Source Confirms Arrest “without a reason” of Catholic Bishop, Two Priests in Eritrea

Two Catholic Priests were also among those arrested and detained at Adi Abeto prison alongside Bishop Tsalim, the information service of the Pontifical Mission Societies, Agenzia Fides, has reported October 18.

The two Catholic Priests include Fr. Mihretab Stefanos who is the Parish Priest of St Michael's Parish of Segheneity Eparchy, and Abbot Abraham, a member of Order of Friars Minor Capuchin (Franciscan Friars).

Asked about the reasons behind the arrests and detaining of the Catholic Church leaders, the source told ACI Africa, “We really don't know. But they spoke about human right violations that are going on in the country right now.”

The members of the Clergy are being accused of highlighting violations of human rights in Eritrea in their homilies, the source further said on October 18.

The human rights violations, the source added, include “Imprisonment of parents (women and men), mobilization of deserved army people, young people by force etc. to the war fronts, closing homes, (and) confiscation of animals for those people who have refused to go to war” among others.

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No one seems to really understand the real reasons for their arrest, the source said, adding that they are being detained “without a reason … We fail to understand up to now”.

The BBC October 17 also indicates that “the reasons behind the detention of the bishop and the two priests are unknown.”

In May, officials of several United Kingdom-based Christian entities expressed concern about “continuing unjust” human rights violations in Eritrea. 

In a letter sent to the Eritrean Ambassador in the United Kingdom and Ireland, officials of the Christian Solidarity Worldwide (CSW), Church in Chains - Ireland, Release Eritrea, Human Rights Concern - Eritrea, and the Eritrean Orthodox Church in the United Kingdom highlighted multiple indicators of human rights violation and said the situation deters Eritreans from enjoying their independence.

“We remain concerned at the continuing unjust, arbitrary, and indefinite detention of tens of thousands of Eritrean citizens in harsh conditions, including hundreds of Christians imprisoned solely on account of their faith,” officials of the Christian entities said in their May 20 letter addressed to Ambassador Estifanos Habtemariam Ghebreyesus.

The Christian leaders also said they were “dismayed by reports of Eritrean lives being lost in the war in neighboring Ethiopia, including those of conscripts and minors.”

In August, the government of Eritrea took over the Hagaz Agro-Technical School (HATS), a Catholic learning institution that the Brothers of the Christian Schools (LaSalle Brothers) established and were running.

The Hagaz Agro-Technical School “has been providing training in farm machinery, rearing of crops and animals, as well as soil conservation for the last 23 years,” the August 24 BBC report indicated.

These latest seizures are part of the confiscations that have been going on in Eritrea since 2019, the government citing a 1995 regulation that limited activities of religious institutions.

Catholic Bishops in the Northeastern African nation opposed the regulation, arguing that the Church’s social services are not in opposition to the government.

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Jude Atemanke is a Cameroonian journalist with a passion for Catholic Church communication. He holds a Bachelor’s Degree in Journalism and Mass Communication from the University of Buea in Cameroon. Currently, Jude serves as a journalist for ACI Africa.