Eritrean demonstrations in Oslo – React:

The police expect over 1,000 Eritrean protesters to appear outside the Storting on Friday.

There will be two demonstrations, first by the opposition from 8am to 11am, followed by the Norwegian-Eritrean Cooperation Organization in Norway from 11am to 2pm. The police refer to the latter as “regime friendly”, but they themselves refer to themselves as politically neutral and secular.

In connection with the demonstrations, the police have sent out a letter to nearby businesses.

They encourage, among other things, to avoid the sale of eggs, tomatoes and potatoes in nearby shops just before and during the demonstrations. This is reported by Avisa Oslo, which has seen the letter.

“Both parties have informed the police that they want peaceful demonstrations in Oslo on 26 April, but that they fear violence from the other party. (…) There is great uncertainty related to how the events will be carried out, but the situation could potentially lead to clashes”, the letter states.

– First of all, I want to clarify that our association is peaceful and we have never resorted to violence. The purpose of our peaceful demonstration is for our voices, which are constantly being ignored, to be heard.

That is what Samson Yared, information and media officer at the Norwegian-Eritrean Cooperation Organization in Norway, told Dagbladet. He explains that their message is aimed at the Storting, which he believes stigmatizes Norwegian-Eritreans.

– Absurd

Yared reacts to the police’s handling of the demonstration. He claims that the opposition was given permission to hold a demonstration on Friday, after that Yared’s organization got it.

– It is absurd that they were given permission to hold a demonstration just before spring, points out Yared.

However, he adds that the organization has good communication with the police, and that they want a peaceful demonstration.

– Our right to assembly is constantly being violated, and now it has gone so far that the Storting is debating laws that should only apply to Norwegian-Eritreans.

– Our goal is that our important message is not drowned in unnecessary clashes and incorrect descriptions of our associations and religious communities, he elaborates.

Creates worries

According to AO, the police’s concerns about the demonstration are linked to previous clashes between the parties in other parts of the country.

In the letter, written by police inspector and business liaison in the Oslo police, Christina Rooth, it is stated that the demonstrations “have led to serious and extensive violence, also against the police”.

In September, there were extensive and violent clashes between the parties in Bergen. The party that believes Eritrean President Isaias Afewerki is a dictator demonstrated against the party that believes he is a liberation hero.

The police were not prepared for the extensive commotion that ensued, despite the fact that they had consulted with the Police Security Service (PST). Up to 80 police officers had to be involved, and the costs exceeded NOK 2.5 million.

Only a few days before the clashes in Bergen, more than 50 people were injured during riots at a regime-loyal Eritrean festival in Stockholm. Several hundred were arrested.