Dawit Isaak’s 23-Year Detention Gains Renewed Attention with Human Rights Prize
The Committee to Protect Journalists says awarding Dawit Isaak the Edelstam Prize sends a strong message to Eritrean authorities that are holding at least 16 journalists without trial, access to family, or judicial oversight.
Dawit Isaak, a cofounder of Eritrea’s first independent newspaper, is considered the world’s longest-detained journalist.
In September 2001, Eritrean Swedish journalist Dawit Isaak was arrested during a crackdown on journalists and politicians. The crackdown targeted those calling for elections and other democratic reforms from a government that had been in power since Eritrea’s independence 10 years prior. To date, Isaak, who is a co-founder of Setit, Eritrea’s first independent newspaper, remains imprisoned without trial, access to family, or judicial oversight.
This week, Isaak, who is considered the world’s longest-detained journalist, was awarded the prestigious Edelstam Prize, “for his outstanding contributions and exceptional courage in standing up for freedom of expression, one’s beliefs and in the defense of human rights,” says a statement from the Harald Edelstam Foundation, which is behind the prize.
“By awarding Dawit Isaak this award, the Edelstam Foundation is sending a strong message that the world has not forgotten the plight of journalists detained in Eritrea,” Muthoki Mumo, CPJ Africa Program Coordinator tells OkayAfrica, adding that at least 16 other journalists are also still detained in the East African country. “Eritrea has flouted repeated calls to provide information about these journalists and to release them,” Mumo says.
The Edelstam Prize is named after Swedish diplomat Harald Edelstam, who courageously defended dissidents and refugees during Chile’s 1973 military coup. Isaak’s daughter, Betlehem Isaak, will accept the award on his behalf in a ceremony scheduled for November 19 in Stockholm.
“We are very concerned about his health and his whereabouts are unknown,” saidCaroline Edelstam, chair of the Edelstam Prize jury. “He is not charged with a crime, and he has been denied access to his family, consular assistance, and the right to legal counsel – effectively, it is an enforced disappearance."
Isaak’s journey as an emblem of press freedom began when he fled to Sweden in 1987 during Eritrea’s war for independence from Ethiopia. After gaining Swedish citizenship, he returned to Eritrea to help develop its media landscape following independence in 1993. After Isaak’s arrest, the Eritrean government subsequently shut down all private media, citing “national security.” To date, there have been no elections in Eritrea, with the country still being ruled by President Isaias Afwerki who has been in power since independence.
Mumo says the international community has done very little to hold Afwerki’s government responsible for the detention of journalists. The United Nations had in 2021 reinforced its call for Isaak’s release, stating that credible reports indicated he was still alive as of 2020.
However, Swedish officials recently decided to open an inquiry into Eritrean officials for crimes against humanity related to Isaak’s imprisonment. This follows a 2023 opinion by the United Nations Working Group on Arbitrary Detention calling for his release and compensation.
Mumo expressed cautious optimism amid these developments, stating that awards like the Edelstam Prize draw much-needed attention to Isaak’s story. “It is well past time that Eritrean officials did the right thing by releasing detained journalists and ending the years of agony suffered by them and their families.”
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