Document #1205681
IRB – Immigration and Refugee Board of Canada (Author)
A representative of the Watch Tower and
Bible Tract Society in Brooklyn, New York, stated in a telephone
interview with the Research Directorate that the measures
restricting Jehovah's Witnesses introduced by the Eritrean
government in 1995 remain in force. However, the representative was
unaware of any specific acts of persecution (13 October 1998).
A July 1997 United States Department of
State report entitled United States Policies in Support of
Religious Freedom: Focus on Christians noted, with respect to
Eritrea, that:
Government action against Jehovah's Witnesses occurs, as the Government considers their refusal to participate in national service or vote in national referenda a collective shirking of civic duty. The sanctions consist of revocation of business licenses, and dismissal of civil servants who are Jehovah's Witnesses, and also denial of identification cards, passports, and government housing.
This Response was prepared after
researching publicly accessible information currently available to
the Research Directorate within time constraints. This Response is
not, and does not purport to be, conclusive as to the merit of any
particular claim to refugee status or asylum.
References
United States Department of State,
Bureau of Democracy, Labour and Human Rights. 22 July 1997.
United States Policies in Support of Religious Freedom: Focus
on Christians. Via Internet.
(www.state.gov/www/global/human_rights/970722_relig_rpt_christian.html)
Watch Tower and Bible Tract Society,
Brooklyn, NY. 13 October 1998. Telephone interview with a
representative.