Eritrea’s Vulnerability to Organized Crime: Key Policy and Practice Concerns

The government of Eritrea faces several policy and practice challenges that make it susceptible to organized crime. These issues include:

Lack of an Independent Judiciary: The judiciary in Eritrea is poorly structured and heavily influenced by the executive branch, with instances of interference reported.
Impunity for Crimes Against Humanity: A climate of impunity prevails due to the absence of an independent judiciary and democratic institutions, allowing crimes against humanity to go unpunished.
Weak Law Enforcement Capacity: Eritrea’s law enforcement remains underdeveloped, with widespread corruption and bribery being reported as contributing factors.
Limited Economic Regulatory Capacity: The government’s fixed exchange rate policy for the nakfa to the US dollar (15:1) has led to a continuous expansion of the currency black market.

Eritrean officials have been accused of committing severe human rights abuses against Eritrean refugees in Ethiopia, including:

Harassment: Officials allegedly engaged in harassment tactics.
Indiscriminate Arrests: People were arrested without justification or due process.
Killings: There were reports of killings committed by Eritrean officials.
Rape: Officials were accused of raping individuals.

Additionally, civil rights and freedom of expression and assembly are non-existent in Eritrea, with human rights being consistently violated.