Amnesty accuses Eritrea of targeting diaspora activists in Kenya

Eritrean President Isaias Afwerki reviews the honor guard during his welcome ceremony in the Sudanese capital, Khartoum, on June 11, 2015. PHOTO | ASHRAF SHAZLY | AFP

What you need to know:

  • In 2015, two persons who identified themselves as members of Kenya's National Intelligence Service ordered Kenya-based Eritreans not to proceed with the launch in Nairobi of a diaspora organisation, Amnesty recounted.
  • The organisation, known as Eritrean Diaspora for East Africa (EDEA), is still not fully operational because potential supporters in Kenya continue to be harassed and intimidated, the human rights group added.
  • Two months ago, Eritrea's ambassador to Kenya joined in “Twitter tirades” against organisers of a conference in London on “Building Democracy in Eritrea,” Amnesty said.
  • And in 2017, Eritrea's embassy in Nairobi told the UN Office in Nairobi that 13 invitees to an art exhibit at the UN's Gigiri complex were “subversive,” the briefing stated.

NEW YORK,

Eritrean officials are systematically harassing diaspora activists in Kenya, with apparent collusion on the part of Kenyan intelligence agents, Amnesty International said in a briefing on Thursday.

In 2015, two persons who identified themselves as members of Kenya's National Intelligence Service ordered Kenya-based Eritreans not to proceed with the launch in Nairobi of a diaspora organisation, Amnesty recounted.

The organisation, known as Eritrean Diaspora for East Africa (EDEA), is still not fully operational because potential supporters in Kenya continue to be harassed and intimidated, the human rights group added.

Kenya's National Intelligence Service has not responded to a recent request for comment, Amnesty said.

REPRESSION

Eritrea's government, described by United Nations experts as extremely repressive, continues to harass citizen-activists even after they flee the country, says Joan Nyanyuki, Amnesty's director for East Africa, the Horn and Great Lakes.

Activists in the diaspora in Kenya and several other countries must “constantly look over their shoulders and watch every word they say, afraid of the long arm of the Eritrean government which evidently extends across borders,” Ms Nyanyuki commented.

Two months ago, Eritrea's ambassador to Kenya joined in “Twitter tirades” against organisers of a conference in London on “Building Democracy in Eritrea,” Amnesty said.

And in 2017, Eritrea's embassy in Nairobi told the UN Office in Nairobi that 13 invitees to an art exhibit at the UN's Gigiri complex were “subversive,” the briefing stated.

OTHER COUNTRIES

The UN Office in Nairobi subsequently barred the 13 from attending the event, Amnesty noted.

“Eritrea’s use of its embassies abroad to harass and repress its critics must not be allowed to continue,” Ms Nyanyuki said.

In its briefing titled “Repression Without Borders” Amnesty states that in addition to Kenya, members of the Eritrean diaspora are also targeted for harassment in the Netherlands, Norway, Sweden, Switzerland the United Kingdom.