Olympian and Several Eritreans Released After 18 Years Without Trial, Family Members Report
A group of thirteen people detained for more than 18 years without being formally charged in Eritrea have been released from a notorious military detention facility, as stated by family members of the detainees.
Among those freed were a number of well-known individuals, such as elderly Olympic athlete and businessman Zeragaber Gebrehiwot.
They had been held at Mai Serwa detention center, renowned for its severe environment and where many detainees are believed to be political prisoners.
Circumstances Surrounding the Detention
A source who was previously held in Mai Serwa stated the prisoners were arrested in October 2007 after an assassination attempt on a senior internal security officer in the government.
Around 30 people were initially detained, per the source. A number have been freed over the years, but about 20 stayed imprisoned.
The Story of an Athlete
Zeragaber competed in the Moscow Games in 1980 when Eritrea was a region within Ethiopia.
The nation in the Horn of Africa, which gained its independence from Ethiopia in 1993, has a strong cycling culture and its cyclists have steadily gained international recognition over the past decade.
List of Released
The individuals freed alongside Zeragaber comprise prominent businessmen Tesfalem Mengsteab and Bekure Mebrahtu as well as the Habtemariam brothers - David, an engineer, and Matthews, a surveyor.
Six senior police officers and an internal security agent were also freed.
The Eritrean government has made no official comment concerning the releases.
Many of them are sick and this could explain why they have been freed now.
Relatives were not allowed to visit the prisoners during their detention, the family members said.
International Condemnation and Detention Environment
United Nations bodies and rights organizations have consistently criticized the Eritrean government of gross human rights violations, encompassing ill-treatment, enforced disappearances and the detention of many thousands of people in deplorable circumstances.
Mai Serwa facility, located about 9km north-west of the capital, Asmara, has grown over the years to include 20 metal shipping containers in which prisoners are held without contact, according to reports.
Background on Political Rule
Over the last three decades, Eritrea has remained a single-party nation with no functioning constitution. It is one of the most militarised societies, with compulsory national service of unlimited duration.
There has been no free press since the shutdown of private publications and arrest of most of their staff in 2001.
This occurred after the government detained 15 politicians known as the G-15, along with 16 journalists, after they demanded that the president put into effect the draft constitution and hold open elections.
Per advocacy organizations, the fate and whereabouts of 11 of the politicians, as well as the journalists accused of links to the G-15, are still unconfirmed.
Now 79 years old, the leader recently passed 32 years in office and has yet to participate in an election.
