Country of Eritrea: brief description, features and interesting facts

The African country of Eritrea is located on the western tip of the Horn of Africa, on the warm and arid coast of the Red Sea, the Greek name of which received its name from the colonial authorities of Italy. Despite the small territory, the country borders on three states, has a long coastline and owns several large islands in the sea.

Traces of ancient civilizations

On the territory of modern Eritrea, there were found sites of the most ancient human predecessors, possessing a skeleton structure similar to modern humans.

The arid climate of these regions made it possible to find numerous evidence of the presence of ancient people on the African horn. Not only fossils survived on Neolithic sites, but also numerous drawings in caves.

Along the Red Sea coast, international teams of researchers regularly find tools of ancient people that they used to extract marine resources, such as mollusks and their shells, and also fish using primitive fishing hooks.

In addition, some linguists believe that modern Afro-Asian languages conduct their ancestry from the languages that first appeared on the territory of the Horn of Africa.

The Ancient Kingdom of Axum

Although Eritrea does not remind us of its former greatness in the current state, it nevertheless has a rich and long history. On lands along the coast of the Red Sea, long before the appearance of Christianity, there was a state with a highly developed culture. The inhabitants of these lands produced exquisite household items, among which were also copper products, abundantly presented today in the Museum of Antiquities in the Eritrean capital.

And although not only Eritrea, but Ethiopia aspire to affinity with this culture, the largest city of the old kingdom is still in the territory of Eritrea and is called Axum.

Political instability and humanitarian crisis

The country of Eritrea is considered one of the most disadvantaged on the African continent. This is due to the economic and political crisis, in which the country has been staying not for the first decade. In addition, there are serious problems with the observance of human rights by the state.

Most ordinary Europeans probably do not know very well where the country of Eritrea is, but this state attracts the close attention of international observers dealing with the human rights situation. And I must say that today many human rights activists are close to accusing the government of this country of mass war crimes.

First of all, the UN criticizes the mass involvement of children in military service. Due to the political instability caused by the political crisis and the recent war over the disputed territories with Ethiopia, there is almost no control over the state border in the country, which allows the various gangs to cross borders with Sudan, Ethiopia and the Djibouti humanitarian crisis. Bandit groups recruit children into military detachments with the intention of using them for looting and piracy. Very often, such recruitment is associated with violence against the child's family: fathers are often killed, brutally treated with mothers and sisters.

The army of Eritrea is one of the most numerous in Africa, but it is not considered effective enough. Officially, the service should be held by both men and women for a year and a half, but, according to the organization Reporters Without Borders and human rights committees, the service can last for decades or at all for life.

However, international organizations are not yet able to radically affect the situation.

The capital of the African country of Eritrea

The city of Asmara is home to more than one million people. Like many other capitals, this is the country's largest city, which, in addition to government agencies, also concentrates the country's main capital, industrial production and intellectual resources, concentrated in the university and museums.

The city is located at a considerable distance from the sea in a zone of arid climate with not too hot summer and moderate winter. However, like the rest of the country of Eritrea, the capital is in a zone with little rainfall during the three summer months. During this period, the amount of precipitation does not exceed 8 mm, which together with the increase in air temperature creates the necessary conditions for rapid desertification. And this means that effective agricultural production in these territories is impossible.

Capital culture

Despite serious conflicts between Eritreans and Italians, Italy's colonial authorities made good things for Eritrea. They mainly dealt with the construction of transport infrastructure and the development of production. The capital of the African country of Eritrea is the city of Asmara, which has retained its functions since the time of the colonial Italian administration.

Asmera of the times of the Italian occupation, many architectural experts are compared to modern Dubai, where architects are limited only by the flight of their own imagination, and the state is ready to finance the most daring experiments. From those beautiful times the first cinema in the country, the opera house and the building of the state bank were preserved. In this city, Benito Mussolini wanted to recreate a colony similar to that of the Roman Empire.

Unfortunately, during the time of independence from Italy, Eritrea experienced a number of serious military conflicts, during which the country's economy was almost completely destroyed. Urban colonial architecture is also seriously affected.

But, despite serious problems in the economy, Asmara operates the State University and the Technical Institute, where citizens can receive technical and humanitarian education in various specialties. The capital of the country Eritrea can become a city in which the economic revival of the country will begin.

Dictatorship and freedom of the press

The country of Eritrea is a subject of interest of many human rights organizations. One of the most vivid and outrageous cases of human rights violations was the story of journalist David Isaak. This journalist, who has dual citizenship of Eritrea and Sweden, spent 15 years in Eritrea prison without charge and without waiting for a court decision.

This story began in 2001, when Isaak, along with other journalists, published an open letter addressed to the authorities and calling for compliance with the Constitution.

Immediately after this publication, mass arrests of journalists who signed the letter followed, and despite the efforts of international organizations, nothing is known about the fate of many of them. However, Isaac was released only in 2016, after fifteen years of imprisonment. Immediately after his release, UNESCO decided to award him with the Guillermo Cano Prize, awarded for diligence and honesty in journalistic activities.

Country of Eritrea: minerals

In the economic structure of Eritrea, minerals do not occupy the most important place. This is primarily due to political instability that prevents investment.

The share of industry in the economy of the country does not exceed 29%, and the majority of enterprises are in extremely poor condition or completely destroyed. As for fossil resources, most of them are extracted by handicraft and do not affect the export potential of the country. A significant share in exports is taken only by sea salt, extracted from sea water by a primitive evaporation technology.

War and terrorism as obstacles to growth

Throughout its history of independence, Eritrea waged wars with its neighbors, sponsored terrorist organizations operating in neighboring countries, or actively repressed its own citizens.

The current state of the Eritrean economy and society was achieved as a result of a senseless war with Ethiopia, which began in 1998 and ended two years later.

Tens of thousands of citizens of both countries became victims of the war. Both countries actively involved minors and women in military operations, as a result of which the border between armed people and civilians was erased, and the number of innocent victims grew. The war ended in the defeat of Eritrea, and the UN decided to deploy a small number of armed observers on the territory of the country.

The country's economy has not recovered since then, the political elite is mired in intrigues and abuses, and in Europe the number of refugees from Eritrea, many of whom have traveled long distances at risk for life, sailed across the Mediterranean to find themselves in the territory of the South European Countries, but primarily in Italy.

The role of the international community in resolving the crisis

The international community is sending huge amounts of humanitarian aid to Eritrea, but given the fact that, first of all, Eritrea is a country in Africa, without the active participation of African countries, the stabilization of the situation will be impossible. However, the Government of Eritrea, according to the observations of UN officials, does not make proper efforts to settle relations with its neighbors.

For example, reports are coming from the Somali government about Eritrea's support for the terrorist organization of the Union of Islamic Courts, which is fighting against the Federal Government of Somalia. But the hope for peaceful coexistence of neighboring countries is still preserved, because, like other countries in the world, Eritrea is a member of the UN and is compelled to comply with the decisions of its executive bodies.