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Political system of Eritrea

The politics of Eritrea and the government of Eritrea take place in the framework of a single party presidential republican totalitarian dictatorship. The President officially serves as both head of state and head of government. The People's Front for Democracy and Justice is the only political party legally permitted to exist in Eritrea. The popularly elected National Assembly of 150 seats, formed in 1993 shortly after independence from Ethiopia, elected the current president, Isaias Afwerki. There have been no general elections since its official independence in 1993. A new constitution was drafted in 1993 and ratified in 1997, but has not been implemented. Since the National Assembly last met in January 2002, President Isaias Afwerki has exercised the powers of both the executive and legislative branches of government. Independent local sources of political information on Eritrean domestic politics are scarce; in September 2001 the government closed down all of the nation's privately owned print media, and outspoken critics of the government have been arrested and held without trial, according to domestic and international observers, including Human Rights Watch and Amnesty International. In 2004 the U. S. State Department declared Eritrea a Country of Particular Concern (CPC) for its alleged record of religious persecution.

The legislature, the National Assembly appointed in 1993, includes 75 members of the People's Front for Democracy and Justice (PFDJ) and 75 additional 'popularly elected' members. Those elected by the general population must include 11 women and representation of 15 Eritreans not currently living in the state. The National Assembly is the highest legal power in the government until the establishment of a democratic, constitutional government. Within the Eritrean Constitution, the legislature would remain the strongest arm of the government. The legislature sets the internal and external policies of the government, regulates the implementation of those policies, approves the budget, and elects the president of the country. Its membership has not been renewed through national elections, and its latest session was in January 2002. Lower Regional Assemblies are also in each of Eritrea's six zones. These Assemblies are responsible for setting a local agenda in the case that they are not overruled by the National Assembly. These Regional Assemblies are popularly elected within each region. Unlike the National Assembly, however, the Regional administrator is not selected by the Regional Assembly.

Eritrea is a single party state run by the People's Front for Democracy and Justice (PFDJ). No other political groups are legally allowed to organize. The PFDJ's most recent party congress was held in January 2002, and its members have not met since. The electoral commission is handling these elections this time round so that may be the new element in this process. The national assembly has also mandated the electoral commission to set the date for national elections, so whenever the electoral commission sets the date there will be national elections. It’s not dependent on regional elections, although that might be a very helpful process. Multipartyism, in general principle yes, it is there but the law on political parties has to be approved by the national assembly. It was not approved the last time. The view from the beginning was that you don’t necessarily need a party law to hold national elections. You can have national elections and the party law can be adopted at any time. So in terms of commitment it’s very clear, in terms of the process it has its own pace, its own characteristics.

Eritrea has had rough relations with most of its neighbors in the 1990s and initiated both small scale and large scale battles against Sudan, Djibouti, Yemen and Ethiopia. Eritrea invaded the Hanish islands of Yemen, Sudan blamed Eritrea for attacks in Eastern Sudan, UN commission accused Eritrea for invading Ethiopia and Djibouti officials accused Eritrea for shelling towns in Djibouti in 1996. After this, Eritrea has made efforts to solve relations with Sudan and Djibouti, though relations with Yemen and Ethiopia remain sour. In 2008, an attack on Djibouti led by the Eritrean Army on the tip South end of the country led to several civilians being killed, and further international tensions. Eritrea abandoned the regional bloc IGAD which is membered by the four nations and Kenya. Due to the nature of its environment, many Eritreans risk their lives to flee the country and reach the Mediterranean and Europe.

The judiciary operates independently of both the legislative and executive bodies, with a court system that extends from the village through to the regional and national levels. Such isolation, in fact, can be seen in the judiciary’s exclusion from Proclamation no. 86/1996 for the Establishment of Regional Administration (PERA). PERA outlines the responsibilities and discretions of the legislative and executive branches but notably excludes the judiciary branch. In addition to its separation, the constitution also upholds the courts to protect the meselat (rights), rebhatat (rights), and natznetat (freedoms) of government, organizations, associations, and individuals. there is not a bar association in Eritrea. The Legal Committee of the Ministry of Justice oversees the admission and requirements to practice law. Although the source goes on to state that there have been female judges, there is no indication as to how demographic groups, such as women, have fared in the legal field.

The Eritrean judicial system is split into three different courts: the Civil Court, the Military Court, and the Special Court. If a dispute cannot be resolved in the community courts it can be appealed to the next level of judicial administration, the regional courts, natively known as Zoba Courts, which operate on a three judge bench system.

The Special Court, the third and final element to the Eritrean judicial system, operates on a three judge bench system and works under three themes: general criminal cases, corruption, and illegal foreign exchange and smuggling. however, judges do not receive training or do not have prior experience in law. Many are military men who form their decision based on conscience and the political values of the Eritrean Liberation Front (ELF). After a high level delegation to the Sudan from the Eritrean Ministry of Foreign Affairs ties are being normalized. While normalization of ties continues, Eritrea has been recognized as a broker for peace between the separate factions of the Sudanese civil war, with Hassan al Turabi crediting Eritrea in playing a role in the peace agreement between the Southern Sudanese and the government. Additionally, the Sudanese Government and Eastern Front rebels requested that Eritrea mediate their peace talks in 2006. A dispute with Yemen over the Hanish Islands in 1996 resulted in a brief war. As part of an agreement to cease hostilities the two nations agreed to refer the issue to the Permanent Court of Arbitration at the Hague. At the conclusion of the proceedings, both nations acquiesced to the decision. Since 1996 both governments have remained wary of one another but relations are relatively normal. The undemarcated border with Ethiopia is the primary external issue facing Eritrea. This led to a long and bloody border war between 1998 and 2000. As a result, the United Nations Mission in Ethiopia and Eritrea (UNMEE) is occupying a 25 km by 900 km area on the border to help stabilize the region. Disagreements following the war have resulted in stalemate punctuated by periods of elevated tension and renewed threats of war. Central to the continuation of the stalemate is Ethiopia's failure to abide by the border delimitation ruling and reneging on its commitment to demarcation. The stalemate has led the President of Eritrea to write his Eleven Letters to the United Nations Security Council, which urges the UN to take action on Ethiopia. Relations between the two countries is further strained by the continued effort of the Eritrean and Ethiopian leaders in supporting each other's opposition. The 8–9 July 2018 took place the 2018 Eritrea–Ethiopia summit (also 2018 Eritrea–Ethiopia peace summit) in Asmara, Eritrea, between Eritrean President Isaias Afwerki and Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed and officials from the two countries. The two leaders signed a joint declaration on 9 July, formally ending the border conflict between both countries, restoring full diplomatic relations, and agreeing to open their borders to each other for persons, goods and services. The joint statement was also considered to close all chapters regarding the Eritrean–Ethiopian War (1998–2000) and of the following Eritrean–Ethiopian border conflict (2000–2018) with sporadic clashes.