Helen Berhane
Encyclopedia
Helen Berhane is a Christian
Gospel singer who was a prisoner in Eritrea
.
Berhane is a member of the Rema church, one of several minority Evangelical Christian
churches not officially recognized by the state of Eritrea and heavily persecuted
. She was arrested on 13 May 2004, shortly after she released an album of Christian music, after refusing to sign a document pledging to end all participation in Evangelical activities, which included her music. She was detained at Mai Serwa military camp, north of the capital Asmara
. She had no possibility of contact with her family and was denied legal representation or medical care.
On Eritrean Independence Day, 24 May 2006, Amnesty International
renewed their appeal to Eritrea's President Isaias Afewerki
to ensure the improvement of human rights
standards in the country. Five of the six female prisoners Amnesty International appealed for the release of last year on this date, including Berhane, were still held at the time. They had not been charged with anything nor brought to any court.
Berhane's 2003 album, T' Kebaeku (I Am Anointed), was re-released in Europe in June 2006.
after fleeing separately to the Sudan
ese capital of Khartoum for refuge.
Christian
A Christian is a person who adheres to Christianity, an Abrahamic, monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus of Nazareth as recorded in the Canonical gospels and the letters of the New Testament...
Gospel singer who was a prisoner in Eritrea
Eritrea
Eritrea , officially the State of Eritrea, is a country in the Horn of Africa. Eritrea derives it's name from the Greek word Erethria, meaning 'red land'. The capital is Asmara. It is bordered by Sudan in the west, Ethiopia in the south, and Djibouti in the southeast...
.
Berhane is a member of the Rema church, one of several minority Evangelical Christian
Evangelicalism
Evangelicalism is a Protestant Christian movement which began in Great Britain in the 1730s and gained popularity in the United States during the series of Great Awakenings of the 18th and 19th century.Its key commitments are:...
churches not officially recognized by the state of Eritrea and heavily persecuted
Persecution of Christians
Persecution of Christians as a consequence of professing their faith can be traced both historically and in the current era. Early Christians were persecuted for their faith, at the hands of both Jews from whose religion Christianity arose, and the Roman Empire which controlled much of the land...
. She was arrested on 13 May 2004, shortly after she released an album of Christian music, after refusing to sign a document pledging to end all participation in Evangelical activities, which included her music. She was detained at Mai Serwa military camp, north of the capital Asmara
Asmara
Asmara is the capital city and largest settlement in Eritrea, home to a population of around 579,000 people...
. She had no possibility of contact with her family and was denied legal representation or medical care.
On Eritrean Independence Day, 24 May 2006, Amnesty International
Amnesty International
Amnesty International is an international non-governmental organisation whose stated mission is "to conduct research and generate action to prevent and end grave abuses of human rights, and to demand justice for those whose rights have been violated."Following a publication of Peter Benenson's...
renewed their appeal to Eritrea's President Isaias Afewerki
Isaias Afewerki
Isaias Afewerki is the first and current President of Eritrea, attaining that status when he led the Eritrean People's Liberation Front to victory in May 1991, thus ending the 30-year old armed liberation struggle that the Eritrean people refer to as "Gedli".-Early life and rise to power:Afewerki...
to ensure the improvement of human rights
Human rights
Human rights are "commonly understood as inalienable fundamental rights to which a person is inherently entitled simply because she or he is a human being." Human rights are thus conceived as universal and egalitarian . These rights may exist as natural rights or as legal rights, in both national...
standards in the country. Five of the six female prisoners Amnesty International appealed for the release of last year on this date, including Berhane, were still held at the time. They had not been charged with anything nor brought to any court.
Berhane's 2003 album, T' Kebaeku (I Am Anointed), was re-released in Europe in June 2006.
Release
On 2 November 2006 it was reported that Berhane was released from prison in late October 2006, suffering heavy illnesses. She and her daughter Eva were granted asylum in DenmarkDenmark
Denmark is a Scandinavian country in Northern Europe. The countries of Denmark and Greenland, as well as the Faroe Islands, constitute the Kingdom of Denmark . It is the southernmost of the Nordic countries, southwest of Sweden and south of Norway, and bordered to the south by Germany. Denmark...
after fleeing separately to the Sudan
Sudan
Sudan , officially the Republic of the Sudan , is a country in North Africa, sometimes considered part of the Middle East politically. It is bordered by Egypt to the north, the Red Sea to the northeast, Eritrea and Ethiopia to the east, South Sudan to the south, the Central African Republic to the...
ese capital of Khartoum for refuge.