Written question asked by Lord Alton of Liverpool (Crossbench) on Tuesday, 30 June 2020, in the House of Lords. It was due for an answer on Tuesday, 14 July 2020. It was answered by Baroness Sugg (Conservative) on Tuesday, 14 July 2020 on behalf of the Foreign and Commonwealth Office.

Eritrea: National Service

Question: To ask Her Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer by Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon on 18 February (HL1258), why they described those National Service workers employed by Segen engineering as “civilian”; whether those workers were recruited through national military conscription in Eritrea; and how they categories which workers are (1) civilians, and (2) part of the military.

Answer: The Eritrean Government has justified civilian and military national service on grounds of the security threat posed by Ethiopia, but we have yet to see concrete proposals for reform following the peace declaration. According to our information, every Eritrean young person completes their 12th and final year of school at the national service military training centre at Sawa where they do both military training as well as academic study. At the end, they take exams which leads to some going to college, some receiving vocational training, while others join government ministries or the military. All jobs in Eritrea in the public sector are done by Eritreans on national service, and these include the civil service, teachers, doctors, construction and the military. Sustainable reform of national service needs to happen in tandem with improvements to the economic situation and job creation. We will continue to monitor the situation.

Secondary information

Type: Written question
Reference: HL6274
Session: 2019-21
Related items: Eritrea: National Service
Tuesday, 18 February 2020
Written questions
House of Lords
Subjects: National service Sexual offences Roads EU aid Eritrea
Link: View this Written question on www.parliament.uk