Eritrea: The recruitment of children and their participation in the war against Ethiopia (May 1998-June 2000)
| Publisher | Canada: Immigration and Refugee Board of Canada |
| Author | Research Directorate, Immigration and Refugee Board, Canada |
| Publication Date | 16 June 2000 |
| Citation / Document Symbol | ERT34684.E |
| Reference | 2 |
| Cite as | Canada: Immigration and Refugee Board of Canada, Eritrea: The recruitment of children and their participation in the war against Ethiopia (May 1998-June 2000), 16 June 2000, ERT34684.E, available at: https://www.refworld.org/docid/3ae6ad5034.html [accessed 3 June 2023] |
| Disclaimer | This is not a UNHCR publication. UNHCR is not responsible for, nor does it necessarily endorse, its content. Any views expressed are solely those of the author or publisher and do not necessarily reflect those of UNHCR, the United Nations or its Member States. |
Please consult ERT32193.E of 13 July 1999 for general information on conscription in Eritrea.
In May 1998 an incident involving Eritrean and Ethiopian soldiers in the Badme region led to a border conflict between both countries (AI 1999; ICSUCS 7 Jan. 2000; IND Apr. 2000, 3.17). In January 1999, following months of failed attempts to resolve the crisis, the UN Secretary-General appointed a special envoy to resolve the issue (ICSUCS 7 Jan. 2000). The conflict erupted again in February 1999 (ibid.) and observes estimated that 30,000 combatants were killed in the "heavy" fighting, with thousands of soldiers dying in the May 1999 fighting (IND Apr. 2000, 3.17). The fighting has periodically started and stopped since then (ibid.). On 15 June 2000 Eritrea and Ethiopia stated they would sign a peace treaty in Algeria on 18 June 2000 (Dawn 16 June 2000).
The 7 January 2000 publication entitled The Use of Children as Soldiers in Africa by the International Coalition to Stop the Use of Child Soldiers states that "there is no confirmed recruitment of underage soldiers a the present time, although the lack of systematic birth registration makes it impossible to know whether the minimum age is being respected in practice." The April 2000 Eritrea Assessment, produced by the Immigration and Nationality Directorate (IND) of the UK Home Office corroborated this information, based on the US Department of State's Country Reports 1999, stating that "a small number of children under the age of 18 have reportedly entered military service, usually as a result of inadequate identification documents. When soldiers have been found to be below 18 they have been removed from service" (5.13).
However, Ethiopian and pro-Ethiopian media sources allege that Eritrea had used under-age children and abducted young girls to fight in the war against Ethiopia (Ethiopia: Seven Days Update 14 July 1998; ibid. 1 Mar. 1999; Radio Ethiopia 21 Apr. 1999; ibid. 7 Oct. 1999; WIC 17 Nov. 1999) forcibly conscripted Afar children for military service (Ethiopia: Seven Days Update 8 Feb. 1999), enforced an "indiscriminate recruitment for military service" from which many Eritreans were fleeing to Sudan (WIC 1 Dec. 1999), and jailed youths who refused to attend military training centres and their parents (ibid.).
In April 1999 an Eritrean spokesman at the embassy in Nairobi spoke with the UN Integrated Regional Information Network (IRIN) and denied allegations that children were forced to perform national service and that hundreds of people had been rounded up in Asmarafor allegedly attempting to escape national service (IRIN 22 Apr. 1999).
Additional and/or corroborating information could not be found among the sources consulted by the Research Directorate.
This Response was prepared after researching publicly accessible information currently available to the Research Directorate within time constraints. This Response is not, and does not purport to be, conclusive as to the merit of any particular claim to refugee status or asylum. Please find below the list of additional sources consulted in researching this Information Request.
Amnesty International (AI). 1999. Amnesty International Report 1999.
Dawn [Karachi]. 16 June 2000. "Ethiopia, Eritrea to Sign Peace Deal on 18th."
Ethiopia: Seven Days Update [Addis Ababa]. 1 March 1999. "Ethiopia: The Battle for Badme: OLF There, ELF Here." (Africa News/ NEXIS)
_____. 8 February 1999. "Ethiopia: The War of Words: Caught in the Middle." (NEXIS)
_____. 14 July 1998. "Ethiopia: Out of Eritrea: Using the Child Soldier." (NEXIS)
Immigration and Nationality Directorate (IND), Home Office, UK. April 2000. Eritrea Assessment.
[UN] Integrated Regional Information Network (IRIN). 22 April 1999. "Eritrea: Mass Round-Up of "Draft Dodgers" Denied." (Africa News/NEXIS)
International Coalition to Stop the Use of Child Soldiers (ICSUCS). 7 January 2000. The Use of Children as Soldiers in Africa: A Country Analysis of Child Recruitment and Participation in Armed Conflict.
Radio Ethiopia [Addis Ababa, in English]. 7 October 1999. "Eritrean Military Trainees Surrender to Opposition GroupEthiopian Radio." (BBC Summary 9 Oct. 1999/NEXIS)
_____. [Addis Ababa, in English, external service]. 21 April 1999. "Ethiopia Accuses Eritrea of Conscripting Children into the Army." (BBC Worldwide Monitoring 22 Apr. 1999/NEXIS).
Walta Information Centre (WIC) [Addid Ababa, in English]. 1 December 1999. "Eritreans Flee to Sudan to Avoid Conscription, Ethiopian Escapee Says." (BBC Summary 3 Dec. 1999/NEXIS)
_____ [Addis Ababa, in English]. 17 November 1999. "Eritrea Conscripting Afar Women; Ethiopian Agency Reports." (BBC Worldwide Monitoring 18 Nov. 1999/NEXIS)
Additional Sources Consulted
Africa Confidential [London]. Fortnightly. August 1998-April 2000.
Africa Research Bulletin: Political, Social and Cultural Series [Oxford]. Monthly. January 1998-April 2000.
IRB Databases.
Jane's Intelligence Review [Surrey]. Monthly. January 1998-May 2000.
Resource Centre. "Eritrea" country file. September 1999-June 2000.
Internet search engines, including:
