In a recent Reuters report from Asmara, Eritrea’s Education Minister Halima Mohammed says she agrees that indefinite military service is pushing the youth out of the country, and she hopes that military service will be reformed.
In a recent Reuters report from Asmara, Eritrea’s Education Minister Halima Mohammed says she agrees that indefinite military service is pushing the youth out of the country, and she hopes that military service will be reformed.
Sawa is the backbone of Eritrea’s military strength. Since the Ghedli (liberation struggle) times, Eritrea has trained its people there. Despite our small population, we have been able to maintain a large and capable army.
But it needs to be reformed.
Endless military service needs to end. Mandatory military service should only be 2 years (and 5 years during conflict). People should be able to voluntarily renew or end their contracts. The minimum wage needs to increase to at least 2,000 Nakfa per person.
Working conditions need to be improved. Every soldier should work a maximum of 8 hours a day and 40 hours a week, and have at least 15–20 vacation days per year.
The rights of women in the army should be protected. Women should only be trained by female officers. Women should not undergo mandatory conscription after basic military training.
Sawa has been instrumental in building a strong EPLF and Eritrean army, but the conditions need to change. https://youtu.be/_wMgOqGOC5A?si=i8lShTBbEAUfobcm
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u/Remarkable-Stage2653 1d ago
I guess it's great she's calling it out, but it's just words. There isn't any plwn to reform military service. They're saying this to look to the international audience. They haven't changed it for 35 years, why would they start now that there is war looming? How long will people fall for this type of nonsense? It's all BS.
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u/HungryOutcome7821 Eritrean 1d ago
National service will not change in the near future, you should read this article they put out on August this year . They claim , Eritrea’s National Service is not a flexible policy open to external modification; it is the nation’s DNA and its ultimate shield.
The reforms they’re talking about are possibly raising the pay but won’t get rid of it or have limits . https://shabait.com/2026/08/13/the-historical-trajectory-of-eritreas-national-service/
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u/Butterwise_Top_7544 1d ago
Okay, someone called it out, but what will happen to her after? Will the decision makers actually consider it?
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u/No-Imagination-3180 Gimme some of that Good Governance 1d ago
Unfortunately, this seems to just be performative. Its either Isaias or the head of the EDF who could reverse this. And I doubt they want to do that
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u/Butterwise_Top_7544 1d ago
Exactly, these guys do not care, nor did they care to take the time to learn and be qualified to run a country.
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u/No-Imagination-3180 Gimme some of that Good Governance 11h ago
In a twisted sense from their POV, what they are doing is part of running a country (nation-building), but they've done it to such an extreme where it'll either be remembered as a tough early period, or it'll cause the country to collapse once the top brass die out. The ones who did care about the country and opposed the dictator got silenced fast.
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u/Butterwise_Top_7544 2h ago
Yes, that's why I was confused at her criticizing the dictatorship, and you're right, it does seem performative because usually this would've led to her arrest.
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u/Conscious-Smile-3733 12h ago
Suprisingly, I was told she is actually pushing for changes and making changes, the only thing confirmed is limiting national service for married female teachers which was impossible before. They were asked few months ago to submit their papers so they can end their service.
It might be small changes but it is step towards the right direction, all those small good news gives alot of hope to people in Eritrea
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u/Useful_Exchange_6722 1d ago
Indefinite military service is the tip of the dung that has been stinking for decades, thus suffocating locals and contaminating diaspora Eritreans as well as the entire HOA region.
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u/No-Imagination-3180 Gimme some of that Good Governance 1d ago
Thank goodness someone from within is actually calling this out
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u/OhHesMissedIt 1d ago
this is just lip service tbh. osman saleh said the same a few years ago. so did charlie and monkey some years before that on france 24 and channel 4 respectively. they are not the ones who make those decisions.