Mr. Simone Joseph                                                  Marilyn Gayton-Hamie

Foreign Affairs Officer on Africa                           Desk officer for Eritrea
Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights and Labor            U.S. State Department

U.S. State Department                                                       2201 C Street NW

2201 C Street NW                                                      Washington, DC 20520

Washington, DC 20520                                            

Senator Johnny Isakson                                     Representative Christopher H. Smith

Ranking Member of the Subcommittee on Africa             Ranking Member of the Subcommittee on Africa
Senate Committee on Foreign Relations                       House Committee on International Relations

120 Russell Senate Office Building                                    2373 Rayburn House Office Building
Washington, DC 20510                                             Washington, D.C. 20515

Dear Sir or Madam,

We the undersigned are very concerned about Saleh Al-Jezaeri and other independent journalists in Eritrea—including Said Abdulkadir, Mattewos Habteab, Yosuf Mohamed Ali, Amanuel Asrat, Temesgen Gebreyesus, Dawit Habtemichael, Medhanie Haile Ali, Dawit Isaac, Seyoum Tsehaye, and Hamid Mohamed Said—who have been held for more than eight years in secret detention without charges, without trial, and without access to their families or legal counsel. Some of them have reportedly died in prison. Amnesty International considers them to be prisoners of conscience, imprisoned solely for carrying out their journalistic duties.

We respectfully urge that US government engage in dialogue with the Eritrean government to bring about:

1. Eritrean authority’s acknowledgement of the journalists’ detention and the disclosure of their whereabouts.

2. An independent team visiting the prisons where the journalists are being held and reporting publicly on their conditions.

3. The granting of the families’ visitation rights. 

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