Credit: Wikipedia / The State of Eritrea, is a country in East Africa situated in the Horn of Africa, with its capital at Asmara. It is bordered by Sudan in the west, Ethiopia in the south. 

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A case was launched this week in the court of Amsterdam, the Netherlands, that demands a halt to the European Union (EU) aid worth 80 million EUR being sent to east African nation Eritrea. The Foundation Human Rights for Eritreans (FHRE) has charged that the aid project financed by the EU aid relies on forced labour.  FHRE claims the EU acknowledges this.  FHRE said it contradicts the most fundamental principles of international law and is unlawful towards the Foundation, which defends the fundamental rights of Eritreans in Eritrea and in the diaspora.  The foundation is accusing the EU of financing a major road renovation project that relies on forced labour and of failing to carry out due diligence.

The Foundation issued a summons to the European Union in April 2019 and asked the EU to end the project, which looks to rehabilitate the roads between Eritrea and Ethiopia. However, the EU refused to stop the project, even as it recognises that forced labour was (and is) used in the context of this project. At the end of 2019, the EU announced that it would provide further funding to the project. The EU funding goes to Eritrean state companies, which use it to procure materials.

The Eritrean regime makes use of labourers in the Eritrean national service to construct the roads under the project, according to the foundation. The circumstances under which the Eritrean population is forced to work in the national service have been described by the United Nations Human Rights Commission in detail: “Thousands of conscripts are subjected to forced labour that effectively abuses, exploits and enslaves them for years.”

The EU claims that it has no responsibility for the forced labourers, as it “does not pay for labor under this project”, according to the European Commission. “The project only covers the procurement of material and equipment to support the rehabilitation of roads.”

BRAVE. The Foundation Human Rights for Eritreans @EriFoundation1 filed the lawsuit at the Amsterdam court, accusing the EU of financing a road project that relies on forced labour & demanded that EU halt its 80 million euro funding.#slavery #HumanRights https://t.co/DrzhKGgv9w pic.twitter.com/3axYmfI71H

— Rights Corridor (@RightsCorridor) May 14, 2020