Eritrea: HRCE interview Lemma: Exposing Gross Human Rights Abuse in Eritrea (Tigrinya)

On the 27th of June, 2014, the UN Human Rights Council (HRC) established a Commission of Inquiry (COI) on Eritrea to investigate and officially document the alleged systematic violations of human rights in Eritrea. The COI will collect testimonies from victims, victim’s families, and witnesses in the Diaspora to document their suffering and to allow their stories to be heard, both alive and deceased. The COI will be investigating alleged human rights violations committed since 1993. The COI has until June 2015 to collect this information and present its findings to the HRC at its 29th Session. The COI will submit their oral report to the Human Rights Council on Monday 16^th March.

This video is an interview conducted by Human Rights Concern-Eritrea (HRCE) with Lemma Adhanom who in 1994 was conscripted into 1st round of the so called Eritrea National Service. He was later remobilized and fought in the bloody 1998-2000 border war between Eritrea and Ethiopia.

He reflects on the things he witnessed during the war and after; including extrajudicial execution, torture, arbitrary detention, inhumane treatments and wide spread rape of female conscripts by high ranking officers which continues til this day.

Lemma was imprisoned when he tried to air his opinion and eventually decided to flee Eritrea when his life was threatened.

This is his Story...
 

Visit http://COI-Eritrea.org

(An independent group of Eritrean activists supporting the COI)

COI-Eritrea Disclaimer: COI-Eritrea is an ad-hoc group of Eritrean activists formed to raise awareness after the Commission of Inquiry (COI) on Eritrea was established. We’re completely independent and are not affiliated, associated, authorised, endorsed by, or in any way officially connected with the UN Commission of Inquiry.