Eritrea: 10 Journalists Jailed for 10 Years and Counting

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Eritrean president Isaias Afeworki, whom The Economist refers to as “a barefaced dictator who has muzzled the press and ravaged a generation of young men,” leads a government who has imprisoned and tortured a group of Eritrean politicians and journalists for a decade.

In September of 2001, with the global media’s eye fixed on 9/11, independent newspapers were closed and ten journalists imprisoned. Above are the images of the six journalists still in prison and the four who died in jail.

The victims are reportedly held in metal storage containers, such as the above used in a Sweedish protest, that reach 122° Fahrenheit in the Eritrean desert sun.

In the same campaign to eradicate dissidents the dictatorship imprisoned 11 of 15 public officials who wrote a letter calling for a democratic dialogue.

Until recently, the Eritrean government has received little pressure from foreign governments for human rights reform, according to Reporters without Borders.

Sign a petition for the release of these prisoners.