Interactive dialogue on the situation of human rights in Eritrea, as delivered by UK Human Rights Ambassador, Rita French, in Geneva at the UN.
Location: Geneva
Delivered on: (Transcript of the speech, exactly as it was delivered)
Thank you Mr President.
The UK remains deeply concerned about the human rights situation in Eritrea. The policy of indefinite national service is in urgent need of reform. It affects the lives of thousands of Eritreans, particularly the younger generation, and is the key reason why they are leaving the country. We remain similarly concerned about the continuing and repressive use of arbitrary detention practices to hold people incommunicado, including those simply seeking to practice their religion or belief.
We also continue to press for a full withdrawal of Eritrean troops from Tigray, for the Eritrean Government to ensure accountability for the human rights violations and abuses committed by its forces during the conflict in Ethiopia, and for them to cooperate fully with any future Ethiopian or international accountability processes.
Lastly Mr President,
As a member of this Human Rights Council, we urge the Eritrean Government to demonstrate its commitment to upholding human rights by implementing the recommendations from its last Universal Periodic Review and, finally, cooperate with the mandate given to the Special Rapporteur by this Council. We would like to ask the Special Rapporteur what specific steps he believes Eritrea can and must take in order to defend the integrity of its membership of this Council.
Thank you.
