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The Eritrean government is forcibly evicting citizens and expropriating their homes in the islands of Massawa and Twalot as well as the Gherar peninsula, which stations the naval base. The residents have been ordered to move further inland to Massawa proper (Edaga), an order many have been unable to follow due to the housing shortage.
The government gave no explanations for its decision. Unlike the homes dismantled in the Keren (Megareh) area several months ago, the Massawa homes were not occupied by “squatters” who allegedly built homes without the authorization of the government. ***image1:left***Massawa is one of Eritrea’s two main ports. The Massawa area includes two islands, a peninsula and Massawa proper. There are more than a dozen historical buildings that are more than 200 years old including the Hamal Mosque which is about 600 years old. A Massawa native now in exile told Gedab that there are "efforts underway to urge the UN to declare the buildings a world cultural heritage before the PFDJ bulldozes them." Many of the old buildings that were damaged in the war of liberation could not be repaired because most indigenous Massawans have not returned to Eritrea. The few who have returned have not been able get the title to their properties that were confiscated by the Drergue in the mid-seventies before paying taxes in arrears to the Eritrean Government. Property owners complain that they shouldn't be made to pay taxes for rents collected by the Dergue, the Ethiopian occupation government when it confiscated the properties.
For the last two years, the Eritrean government has been aggressively courting the US government to establish a military base there, arguing that its deep waters, as well as the new airport it built, provide the best choice for the United States in the Red Sea. The United States is currently based in Djibouti. Two branches of the US government are reportedly in disagreement over the issue, with the defense department in favor of deepening its relationship with Asmara and the state department strongly opposed given the Eritrean government’s worsening human rights record and “serious abuses.” The State Department wishes to see an improvement in Eritrea’s human rights record before it signs on an American presence in Eritrea. Conversely, the Eritrean government has stated that it would like to see American presence in Eritrea before it improves its human rights record. The eviction of the residents from the islands may be due to the government’s eagerness to convince the US government to establish a presence in the islands. The Eritrean government is paying Greenberg Traurig, LLP, an American law firm, USD 6 million per year to press its case. |
