The Eritrean government is holding 14 journalists in custody, at least one of them in solitary confinement, the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) said in a statement on Wednesday.
”Simret Seyoum, a writer and general manager of the banned private weekly Setit, has been in government custody since January 6, when he was arrested trying to cross the border into Sudan,” bringing the number of journalists in detention to 14, a statement by the press watchdog’s statement said.
The driver of a minivan carrying Simret and others was also detained after border patrol agents opened fire on the vehicle, chased it and captured some of its passengers, the statement said.
An Eritrean journalist in the vehicle, who chose to remain anonymous, managed to elude capture and reached the Sudanese capital, Khartoum, days later, it added.
Simret, a hero of Eritrea’s 30-year independence war against Ethiopia, is being held in solitary confinement at the Hadish Maaskar detention facility near the town of Gyrmayka on the border with Sudan, the statement quoted CPJ sources in Eritrea as saying.
It said government sources recently acknowledged holding only ”about eight” media professionals.
”The continued information blackout in Eritrea is outrageous, as is the government’s elimination of all private media in the country,” the statement quoted CPJ executive director Ann Cooper as saying.
”We strongly urge the government to release these journalists immediately and allow them to resume their work of reporting the news,” she added. – Sapa-AFP