The diaspora has vital role in supporting non-violent struggle in Eritrea

22 June 2006 - Non-violent struggle from both outside and inside Eritrea can help expand the space for civic and political opposition in the country, which lacks both a free media and civil society, said the presenters of aworkshop during the World Assembly, held 21- 25 June 2006, in Glasgow Scotland.

The workshop, Waging Non-violent Struggle under Fear and Repression: General lessons and case of Eritrea was presented by the Eritrean Movement for Democracy and Human Rights (EMDHR), Centre for Applied Nonviolent Action and Strategies (CANVS) and the International Centre for Nonviolent Conflict (ICNC).

The approximately 1.5 million Eritreans in the diaspora have an essential role to play in creating awareness, countering propaganda, supporting activism and the emergence of civil society, and lobbying their new countries to pressure the Eritrea government for positive change, said the EMDHR.

Current non-violent resistance in Eritrea has typically involved individual acts of self-preservation, rather than collective action. High ranking officials have defected, young men have deserted forced military conscription and citizens abroad have refused to return to the country. While demonstrating the desperation of the citizenry, these acts do little to contribute to the collective struggle.

According to the presenters, collective non-violent action is an effective means of bringing about change in countries such as Eritrea.‘Soul force is greater than physical force,” said ICNC.

If democratic reform is to occur through non-violent struggle, however, political space must be created for collective action. Civil society organisations involved in protest struggles are faced with the challenges of finding, using and creating political space. They mustdefine the role of leadership; use information technology effectively; and overcome the pervasive effects of fear. While various non-protest struggles have been successful, their success relies on the innovativeness of the civil society organisations involved in creating avenues for action.

In Eritrea, where media is controlled by the state and used specifically as a propaganda machine, dissent is extremely difficult, however non-violent it maybe. As a result, many Eritreans have either resorted to violence, or become apathetic out of fear.

The workshop surveyedEritrea’s turmultuous history, reflecting on the colonial rule and the liberation struggle from 1961 to 1991. It highlighted the formation of the government, and the movement to ratify the Constitution from 1994 to 1997. It explained the lead up to the currently repressive environment, by looking at the post-1998 period which was characterised by the ramification of the Ethiopia-Eritrea border conflict, a split in the political leadership and increased debate, and the eventual arrest of reformers, journalists and elders in 2001.

Eritrea has become a “country of whispers,” said the EMDHR. The current situation is marked by a lack of space for political opposition, the suspension of the constitution and the undermining of the courts, curtailment of fundamental freedoms, and jailing journalists. Civil society has been frightened into extinction.

The EMDHR (based in South Africa) was formed by citizens,particularly intellectuals, who fled the country. It uses various media to raise awareness and advocate for change, for example: Internet – radio – Meselna Delina (“We want our rights”); newsletter – Meseley (“My right”); educational manual and presentations at conferences.

For more information:

Contact

Daniel R. Mekonnen,

Eritrean movement for Human Rights and Democracy

Sarda Popovic

Centre for Applied Nonviolent Action and Strategies

Shaazka Beyerle

International Centre for Nonviolent Conflict