Escaping Eritrea — a state ruled by fear, not law
There is no civil war in Eritrea, but why are thousands fleeing the country every month?
There is no civil war in Eritrea, but a pervasive control system used in absolute arbitrariness to keep the population in a state of permanent anxiety forces thousands to flee every month
Reeling under a reign of terror
The east African nation with a population of 6 million is one of the world's poorest
It has been marked by repression and fear since its independence from Ethiopia in 1993
Ultimate power has remained largely in the hands of one man, President Isaias Afewerki
“ Faced with a seemingly hopeless situation they feel powerless to change, hundreds of thousands of Eritreans are fleeing their country. It is not law that rules Eritreans – but fear ” — Commission of Inquiry on Human Rights in Eritrea, 2015
Eritreans have no say in governance and little control over many aspects of their own lives
The nation has one party, has never held free elections and has no independent judiciary
People are forced into decades-long military service, then exploited as slave labour for the state
Tens of thousands are arrested, often without charge and tortured for indeterminate periods
Isaias is accused of sponsoring regional rebels including Al-Qaeda affiliate, the Shebab
Eritrea’s state-controlled economy is in the doldrums and Isaias rejects foreign aid
Journey to freedom
Eritrea is the third-largest source of refugees trying to reach Europe, after Syrians and Afghans
Many crawl under razor wires, tiptoe across minefields and sneak past guards in their bid for freedom
They first make the perilous journey into Sudan, then across Libya before setting out to sea to Europe
| 4,00,000 | fled Eritrea in 2014, numbers have doubled over the past six years |
| 2,16,453 | Eritreans live in refugee camps in Sudan and Ethiopia |
| 5,000 | people flee Eritrea every month |
| 26,700 | of the 3,81,412 arrivals by sea in Europe this year were Eritreans |
| 3,394 | of the 13,000 unaccompanied children who arrived by sea to Italy in 2014 were Eritrean |
| 3,239 | Eritreans made the perilous journey to the U.K. in 2014 |
| 27% | of the 121,000 arrivals by sea in Italy this year were from Eritrea |
| 90% | of Eritreans who sought asylum in EU this year received protection |
| 9% | of Eritrean refugees in 2015 are unaccompanied and separated children |
| 15% | of the 6,770 unaccompanied minors in Europe this year are from Eritrea |
| 2% | income tax has been levied on all Eritrean citizens living abroad |
| 87% | who applied for asylum in U.K. were given the right to stay |
Eritreans in Europe
Germany | 40% |
United Kingdom | 22% |
Sweden | 18% |
France | 7% |
Netherlands | 4% |
Other | 9% |
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