Christian Women and Children Prisoners were Warned Never to Pray Together Again

(Asmara 01-11-2013) around 80 children and women who were arrested with a group of  180 people in Maitemenay late last month were released from detention following a stern warning, from the government against praying together.

The group from a fellowship known as Hiyaw AmlaK (living God), belonging to the underground churches fellowship, were praying together when they were rounded up and taken to the 4th police station in Edaga Hamus district of Asmara.

The children and women released were all required to sign their agreement to not meet and pray together as a condition of their release. The men in the group and those who refused to sign their agreement are still detained and it is feared that those of military age will be sent to military training centres and detained in the prisons there.

Dr Berhane Asmelash Director of Release Eritrea stated: ‘The recent arrests constitute the largest group detention at a given time in recent years. These arrests, together with other spates of arrests in January and March this year, are becoming a concerning trend against the underground church. The fact that not even children were spared is an indication of the severity of the persecution against the church in Eritrea’

Release Eritrea is concerned about the renewed spate of arrests as it pushes people into exile and into the hands of human traffickers and smugglers. Last month’s migrant boat disaster, off the coast of Lampedusa that climed the lives of 360 Eritreans had 12 members of one church amongst the passengers and only one survived. The group were fleeing religious persecution in the town of Adi qeyih in the Southern region.{jcomments off}