General Ogbe Abraha was a veteran of the Eritrean independence struggle and held a number of government positions post-independence before being fired and arrested.
General Ogbe Abraha was a veteran of the Eritrean independence struggle and held a number of government positions post-independence. He served as the Chief of Staff of the Eritrean Defence Force, Minister of Trade and Security and the Minister of Labor and Social Welfare. In February 2000, General Ogbe Abraha told President Isaias Afwerki in a private meeting that the country needed collaborative leadership; he was fired from his cabinet position a few months later. General Ogbe was subsequently arrested for signing the G-15 letter, an open letter from prominent Eritrean politicians known as the G-15 or Group of 15, within the ruling party, demanding government reforms. His has since been subjected to enforced disappearance with the authorities providing no information about his health or whereabouts.
The African Commission on Human and People’s Rights ruled in November 2003 that G15 dissenters arrested in September 2001 in Eritrea, which includes General Ogbe Abraha, were being held in arbitrary and unlawful detention. It called upon the Eritrean government to release and compensate them. The Government of Eritrea has ignored the ruling and the G-15 members arrested in September 2001 remain in detention.