An urgent letter of appeal briefing the predicament of around 250 Eritreans asylum seekers who at present are facing imminent danger of deportation to Eritrea is submitted in person by Simon M. Weldehaimanot to the current Chairperson of the African Commission on Human and Peoples’ Rights, her Excellency Madame Sanji Mmasenono MONAGENG. Simon was induced to file the appeal after receiving a cell phone text message from Egypt from one of the asylum seekers facing deportation. Simon, who is now in Banjul, was also able to shortly brief her Excellency on the phone on the real risk of ill treatment when the asylum seekers return to Eritrea. Full text of the letter appears below.

13 February 2008 

Re: urgent appeal 

Your Excellency,  

I am writing this letter of appeal to you, on behalf of hundreds of Eritrean asylum seekers in Egypt who are facing imminent and grave danger of deportation to Eritrea. I have been following their predicaments closely. This day, I received a desperate short message of call of help from one of them. In spite of my repetitive attempts, I have not been able to get back to the caller.  

Your Excellency,  

Their matter is grave and requires immediate attention. Unless you immediately use any means to stop their deportation, the consequences could be irreversible and regrettable. Many of these asylum seekers, who fled from the severe human rights violations in Eritrea, managed to leave Eritrea in a manner the Government of Eritrea describes as ‘illegal’. Such refugees and asylum seekers are thus considered by the Eritrean authorities as deserters and traitors. As such, the treatment they receive when they are deported to Eritrea is extremely severe. Libyan authorities have deported other Eritreans in the recent past. Immediately upon arrival at the Asmara International Airport in Asmara, the unfortunate deportees were taken into the custody of military men who subjected them to cruel beating and a variety of other inhumane treatment. No one knows where the deportees were taken afterwards or what happened to them. For this reason many asylum determining tribunals around the world and in particular the Asylum and Immigration Tribunal of the United Kingdom has concluded as follows:

A person who is reasonably likely to have left Eritrea illegally will in general be at real risk on return if he or she is of draft age [18 to 50 years], even if the evidence shows that he or she has completed Active National Service, (consisting of 6 months in a training centre and 12 months military service).  By leaving illegally while still subject to National Service, (which liability in general continues until the person ceases to be of draft age), that person is reasonably likely to be regarded by the authorities of Eritrea as a deserter and subjected to punishment which is persecutory and amounts to serious harm and ill-treatment. [(MA (Draft evaders – illegal departures – risk) Eritrea CG [2007] UKAIT 00059, paragraph 1].  

Your Excellency, 

A communication in accordance with article 55(1) of the African Charter in which I am the complainant has been filed on the predicament of these refugees. You may refer to the text of the communication and the evidence for further information. However, this matter is urgent, extremely urgent. I appeal to you to play your part to stop the deportation of these asylum seekers to Eritrea. Also, I would like to use this opportunity to cordially request the African Commission to duly note the predicament of Eritrean asylum seekers in Sudan, Libya and Egypt in the coming 4^th Extra Ordinary Session of the Commission in relation to agenda item 8(a) – adoption of the report of promotional mission to Egypt.     

Respectfully,