Eritrea: Penalty for desertion from the military; treatment, by the government and other groups, of deserters
| Publisher | Canada: Immigration and Refugee Board of Canada |
| Author | Research Directorate, Immigration and Refugee Board, Canada |
| Publication Date | 1 May 1999 |
| Citation / Document Symbol | ERT32008.E |
| Cite as | Canada: Immigration and Refugee Board of Canada, Eritrea: Penalty for desertion from the military; treatment, by the government and other groups, of deserters, 1 May 1999, ERT32008.E, available at: https://www.refworld.org/docid/3ae6ac5160.html [accessed 22 May 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. |
Specific details of the penalties for desertion from the Eritrean military could not be found in the sources consulted by the Research Directorate, including the Eritrean Embassy in Ottawa.
During a 21 May 1999 telephone interview, the Director of Institutional Research and Planning at the University of Nebraska at Lincoln, who was an advisor to the Eritrean Constitutional Commission, stated that he was unaware of any formal penalty in Eritrea for deserting from the military. While he has not heard of any cases of deserters being disciplined, he said that he believes a practice similar to a court-martial would exist to deal with these individuals.
Interviews with Eritrean prisoners of war on the Website of the Office of the Government Spokesperson of the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia, indicate that Eritreans fleeing from the battlefield have been shot at by their own units (Apr. 99). However these allegations could not be corroborated by the sources consulted by the Research Directorate.
In addition, Ethiopian media quoting sources from Eritrean opposition groups, report that Eritrean soldiers surrendered to Eritrean Liberation Front (ELF) units in western Eritrea (The Reporter 27 Apr. 1999) and that Eritrean youth had fled to Sudan to escape "forced conscription" into military centres, but provided no details on their treatment there (Radio Ethiopia 4 May 1999). Corroborating information on these reports could not be found in the sources consulted by the Research Directorate.
There are also reports that the Eritrean government is no longer providing exit visas to men under the age of 40 and that those persons eligible for military conscription and have not yet served are being "rounded up" (Africa Confidential 30 Apr. 1999; ION 3 Apr. 1999). However, the United Nations' Integrated Regional Information Network (IRIN) reported on 22 April 1999 an Eritrean government denial that "youths under 18 were being forced into national service." The same source stated that during a recent police operation in Asmara a "number of people [were] picked up for questioning. ...'Once people's papers were examined, those who had performed their service were let go'" (IRIN 22 Apr. 1999). The Indian Ocean Newsletter reported on 16 November 1991 that Eritrean law provides penalties of up to two years imprisonment and/or a fine of 3,000 birr, for individuals who do not perform their national service.
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.
References
Africa Confidentia. [London]. 30 April 1999. Vol. 40, No. 9. "Ethiopia-Eritrea: World-Class War."
Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia, Office of the Government Spokesperson. April 1999. "Interview with Eritrean POWs." [Internet]
The Indian Ocean Newsletter (ION) [Paris]. 3 April 1999. "Eritrea/Ethiopia: General Mobilization."
______. 16 November 1991. "Eritrea: National Service Introduced."
Radio Ethiopia [Addis Adaba]. 4 May 1999. "Eritreans Reportedly Fleeing to Sudan, Ethiopia." (BBC 5 May 1999/NEXIS)
The Reporter [Addis Adaba]. 27 April 1999. "Eritrean Refugees Arrive in Kassala." [Internet]
United Nations, Integrated Regional Information Network (IRIN). 22 April 1999. "Eritrea: Mass Round-Up of 'Draft-Dodgers' Denied." [Internet]
University of Nebraska at Lincoln. 21 May 1999. Telephone interview with the Director of Institutional Research and Planning.
Additional Sources Consulted
Africa Confidential. [London]. May 1998 - April 1999.
Africa Research Bulletin: Political, Social and Cultural Series [Oxford]. April - December 1998.
Keesing's Record of World Events [Cambridge]. 1993 - 1998.
The Military Balance 1997-1998. 1998.
Refusing to Bear Arms: A World Survey of Conscription and Conscientious Objection to Military Service. September 1998.
Website. United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs, IRIN Integrated Regional Information Network. February - May 1999.
Electronic sources: IRB Databases, LEXIS/NEXIS, Internet, REFWORLD, World News Connection (WNC).
Two non-documentary sources contacted could not provide information on the requested subject.
