Olympic Athlete and Several Eritreans Freed After 18 Years Without Trial, Family Members Report

Thirteen individuals held for more than 18 years without trial in Eritrea have been freed from a notorious military detention facility, according to family members of the detainees.

Those released were a number of prominent figures, including elderly Olympian cyclist and businessman Zeragaber Gebrehiwot.

They had been held at Mai Serwa prison, known for its harsh conditions and where many detainees are believed to be detained for political reasons.

Circumstances Surrounding the Detention

A source who was once detained in Mai Serwa stated the prisoners were arrested in October 2007 after an attempted assassination on a senior internal security officer in the government.

Around 30 people were originally arrested, according to the source. Some have been freed in the intervening period, but about 20 remained in custody.

The Story of an Olympian

Zeragaber raced in the Moscow Games in 1980 when Eritrea was part of Ethiopia.

The mountainous country, which achieved sovereignty from Ethiopia in 1993, has a strong cycling culture and its cyclists have increasingly earned global acclaim over the past decade.

List of Freed

Those released with Zeragaber include prominent businessmen Tesfalem Mengsteab and Bekure Mebrahtu as well as the Habtemariam brothers - David, an engineer, and Matthews, a geometrist.

Six senior police officers and an internal security agent were also freed.

The Eritrean government has made no official comment concerning the releases of the detainees.

A significant number of the former detainees are in poor health and this could explain why they have been freed at this time.

Relatives were prohibited to see the prisoners during their detention, the family members said.

International Criticism and Prison Conditions

The UN and rights organizations have long accused the Eritrean government of serious abuses, including ill-treatment, forced disappearance and the detention of tens of thousands of people in deplorable circumstances.

Mai Serwa prison, situated about 9km north-west of the capital, Asmara, has grown over the years to incorporate 20 metal shipping containers in which prisoners are held without contact, sources have indicated.

Context of Political Control

For the past thirty years, Eritrea has remained a one-party state with no functioning constitution. It is one of the most militarised societies, with indefinite military conscription.

There has been an absence of independent media since the shutdown of independent newspapers and arrest of most of their editors and journalists in 2001.

This was when the government arrested 15 politicians known as the G-15, along with 16 journalists, after they demanded that the president put into effect the draft constitution and conduct democratic polls.

Per rights groups, the status and location of 11 of the politicians, as well as the journalists accused of links to the G-15, remain unknown.

Now 79 years old, the president recently passed 32 years in power and has yet to participate in an election.