Subcommittee on International Human Rights Committee on Feb. 14th, 2012

[Aaron Berhane]

Thank you.

Last year the National Post wrote a wonderful article about the 2% tax. They interviewed several people who paid the 2% tax, and they explained clearly how the extortion takes place. Even the Minister of Citizenship and Immigration, Jason Kenney, was interviewed, and he stated clearly that this is illegal. We wrote a letter, as a human rights group, to Foreign Affairs, to the Minister of Citizenship and Immigration, about this issue. Unfortunately, we haven't heard back yet, but what they say is that the Canadian government knows this is totally illegal.

The difficulty that we have now so far is to convince many Eritreans to speak up. Of course, there were several people who were willing to speak up, and that's why the story was able to come out. Still, there are many who really want to speak if their name is going to be anonymous. This is a big concern. As soon as the UN monitoring group explained clearly how the extortion takes place, we have been trying to push it farther. We didn't really push it as much as we could before the UN Security Council did that, but so far we are on a good track, I believe.

[The Chair, Conservative, Scott Reid]

You still have some time.

[Ève Péclet, NDP, La Pointe-de-l'Île, QC]

Do you think that having a consulate in Canada is bringing the Government of Canada some relationship with the Government of Eritrea? Is there a relationship? Is there communication between both governments, or is the consulate just there to receive that 2% tax? I'm seeing that there's no liberty of press, there's no respect for human rights, there's no organization in that country—it's impossible to monitor what's going on there. I guess it's impossible to have some information from the government, so the role of the consulate in Canada is almost just to perceive that 2% tax. That's what I think.

[Elizabeth Chyrum]

Let me say a few things, and then I'm sure Aaron would like to.

Last year in the U.K., five Britons were arrested by the Eritrean government in the Red Sea. For six months they held them incommunicado, like they do their own people. The British government pushed. It was even discussed in the House of Commons. The Eritrean government refused.

In the end, the British government instructed the Eritrean embassy in London to stop this extortion of 2%. Also, they put a restriction of 25 miles on the movement of the ambassador and government officers; I don't know if you are aware, but in Eritrea, the diplomats have to get special permission if they want to travel outside the capital. The U.K. did that.

Within five days, the Eritrean government put the five Britons on national television. They charged them with espionage, illegal entering, possession of arms, and so on. It was within five days, because the fear was that other countries would follow suit and then the 2% tax would stop. After charging them on international television, they were released five days later. This is unheard of, because, honestly, Eritreans have never had that kind of opportunity, not even the G-11, who did a lot for their own country. If not more, they didn't do less than the president of their nation, but they have been locked up, with no communication, for almost 11 years.

Because that 2% is very important to the regime, that's why they were released, with nothing.... Then the U.K. restored the 2%. Still, we are pushing for that. Why did they do it? How about the thousands of Eritreans who have been locked up? Honestly, this 2% is illegal, and the way they collect it is also illegal. The money that is collected doesn't go to Eritrea. It is going to the wrong people. Also, as for the way they do it, I'll tell you what they have: I'll call them self-appointed agents.

In regard to the consulate, first of all, it does not operate as a diplomatic consulate. It's not for diplomatic purposes. It's all for these illicit and illegal activities. They have no interest in getting engaged or exchanging information with the host country. They're not interested.

They are getting a lot of money out of people, people like a young man who recently called me. He said he wanted to pay the 2% tax. I said I would advise him not to pay. He said, “But my brother, from the estate, asked me to go and pay.” This young man didn't have a clue. When I asked him how long he had been here, he said six years, and when I asked him why they wanted him to pay, he said that his mother had died and there were some houses and some business and they needed to process the inheritance. For this to be processed, all the children, the family in diaspora, would have to send them a clearance, so that young man who lived here for five years, even on state benefits, had to go and pay, backdated five years.

Also, there are the charges that Aaron mentioned earlier: they have to do this and that to get a clearance. So five or six children of this deceased person have to send the clearance later to get the inheritance processed. This is what it is.

Honestly, they're using it to blackmail the Eritreans. Eritreans are so fearful. If they don't pay.... I don't think they start doing it willingly, but what choice do they have? They have no choice.

For me, honestly, the 2% tax and the mining companies: those are the two sources of income for the regime. For the mining companies, if they withhold their operations until the human rights situation is improved, and on the 2% tax, if the international community stopped it even for a year or so.... In Eritrea, they don't export anything else, and also, they have a problem with the World Bank, because they have recently refused to take development aid from the EU. Two years ago, $122 million was allocated for Eritrea. They dictate the agenda of the European Commission. They said about human rights that they were not going there to discuss human rights and that the European Commission had to take human rights off the table in order to engage them.

Honestly, they have been appeased by the international community. It's about time for the international community to take action on the people's behalf and to rescue the Eritrean people, because to me, the country and the people who lead.... But this regime will go. Regimes come and go, but the people will be there, and we will be asking, “What did Canada do for us? What did the U.K. do for us? And what did the European Community or the international community do when we were suffering?”

I appeal to this House. Thank you for giving us this opportunity, but I appeal to you, honestly. Maybe it's about time to take action that you think will help the Eritrean people.

[Aaron Berhane]

If I can add just one thing—

[The Chair, Conservative, Scott Reid]

Unfortunately, it will have to be brief, because the members have to go into the House of Commons. Please go ahead.

[Aaron Berhane]

Okay.

Just to answer briefly, the Eritrean consulate is not like any consulate that tries to promote its relationship with Canada or other countries. The activity of the Eritrean consulate is to govern Eritreans who live in Canada, so that is their main concern. They don't care about other relationships.

If we try to investigate how many minutes or how many meetings they have organized in the last year or two years or three years with the Canadian government so as to promote their relationship, I believe there will be none. All they do is organize meetings to promote their political agenda, to intimidate Eritreans who live there, and to generate their income. That is what they do, day in, day out.

Thank you, again.

[The Chair, Conservative, Scott Reid]

Thank you, witnesses, for your very informative and heartfelt testimony. We appreciate the fact that you've come a considerable distance to be here, and you have met with a very appreciative audience in all the members. So thank you very much.

The meeting is adjourned.