Eritrea's government is guilty of committing crimes against humanity
since independence a quarter-century ago with up to 400 000 people
"enslaved", and should face international justice, a UN probe said on
Wednesday.
The United Nations Commission of Inquiry (COI) on
human rights said the government of President Isaias Afwerki, in power
since 1991, was guilty of systematic enslavement, forcible conscription
and other abuses.
"We probably think that there are up to 400 000
people who have been enslaved," chief investigator Mike Smith told
journalists in Geneva.
According to the United Nations, around 5
000 Eritreans risk their lives each month to flee the nation where
forcible army conscription can last decades. "Very few Eritreans are ever released from their military service obligations," Smith said.
Refugees
from the repressive Red Sea state have in recent years made up one of
the largest contingents of people risking the dangerous journey to seek a
new life in Europe.
Eritrean presidential adviser Yemane Gebreab immediately rejected the COI's findings as "incredible and really laughable".
"The
COI's case against Eritrea is legally indefensible," he told reporters
in Geneva, accusing UN investigators of being biased and using shoddy
methodology.
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