Will Swedish Journalist Dawit Isaak Perish in Eritrea?
For almost eight years, Swedish journalist Dawit Isaak has been imprisoned in Eritrea. In the shadow on Bill Clinton’s successful negotiations in North Corea, voices are now raised for a more active intervention from the Swedish government.
Last week subway passengers in Stockholm were met with colourful advertising showing happy Eritreans under slogans like “Never kneel down” and “The Can Do People”. The ads were part of a counter-offensive on behalf of the Eritrean government, after a vigorous spring campaign for the release of journalist Dawit Isaak, who has been imprisoned since 2001 together with his co-editors of the oppositional paper Setit. The Soviet-like appearence of the ads added to the outrage, directed not least against the Stockholm municipal authorities who, unknowingly, had sposored the regime controlled cultural festival that the ads were rallying for.
Isaak came to Sweden in 1987 as a refugee from the war between Eritrea and Ethiopia. He worked as a cleaner and became a Swedish citizen in 1992. After the war he returned to capital city Asmara, and became a prominent member of the opposional Group of 15, demanding democratic reforms. At least ten of his co-workers have since perished in prison. He was in 2002 reported to receive treatment for torture wounds. Apart from that little is known about his whereabouts. He has not been charged with any crimes, although the government claims that he is suspected to have been spying for Denmark
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