In its communications of July 27, 2012, reference number GFA0022, the
Department of Foreign Affairs and Internal Trade regrettably invokes the
biased and politically-motivated allegations of the Somalia Eritrea
Monitoring Group to express concern on a number of policies and normative
practices of the Government of Eritrea.
Several UN Security Council Members have publicly expressed their
disappointment and chided the Monitoring Group for its obvious political
bias, lack of professionalism and objectivity during the report-appraisal
sessions in the past. Furthermore, other countries have lamented the
compromising liaison that had apparently been established between certain
individuals in the Monitoring Group and some powerful permanent members of
the UN Security Council. Reports are indeed rife these days that as a result
of all the drawbacks, some UNSC member States who have all along harboured
grave reservations on the working methods of the Monitoring Group are
reluctant to renew the appointment of its chairperson. In the circumstances,
the Ministry of Foreign Affairs finds it unfortunate for the Department of
Foreign Affairs and International Trade of Canada to take the lopsided
reports of the Monitoring Group at face value and consider unwarranted
measures that will have negative implications to our bilateral ties.
In as far as the substantive issues raised by the Department of Foreign
Affairs and International Trade are concerned, the Ministry of Foreign
Affairs wishes to emphasize the following:-
1. The "recovery and rehabilitation tax" is governed by transparent Eritrean
laws. It was enacted by the National Assembly in 1994 to encourage Eritreans
in the Diaspora to contribute to the rehabilitation of a country devastated
by three decades of war for national independence and freedom. The tax is
not imposed through extra-judicial means. The presumption that the tax is
collected through "extortion, threats of violence and fraud" is a malicious
lie at variance with the facts. The Monitoring Group reportedly used the
"testimonies" of 42 obscure individuals to make this preposterous assertion.
It did not bother to check the veracity of these claims or the potential
political or other sinister motivations of these individuals. As pointed out
earlier, the levying of the nominal 2% tax is not conducted through
extra-judicial means. As in any other taxation system, there are certain
consequences, clearly stipulated by law, that are applicable in case of
unjustified tax evasions. In this particular instance, the explicit
administrative measures consist of denial of specific entitlements and
services (land allocation etc.) to those directly accountable. These
administrative measures are not applied extra-territorially, i.e. in the
country of residence of the person concerned, and/or by proxy (to relatives
or other persons affiliated to the individual concerned). Several
governments levy various types of taxes from their citizens who reside
abroad. So Eritrea's practices are not outside established norms; they are
governed by explicit and transparent laws and they do not employ unorthodox
and unlawful means. The accusation of "extortion, fraud and threat of
violence" is not only baseless but an inexcusable insult to the people and
government of Eritrea.
2. "Donations to Eritrean national defense" is a broad historical concept
that requires precision. Eritreans abroad had a long history of providing
humanitarian and other financial support to the EPLF during the thirty years
of struggle for national liberation and independence. This act cannot be
misconstrued as unlawful. It is revived periodically through voluntary
initiatives of Eritreans abroad in times of war when there are actual or
imminent military threats to the sovereignty and integrity of their beloved
country. When Ethiopia declared war against Eritrea in 1998, for instance,
Eritrean communities in various countries raised some funds under this
banner. But these are episodic instances; the amounts raised are not
substantial and they are funneled to support victims of war; the internally
displaced; families of martyrs and the war-wounded.
3. The Note Verbale also refers to "Canada's concern by Eritrea's history of
support of armed opposition groups in the region and urges Eritrea to
respect the arms embargo". In the first place, we would like to underline
that Eritrea's publicly pronounced and earnestly pursued regional policy is
firmly anchored on the promotion and maintenance of a safe and cooperative
neighborhood. The main pillars of this policy include: i) the promotion of
regional security architecture that can play a pivotal role in the
prevention, management and resolution of conflicts; ii) strict adherence to
non-interference and international laws and convictions of conflict
settlement and associated instruments; and iii) cultivation of robust
bilateral ties of all-rounded cooperation with individual neighboring
countries. In this context, Eritrea firmly adheres to the supremacy of the
rule of law and believes that all disputes that may arise between
neighboring States must be resolved through bilateral diplomatic means or
through legal arbitration as enshrined in Article 33 of the UN charter. In
all instances of border dispute that arose with its neighbors since its
liberation in 1991, Eritrea has invariably employed, in good faith,
bilateral diplomatic channels or legal arbitration mechanisms. Eritrea has
fully respected and faithfully implemented all the arbitration decisions;
whether the substantive Award upheld or rejected its claims. Eritrea is thus
not engaged in reckless acts of regional destabilization through mindless
support to armed groups as a turbulent regional environment would only
undermine these fundamental principles and above all jeopardize its national
security interests.
But what cannot be glossed over, and this is one of the unpardonable
omissions of the Monitoring Group in its biased reports, are the myriad acts
of destabilization and aggression that Ethiopia continues to perpetrate
against Eritrea in violation of international law. Ethiopia continues to
occupy, with impunity, sovereign Eritrean territories in breach of the
"final and binding" Award of the Eritrea Ethiopia Boundary Commissions. The
Ethiopian regime has been and continues to finance, train and arm several
subversive groups, including two jihadist armed organizations, to advance
its broader aims of destabilizing Eritrea. It pursues an open policy of
"regime change" and has recently began to launch, well-publicized,
intermittent military aggressions against Eritrea. Ethiopia's brazen acts of
aggression and its occupation of sovereign Eritrean territories are
tolerated by the UN Security Council and the international community at
large because it enjoys the unwarranted diplomatic and political protection
of the United States. This is also the reason why the Monitoring Group has
shunned Ethiopia's persistent acts of destabilization even though they
constitute the primary threat to regional peace and security. In the
circumstances, Eritrea believes that the sanctions resolutions, and
especially the arms embargo, are not lawful as they infringe on Eritrea's
legitimate rights of self-defense in accordance with Article 51 of the UN
Charter. In this connection, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs would like to
take this occasion to remind the Department of Foreign Affairs and
International Trade of the moral and legal responsibilities of Canada to
uphold the UN Charter and international law. We would like to remind the
Government of Canada that the Algiers Peace Agreement was guaranteed by the
UN Security Council. The Agreement contained specific provisions for
punitive action to be taken against the transgressing party on the basis of
Chapter VII of the UN Charter. Ethiopia has violated this treaty; Ethiopia
has stubbornly refused to respect the arbitral Award and continues to occupy
sovereign Eritrean territories for ten long years since the EEBC decision
was announced in April 2002. And Ethiopia is currently engaged in reckless
and provocative acts of aggression against Eritrea. The attentions of the
Government of Canada should therefore be directed against the menace to
regional peace and security posed by the unlawful acts of Ethiopia.
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the State of Eritrea avails itself of
this opportunity to renew to the Department of Foreign Affairs and
International Trade of Canada the assurances of its highest consideration.
