THE POLICY OF ERITREAN GOVERNMENT TO REDUCE THE MASSIVE YOUTH MIGRATION AFTER THE ERITREAN-ETHIOPIA WAR
Abstract
As Eritrea was never absent from conflict, the government in 1991 decided to
implement national service for its citizen. National service in Eritrean sense is compulsory
military training and civil services for all Eritreans between the age of 18 to 50 for the
maximum of 18 months. But since 1998 when the war broke out between Eritrea and
Ethiopian, the government extended the timeline of national service indefinitely. The
indefinite national service later became the main reason of many young citizen of Eritrea
fleeing the country, as in the conscription they are forced to work on things they do not chose
or like, paid with a very low monthly salary, and have no rights to oppose the government.
In 2015 United Nation High Commission on Refugee (UNHCR) recorded that there
were 5000 Eritrean fled the country every month.. The massive youth migration caused the
country to gain international attention, especially European Union (EU) as they received most
asylum application from the Eritrean migrants. United Kingdom (UK) even said that they
could not afford to accept anymore of Eritrean and that national service is no longer a legal
grounds for asylum. Cornered by international sanctions by the UN and the decline of Eritrea
economy, Eritrea government decided to changes its policy to reduce the massive youth
migration.
As the findings, this research proves that the Eritrean government has done the best
they can do to stop, or at least prevent the massive youth migration in the future and through
their newest policies regarding national service, economy and its foreign policy.