Eritrea: Prisoners of conscience remembered on 7th anniversary of mass detentions

AMNESTY INTERNATIONAL PUBLIC STATEMENT AI Index: AFR 64/007/2008 (Public) Date: 18 September 2008 Eritrea: Prisoners of conscience remembered on 7th anniversary of mass detentions Seven years ago, on 18 September 2001, the Government of Eritrea detained hundreds of former government leaders, private-media journalists and civil servants. [...] Amnesty International considers these detainees to be prisoners of conscience, detained for the peaceful expression of their political views. [...] The Eritrean government has and has never disclosed the location of those detained, and has repeatedly failed to provide a verifiable response to allegations that a number of those detained have died in detention, in spite of persistent appeals from Amnesty International members worldwide. [...] They are also believed to be denied medical treatment and are in many cases are likely to be detained in harsh conditions and subjected to torture, or cruel, inhumane or degrading treatment or punishment. [...] The family and friends of those detained in Eritrea for the last seven years also face persecution when they speak out against detention of their loved ones.