ASMARA, Eritrea — More arrests along with forced conscriptions targeting Eritrea’s independent Protestant Christians have been reported during the last two weeks of April, despite a blanket denial by Asmara officials May 1 that any religious persecution exists in the East African nation. In an incident in the capital city over Orthodox Easter weekend, two members of the government-recognized Evangelical Lutheran Church were arrested and held in detention for three days. In other incidents, military police invaded work places and private homes to arrest 56 members of independent Pentecostal churches in the northernmost province of Sahel. The military swoop, which occurred during normal working hours on April 29, was justified as “conscription for military service.”
But according to fellow church members of the forced conscripts, most of the 16 women and 40 men picked up had already completed their mandatory military service. Many of those conscripted were teachers, nurses and professionals. They have not been seen since.
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