human Rights Watch piece referred to above concludes by saying “Internationa ignorance about Eritrea (and other human rights crisis zones) is thus not just a shame intellectually; it has impacts on politics close to home”.
  3. Eritrea Focus commends this Parliament Inquiry into “Transnational Repression in the UK” and eagerly awaits its outcome.

Eritrean Diaspora Repression in the UK by the State of Eritrea

  1. Eritrea is a rogue state that does not abide by the rule of law or international norms which makes the regime unique even when compared to other rogue states in Africa. In Rwanda, for example, people are allowed to build their lives and live freely unless they speak out or get involved in activities against the Government. In Eritrea every single citizen is owned by the regime. The people are told what to think and do, which school to go to, when to join and leave the national service, where to work and who to worship. It is no exaggeration to sa Eritrea is a prison state and hell on earth for its citizens, hence why it is the fastest emptying nation9.
  2. Unfortunately, the oppression and intimidation by the regime is not contained within its own borders but follows those lucky enough to escape, including those that come to the UK10 The State of Eritrea transnational repression takes many forms in the UK. From individual intimidation and beatings by regime agents to a whole range of other abuses that exploit members of the diaspora. The regime even demands single mothers to pay a cut from their meagre welfare benefits. As taxpayers, we indirectly and unknowingly support repression in Eritrea and contribute to the flow of refugees to the UK.
  3. We fully accept no government will be able to stop all illicit activities the Eritrean regime carries out in the UK. However, there are measures we believe that can be put in place to curtail those activities that have had devastating impact on the lives of a large section of the Eritrean diaspora. Some of those activities and measures needed are noted below.

Two Percent Diaspora Tax

  1. The State of Eritrea has no double taxation treaty with the UK or any other country around the world to levy its diaspora any form of tax be it income or capital gains. The Eritrean authorities try to justify the collection of diaspora tax on the basis that other countries do so. This could not be further from the truth, hence makes the collection of the 2% diaspora tax in the UK illegal in our view. For example, the US and the UK Governments negotiated a USA-UK Double Taxation Convention, which entered into force on 31 March 2003, further outlined following the UK’s withdrawal from the European Union. Italy and the UK have a Double Taxation Treaty that was signed in 1988 and came into effect at the start of 1990.
  1. Most of the collection of the diaspora tax in the UK is carried out by the Eritrean Embassy, now downgraded to a Chargé d’affaires, from their offices at 96 White Lion Street, London N1 9PF – a building acquired by an Eritrean Charity (registered in the UK) in the 1980s, which the Asmara regime seized after independence in 1993.
  2. Eritrean Consulate staff go around UK cities and towns to ensure diaspora members pay the 2% tax and other contributions that they demand11. They appoint proxies in cities and towns with large diaspora communities to spy on individuals and assess how much they must pay. Payment can be made here in the UK or in Asmara on arrival.
  3. There is ample evidence to demonstrate the Eritrean Consulate is involved in the collection of diaspora tax and other contributions through threats and intimidation – see a video clip of recording carried out at the Consulate12
    . This evidence was reported to the police – crime incident number: CAD 8081/03/Mar/15 and a response received from the Chief Inspector stated, “I am going to ask my embassy liaison team to investigation the allegation”. That was on 15 April 2015, and nothing seems to have been done by the UK authorities in the last 10 years while the abuse continues unabated. Other Governments, including the United States, Netherlands, Canada, Germany, Sweden, Norway, Belgium, Isreal as well as the European Union and United Nations have taken actions to address the problem.
  4. In 2022, Eritrea Focus carried out an in-depth study into the 2% diaspora tax and its impact, especially on low-income families, that was submitted to the UK Government at that time13. We have since raised the report with our Government contacts several times but to no effect, making the UK an outlier in this regard.
  5. In February 2023, a group of UK parliamentarians called for an investigation into the Eritrean diaspora tax amid concerns it finances atrocities in Tigray.14
  6. Recommendation 1: The UK Government should launch an inquiry into the collection of the 2% diaspora tax in the UK and encourage the Metropolitan Police and its Parliamentary and Diplomatic Protection Department to investigate both recent and past evidence related to the tax. If the tax or its collection, is found to be illegal, or to infringe on the human rights of the Eritrean diaspora, the Government should make it clear that the practice will no longer be tolerated and engage with the Eritrean Consulate to halt
    the practice.

State of Eritrean Sponsored Festivals in the UK

  1. One of the ways the Eritrean regime exercises hold over the diaspora is through PFDJ run “festivals” at which Government agents use songs and speeches to propagate message of hate15and war from the streets of London. These “festivals” coordinated by the Eritrean Consulate and proxies are used to intimidate members of the diaspora and extract huge sums of money from them each year through admission fees, sale o Merchandise and donations. The money is then laundered through diplomatic bags and couriers16 to various parts of the Middle east, East Africa and elsewhere.
  1. In recent years, members of the diaspora have started to challenge these “festivals” expressing serious concerns to the authorities at local and government levels. In 2022, following clashes between pro and anti-government groups and fearing the loss of life, Eritrea Focus started to monitor the “festivals” and documented each event not only in the UK but across Europe and North America in a dossier17 pleading with the authorities to ban all PFDJ “festivals”. The “festivals” dossier was shared widely, including with the Home Office, FCDO, London Mayor’s Office, the Metropolitan Police, Ministry of Defence, The Scottish and Welsh Governments and various local authorities. Since
    then, the number of “festivals” have been curtailed but continue to take place threatening the safety of members of the diaspora and the general public. Thankfully, although there have been numerous injuries, including to the police, around these “festivals” in the UK, there has not been any fatality, unlike in Isreal where several refugees have been killed in pro and anti-government clashes18.
  2. Recommendation 2: The UK Government should closely monitor all Eritrean statesponsored events within the UK and take action to ban them if credible evidence shows they pose a risk of violence or intimidation. Additionally, the Government should consul Eritrean diaspora communities to assess the impact these events, ensuring their concerns are heard and that steps are taken to safeguard their safety and well-being

Sanctions Proposal to the UK Government

  1. In May 2024, the UN Special Rapporteur on Eritrea urged the international community to use collective pressure, including targeted sanctions, to address Eritrea’s ongoing human rights violations.19
  2. Responding to this call, in October 2024, REDRESS20 and Eritrea Focus submitted a detailed dossier to the UK Government, seeking the imposition of targeted sanctions under the UK’s Global Human Rights Sanctions Regulations 2020 on 13 Eritrean individuals and State owned entities connected to serious human rights violations in Eritrea, Tigray and internationally.
  3. Several of individuals and entities named in the submission have already been sanctioned by the United States Government21 and the European Union,22 demonstrating the international recognition of their roles in human rights abuses.
  4. REDRESS and Eritrea Focus view the sanctions submission as a crucial first step toward holding Eritrea accountable, both for its domestic abuses and its transnational repression. For the victims, human rights sanctions by the UK Government would offer a tangible means of accountability and send a powerful message of solidarity for the abuses endured both within Eritrea and diaspora communities around the world.
  5. Targeted sanctions could be especially effective, given London’s role as a financial hub for investments in Eritrea. By limiting the regime’s access to critical resources, the UK could weaken the regime’s ability to maintain power and stir violence and repression internationally. In a media interview on 12 April 2023, Yemane Gebreab attested to the effectiveness of sanctions in curbing the Eritrean regime’s access to resources, statingthat: “Once major corporations, institutions that we do business with get a feeling thatEritrea is under sanctions, they become very nervous about doing any business with Eritrea”.23
  1. In addition to freezing the asset, imposing travel bans on Eritrean regime officials could have significant consequences. These individuals have traveled frequently on diplomatic missions’ multiple times between January 2017 and 2023,24 attending diaspora festivals in Germany (2019) and the UK (2019) or leading seminars for Eritrean nationals residing in Switzerland (2021), Germany (2021) and the United Arab Emirates (2019). As detailed above these events have been linked to incitement to violence, intimidation, coercive fundraising techniques, and pro-regime propaganda.25Travel bans would prevent regime representatives from attending such festivals, weaking the regime’s influence over diaspora communities.
  2. In February 2022, Chairperson of Eritrea Focus, called on the world to impose sanctions on Eritrea,26 stating that multilateral sanctions could pressure the regime into change, bringing hope and peace to Eritrea, Ethiopia and the wider international community.27 This call has been widely supported by Eritrean diaspora groups, who are increasingly frustrated by the lack of international action on Eritrea’s severe human rights abuses at home and abroad.28
  3. Recommendation 3: The UK Government should use its Global Human Rights Sanctions Regulations 2020 to designate senior Eritrean Government and military officials, as well as State-owned entities, involved in serious human rights violation in Eritrea and in harassing, intimidating and coercing members of the Eritrean diaspora in the UK and internationally. The UK Government should collaborate closely with Eritrean civil society and the diaspora to collect and strengthen the evidence required for these designations.

Concluding Remarks

  1. The atrocities that are taking place in Eritrea have been fully documented by numerous organisations including the UN, Amnesty International, Human Rights Watch and other NGOs over many years. The evidence is there but what is needed is action which has been lacking for years while women and girls are raped29, innocent people imprisoned, tortured and killed. These abuses of Eritreans by the regime do not end within the borders of their homeland but rather the bullying, extortion and harassment follows them wherever they go in search for safety and justice.
  2. We are encouraged by the Israeli Government’s recent “Bill to deport Eritrean Migrants who back the regime” which has apparently passed preliminary Knesset reading30
    . We are, of course, concerned about the impact that these potential deportations will have on the livelihood of their families at home who rely on remittances for their basic needs. However, we believe the Israeli action is a step in the right direction to deter transnational repression by the State of Eritrean with impunity.
  3. There is an outcry about the influx of Eritrean refugees to the UK, but trying to deal with it when the refugees have reached Calais or European shores is frankly too late. Anurgent action that deals with the problem at source is needed, not only to sustain the veryfabric of Eritrean society but to also stem the flow of Eritrean refugees to the UK.
  1. Recommendation 4: The UK Government should recognize the severe psychological impact of transnational repression on the Eritrean diaspora and take action to protect those facing harassment, intimidation, and threats. The Government should provide support for victims of such abuse, including mental health services and legal protection, and work with international bodies to ensure that transnational repression is addressed in line with international human rights law.

thank you.
Contact Eritrea Focus: Email: Info@eritrea-focus.org Mobile: +44 (0) 7949700412

Footnote:

Eritrea Focus based in London UK, is an association of Non-Governmental Organisations(NGOs), human rights organisations, exile and refugee groups and individuals. The objective of Eritrea Focus is to draw attention to the horrific human rights abuses and suffering of Eritreans, both within the country and as refugees living abroad. We campaign for democratic accountability in Eritrea and the establishment of the rule of law and actively engage with the international community. Website: Eritrea Focus | Eritrea Focus is an association of NGOs.

Submission complete

Your submission reference is ECE101029
This reference will be sent to habteh@hotmail.com.

Sunday, 23 February 2025 at 11:00am

1 How long is Eritrea red Sea Coastline? – Search
2 ‘Mouth Stuffed To Muffle Screams’: Eritreans Recount Prison Horror – Barron’s The Washington Post, “An African gulag so ghastly that inmates risk death to escape“, 6 January 2024
3 To avoid another conflict in the Horn of Africa, now is the time to act | Opinions | Al Jazeera Eritrea Denies Stirring Conflict in Horn of Africa
4 UN Should Ensure Continued Scrutiny of Rights Crisis in Eritrea | Human Rights Watch
5 ‘It was almost a relief when someone died’: former prisoners on the torture and terror of Eritrea’s secret prisons | Global development | The Guardian
6 Amnesty International, “Eritrea: Repression without borders: Threats to human rights defenders abroad”, 27 June 2019
7 Amnesty International, “Eritrea: Government officials and supporters target critics abroad as repression stretches beyond borders”, 27 June 2019.
8(https://www.facebook.com/share/v/1BmvpYE371/?mibextid=wwXIfr)
9 The Guardian, “Trapped and bereft in the world’s ‘fastest emptying country’”, 28 September 2016.
10 Amnesty International, “Eritrea: Repression without borders: Threats to human rights defenders abroad”, 27 Jun
11 (https://youtu.be/wLbAeSA7cOQ?si=FOjCrGXthjuH2QWB)
12 EXCLUSIVE: Video Evidence Shows Eritrea Embassy Extorting Millions of Pounds in ‘Diaspora Tax’ Scam
13 Eritrea’s 2_ Diaspora Tax and its impact in the UK (1) + 31 October 2022 report | Eritrea Focus
14 Al Jazeera, “Eritrea’s ‘diaspora tax’ is funding violence and oppression”, 20 February 2023.
15 CBC News, “Why Eritreans in Canada are clashing at festivals”, 23 August 2023.
16 Eritrean man with £15,000 caught at the London Airport.flv
17 The-Summer-PFDJ-Died-Final.pdf
18 Dozens wounded in bloody clash between opposing Eritrean groups in Israel | PBS News 2 dead, 5 wounded in clashes between Eritrean asylum seekers in Tel Aviv
19 https://www.ohchr.org/en/documents/country-reports/ahrc5624-situation-human-rights-eritrea-report-special-rapporteur
20 About us | Redress
21 https://home.treasury.gov/news/press-releases/jy0478
22 https://www.eeas.europa.eu/eeas/petition-eritrean-europeans-against-groundless-and-unjust-accusationssanctions-againsteritrea_en#:~:text=As%20to%20sanctions%20which%20you,in%20addressing%20these%20pressing%20issues.
23 Black Agenda Report, “US Still Imposing Illegal, Unilateral Economic Sanctions on Eritrea”, 12 April 2023.
24 Confidential evidence detailing these trips can be provided upon represet
25 See Annex B.
26 Habte Hagos, “Sanction My Country – An Eritrean plea to the World”, 2022.
27 Habte Hagos, “Sanction My Country – An Eritrean plea to the World”, 2022. Eritrea Hub, “Eritrea Focus statement on the US sanctions and the Tigray war”, 14 November 2021.
28 Facebook, “Joint letter by #Eritrean opposition to President Joe Biden supporting sanctions”, 5 October 2021.
29 The Washington Post, “Raped during Ethiopia’s war, survivors now rejected by their families”, 26 November 2023.
30 Bill to deport Eritrean migrants who back regime passes preliminary Knesset reading | Eritrea Focu

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