Seyoum Tsehaye

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Seyoum Tsehaye (born 1952) is a jailed Eritrean journalist. At independence in 1993, Tsehaye was named to the head of Eri-TV, the Eritrean state broadcaster. [1] He was arrested in September 2001 when President Isaias Afewerki closed all non-governmental media sources. In December 2007, Seyoum was named Reporter of the Year by Reporters Without Borders. [2] As of January 2016, he was known to be alive, being held at Eiraeiro prison. [2]

Contents

Journalism

In 1977, Seyoum joined the Eritrean People's Liberation Front (EPLF), which was fighting in the Eritrean War of Independence against the Mengistu Haile Mariam dictatorship of Ethiopia, to which Eritrea had been forcefully annexed. After four years training as a guerilla fighter, he started training in photography and started a joint role of fighter and war correspondent. [1] Seyoum reported on the battle of Massawa in 1990, in which the EPLF gained control of the port city Massawa. [3]

In 1991, when the Mengistu dictatorship was overthrown, Seyoum became head of Eri-TV, the Eritrean state television broadcaster. During the initial few years of independence, some independent journalism existed in Eritrea, and Seyoum participated in independent film and journalism, including the newspaper Setit, which criticised the government. Seyoum was refused funding for film equipment when he wished to film the Eritrean–Ethiopian War during 1998–2000, and was not allowed to travel to the war front. Seyoum became critical of the war. [1]

Imprisonment

Seyoum was arrested on 18 [3] or 21 [1] September 2001 along with 10 other media professionals when prominent members of the People's Front for Democracy and Justice (PFDJ) and military called for democracy. [2] Seyoum himself had published his opinion in favour of a transition to democracy. [3]

In 2002, Seyoum, Fessehaye "Joshua" Yohannes and several other Eritrean prisoners started a hunger strike, demanding to appear before a court. In April 2002, Seyoum and the others were transferred to secret prisons in the Eritrean prison system. In 2003, Seyoum was moved to Eiraeiro prison. As of January 2016, he was held in cell No. 10 of block A01. One or two years later, he refused to cooperate with prison guards and was trying to hunger strike, and stated, "I did my duty", "It is my responsibility" and "I don't care if I die here." [2] In 2013, Seyoum's niece, Vanessa Tsehaye, started the One Day Seyoum campaign to free him and other Eritrean political prisoners. [3]

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">History of Eritrea</span> Historical development of Eritrea

Eritrea is an ancient name, associated in the past with its Greek form Erythraia, Ἐρυθραία, and its derived Latin form Erythræa. This name relates to that of the Red Sea, then called the Erythræan Sea, from the Greek for "red", ἐρυθρός, erythros. But earlier Eritrea was called Mdre Bahri. The Italians created the colony of Eritrea in the 19th century around Asmara and named it with its current name. After World War II, Eritrea annexed to Ethiopia. Following the communist Ethiopian government's defeat in 1991 by the coalition created by armed groups notably the EPLF, Eritrea declared its independence. Eritrea officially celebrated its 1st anniversary of independence on May 24,1993.

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Isaias Afwerki is an Eritrean politician and partisan who has been the president of Eritrea since shortly after he led the Eritrean People's Liberation Front (EPLF) to victory on 24 May 1991, ending the 30-year-old war for independence from Ethiopia. In addition to being president, Isaias has been the chairman of Eritrea's sole legal political party, the People's Front for Democracy and Justice (PFDJ). As Eritrea has never had a functioning constitution, no elections, no legislature and no published budget, Isaias has been the sole power in the country, controlling its judiciary and military. Hence, scholars and historians have long considered him to be a dictator, described his regime as totalitarian, by way of forced conscription; the United Nations and Amnesty International cited him for human rights violations. In 2022, Reporters Without Borders ranked Eritrea, under the government of Isaias, last out of 180 countries in its Press Freedom Index. In 2023 Eritrea ranked 174th out of 180 countries on the Press Freedom Index.

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The Eritrean People's Liberation Front (EPLF), colloquially known as Shabia or HGDEF, was an armed Marxist–Leninist organization that fought for the independence of Eritrea from Ethiopia. It emerged in 1973 as a far-left to left-wing nationalist group that split from the Eritrean Liberation Front (ELF). After achieving Eritrean independence in 1991, it transformed into the People's Front for Democracy and Justice (PFDJ), which serves as Eritrea's sole legal political party.

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References

  1. 1 2 3 4 Marinovich, Greg (2015-12-02). "Tales of an Eritrean fighter-photographer". Al Jazeera English . Archived from the original on 2021-03-11. Retrieved 2021-03-07.
  2. 1 2 3 4 "New revelations about Eiraeiro prison camp – 'The journalist Seyoum Tsehaye is in cell No. 10 of block A01'". Reporters Without Borders . 2016-01-20. Archived from the original on 2021-03-04. Retrieved 2021-03-07.
  3. 1 2 3 4 "Eritrea: Vanessa Tsehaye, the Indomitable Eritrean Human Rights Campaigner". Asmarino . 2019-07-30. Archived from the original on 2021-03-05. Retrieved 2021-03-07.