Government denounces "negative statements" by West

The Eritrean government has accused a number of Western countries of a "concerted effort" to issue negative remarks about Eritrea. In a statement, the foreign ministry described the comments as distorted. "The distorted picture that is conveyed by these statements is a 'setback of the democratic process' by detaining prominent politicians and shutting down the private press," the statement said. This portrayal was "unjustified and unacceptable". The statement said the government had already explained that the temporary closure of the private press was due to its "gross violation of the country's press law". Furthermore, certain individuals had been detained because they were "engaged in unlawful acts against the sovereignty and national security of the country". "In the circumstances the government of Eritrea is puzzled by the negative campaign now underway by a number of countries," the statement said. "The government of Eritrea particularly finds inexplicable the attempts to 'whitewash' crimes against the nation's security and sovereignty and present it as advocacy for democratic reform. Surely no sovereign state can allow people, no matter how 'prominent', to engage with impunity in illegal acts that jeopardize its national security."