--- "Zerzghi, Amanuel (Amanuel)" <[log in to unmask]> wrote:
> From: "Zerzghi, Amanuel (Amanuel)" <[log in to unmask]>
> To: "'Jamila Allston'" <[log in to unmask]>
> Subject: Camps: An Interview With An Eritrean Official
> Date: Fri, 9 Jun 2000 15:30:13 -0400
>
> Jamila,
>
> This was posted on one of the Eritrean networks this morning.  I hope
> it
> helps you understand what is going on inside Eritrea.
>
> amanuel
>
>
> > Selamat:
> >
> > Last night, I had a phone interview with a senior government
> official of
> > the
> > GoE who gave me permission to write about the interview provided I
> refer
> > to
> > him as a senior government official (SGO).  Here's the exchange:
> >
> > ========
> > SY: Let's talk about the detention camps.
> >
> > SGO:    This is how it came about.  When towns in the Central
> Zone-Adi
> > Quala,
> > Senafe and every village in between--were being shelled, a great
> many
> > civilians were displaced.   Some of the displaced were Ethiopians.
>
> > Understandably, many Eritreans were angry and outraged.  The action
> we
> > took
> > was...as the saying goes "aHan Haradien bHade yHadra"...it was a
> > preventive
> > measure to avoid a combustible situation.
> >
> > SY:  So, it is a temporary measure.
> >
> > SGO:  Very temporary.  As a matter of fact, as of today, there are
> no
> > "camps."
> >
> > SY:  What about the memorandum about rounding people up for
> deportation.
> >
> > SGO:   It was an honest mistake performed at the Zoba level.  It is
> people
> >
> > reacting to a dire situation.   Yemane Gebremeskel is quoted as not
> > knowing
> > it was going on; as a matter of fact he did not know it was going
> on.
> >
> > SY:  So there will be no deportation.
> >
> > SGO:  There will be no deportation.  If there was going to be
> deportation,
> > we
> > would have done it when they were deporting 70,000 people.  In
> terms of
> > policy, there is absolutely no change from that announced two years
> ago by
> >
> > the Bayto (assembly/cabinet), in 1998.  Those who want to stay in
> Eritrea
> > will have a choice to stay and their rights are fully protected.
> Those
> > who
> > want to be repatriated will be repatriated.  Our policy is based on
> the
> > long-term interest of the Eritrean and Ethiopian people.
> >
> > SY:  What about the news reports that one reporter was given access
> to one
> >
> > camp and denied access to others?  Doesn't that give an appearance
> that we
> >
> > have something to hide?
> >
> > SGO:  You guys should know better about how the media works!  There
> was
> > no,
> > "you can go to this camp; you cannot go to this camp."  Even the
> camp she
> > visited where the Ethiopians told her they prefer to be in the camp
> rather
> >
> > than be amongst angry Eritreans...even in that camp, NOBODY gave
> her
> > permission
> > to go there!  She just went.
> >
> > SY:  Shouldn't you guys know better about how the media works and
> how this
> >
> > would appear to the rest of the world?
> >
> > SGO:  You can tell the world: as of today, there are no camps.
> There
> > never
> > was and there never is a plan to deport Ethiopians.
> >
> > ==============
> > Saleh
> >


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