About EYSC and its Mission

In February 2011, a few individuals started discussing about the possibility of creating a “Cyber Demonstration” that would encourage Eritreans of all ages in general and the youth in particular to speak up against dictatorship in Eritrea. The result is this Facebook Group – Eritrean Youth Solidarity for Change (EYSC).

PURPOSE

We firmly believe that if the Eritrean youth are given a chance, no one can stand between them and their demand for constitutional democracy, justice and the rule of law. No single person, group, political or civic organization is behind this Facebook group. In that sense, it belongs to all of us. Every group member’s voice is as important as the next. Thanks to social networking sites like Facebook we are able to experience freedom of thought and speech – freedoms that are denied to our families in Eritrea. Everything we do is about them. We want to encourage our people to stand up to tyranny and demand change; but we have to make it easy for them to rise. We need to tell them that, it may have taken some time, but now, mena’esey ertra (Eritrean Youth) are ready to stand up and face the dictatorship of Isaias Afworki.

We are calling for:

• Isaias Afworki to immediately step down

• Unconditional release of all prisoners of conscience

• The end of the campaign of slavery, disguised as national service

 

BEYOND FACEBOOK

We understand that the struggle to free our country from the one-man-dictatorship requires more than the use of social media to organize the pro-democracy voices. A grassroots movement aimed at empowering the Eritrean youth is badly needed. Thanks to the rapid growth of this group, a “task-force” team of Administrators and Organizers was informally setup to brainstorm strategies that would help this group achieve its stated goals. Over the past several weeks, the team conducted discussions via email, tele-conference and Paltak meetings.

On Saturday June 18th, 2011, after conducting an extensive discussion and weighing all the options, 15 EYSC Administrators and Organizers decided, by majority vote, to formally launch EYSC “on the ground” in addition to its presence as a Facebook Group. Simply put, we have to be able to wake up the 80% of our people in the Diaspora that are not actively speaking up. We have to be able to maximize the pressure against the dictatorial regime from all angles: UN, US, EU, AU, NGO’s etc… We have to be able to get the attention of the world media. We have to be able to hurt the pocket book of the regime; and last but not least, we have to be able to spark a movement for change inside Eritrea, where it matters most.

 

WHAT CAN YOU DO TO HELP?

The first thing we ask of you is for your understanding and forgiveness. We have taken steps thus far based on our limited knowledge and resources. We are now taking steps knowing that we may stumble and make unintended mistakes. However, we are confident that we can count on your wise counsel; and together, we will move closer to our destination. You may not agree with all our objectives and methods but since this movement is bigger and more important than our individual tastes, let’s all be flexible and forgiving.

As we move forward, the real focus will be on what can be done in your neck of the woods. No one knows better than you about how to defeat the PFDJ in the city, county, region, province, or country that you live in. We encourage you to start looking for like-minded individuals that may be able to work with you to form a local chapter of the EYSC. The best place to start is this Facebook Group.

 

NEXT STEP

EYSC will be setup as a decentralized organization that will empower local chapters to counter the influence of the PFDJ in their locality. We will first focus on the regions of North America, Europe, Africa, Middle East and Australia . The primary goal will be to quickly form a movement that can turn ideas that are being generated here into actions. A guideline for setting up a local chapter is being finalized and will be available shortly. With the 4T’s as our core values (Tolerance, Truth, Trust and Transparency) and the brain power of this 5600+ strong and growing, dynamic Facebook Group, we are confident that we will be able to achieve our immediate and ultimate goals.

 

EYSC Administrators

June 30, 2011

 

 

World-wide network of Eritreans against dictatorship



We encourage all Eritreans, and especially the youth to stand up and join the fight for freedom, democracy and justice..

Join the Facebook Group today!