RELEASE OF ARRESTED AMCIT EMBASSY EMPLOYEE AFTER 4

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 ASMARA 000239

SIPDIS

DEPT FOR AF/E, AF/EX, AND DRL
CA/OCS/ACS/AF AND DS/IP/AF, DS/TIA/ITA, DS/IP/SPC/SO
LONDON AND PARIS FOR AFRICA WATCHERS

E.O. 12958: DECL: 07/22/2019
TAGS: APER ASEC CASC EAID ER KDEM PGOV PHUM PINR
PREL
SUBJECT: RELEASE OF ARRESTED AMCIT EMBASSY EMPLOYEE AFTER 4
DAY INTERROGATION

REF: A. ASMARA 232

B. ASMARA 229

Classified By: Ambassador Ronald K. McMullen for reason 1.4(d).


1. (C) SUMMARY. On July 14, pol/econ assistant Helen
Tesfazion, a dual Eritrean-American citizen, was arrested,
held in a small cell, and interrogated for four days at an
unknown location in Keren, 60 miles from Asmara, Eritrea.
She was released on July 18th, after being told she was a
spy, doing the dirty work of the embassy's Americans who
could not travel freely, and recruiting the youth of Eritrea
to come to America. By not notifying the embassy of her
arrest or allowing consular access to her, the Eritrean
Government (GSE) violated the Vienna Convention. END
SUMMARY.

FIRST ARREST OF AMCIT EMBASSY EMPLOYEE
--------------


2. (C) On July 13, pol/econ assistant Helen Tesfazion began
a five-day trip outside of Asmara to meet with community
organizations. On the evening of July 14, she, the embassy
driver, and a representative from NUEYS (National Union of
Eritrean Youth and Students) departed Keren and made a
routine stop at a road checkpoint. An unidentified man
entered the embassy vehicle and ordered the embassy driver to
the nearest police station. Ms. Tesfazion was then driven to
an unmarked building guarded by soldiers and told she was
under arrest. She was locked in a small urine-covered
unfurnished concrete room.

INTERROGATION
--------------


3. (C) The next morning started four days of interrogation by
a man knowledgeable of embassy affairs. He wanted to know if
she had distributed any reading materials on this trip, what
she did in the pol/econ section, and what kind of special
privileges she received from the embassy. She was asked
about why she was Catholic and if she knew anything about the
Jehovah's Witnesses and Evangelical Christians in the
country. The interrogator raised specific details about
people, projects, and events at the embassy.


4. (C) A second interrogator attempted to lecture and
intimidate Ms. Tesfazion. He said the CIA was encouraging
Eritrea's youth to leave the country, and that one of their
methods of recruitment was through the evening lecture series
sponsored by the embassy. He stated that since the travel of
American diplomats was restricted, the embassy was using its
local employees to spy, and that she was being used by the
embassy "to do their dirty work."

VIENNA CONVENTION ON CONSULAR RELATIONS (VCCR) IGNORED
-------------- --------------


5. (C) The embassy driver, not the GSE, notified the embassy
of Ms. Tesfazion's arrest. The embassy FSN investigator, in
Keren the next day, asked several times for access but was
denied. The GSE's lack of notification and access violates
Article 36 of the VCCR, as does the mistreatment of Ms.
Tesfazion while being held. For four days she was held in a
dirty room without a toilet, bed or bedding, heat, or
protection from mosquitoes. Although sick with vomiting and
diarrhea, she did not receive any medical care. Almost all
her local currency, equivalent to USD$100, was stolen after
being confiscated by authorities.


6. (C) COMMENT: Ms. Tesfazion is the 45th embassy LES to be
arrested since 2001, but the first American. The tactics
used were not surprising or new, nor was the mention of the
many details given by the interrogator regarding the
day-to-day workings of the embassy, since it is known that
many LES report to the GSE. The multiple violations of the
VCCR were standard practice for the GSE. Alhough we
contacted the Ministry of Foreign Affairs numerous times
regarding Ms. Tesfazion's arrest, our calls went unanswered.

ASMARA 00000239 002 OF 002


MCMULLEN