Eritrea’s Anti-Christian Atmosphere
ICC Note
Eritrea is one of the top Christian persecuting countries in the world. The communist government of Eritrea has imprisoned over 3000 Christians for practicing their faith.
Charlie Butts
03/19/2012 Eritrea (OneNewsNow)-Forty-four countries are now calling on the government of Eritrea, a country in the Horn of Africa, to halt the practice of jailing and torturing Christians — attention some say is long overdue.
…
Unless believers are members of recognized denominations, they are rounded up and jailed in hot, unsanitary shipping containers or filthy prisons. According to Christian Solidarity Worldwide (CSW), thousands are detained arbitrarily for political purposes, suffering routine deprivation and torture. An estimated 2,000 to 3,000 Christians alone are inhumanely and indefinitely detained without trial.
For example, Eritrea placed 85-year-old Abune Antoinios, patriarch of the Orthodox Church, under house arrest at an undisclosed location in 2006. Jonathan Racho of International Christian Concern (ICC) tells OneNewsNow about his current condition.
“Patriarch Antonios is now in a very serious condition,” he laments. “He has not received medical attention, and his health is deteriorating due to lack of medical attention.”
Not only is he elderly, but the ICC spokesman notes that Antonios is also diabetic. The charge against Patriarch Antonios is that he complained to the government about the harsh treatment of Christians and requested that they be released. But as CSW reports, there is no independent judicial process in Eritrea, which means citizens cannot peacefully protest and domestic human rights organizations do not exist. Also, the press has no freedom.
…
