Ciham Ali Abdu was arrested in Eritrea at just 15 years old. More than 8 years later, the Eritrean-American dual citizen remains in prison without having been charged or tried.
Ciham was arrested at the border to Sudan as she tried to flee the country shortly after her father Ali Abdu, then a foreign minister in President Isaias Afwerki’s government, defected and fled to exile. Ciham has not had access to her family and lawyers since she was arrested. Her family does not know the state of her health or where she is being held.
WHAT CAN YOU DO TO HELP ?
Join Amnesty International and One Day Seyoum’s campaign #FreeCiham and pressure US Secretary of State Antony Blinken to intervene in Ciham’s case and demand her immediate and unconditional release.
2.
Take part in the '2012 Challenge':
1. Post a picture of yourself from this year (2021) and 2012
2. Share some things you have done since 2012
3. Use the hashtag #FreeCiham and tag @SecBlinken
We want to highlight how long Ciham has been detained and why it is high time for the United States to act on her behalf.
3.
Attend Ciham’s virtual birthday party:
Join our virtual birthday party for Ciham on 11 April (7pm BST) to celebrate and stand in solidarity with her, and learn about how you can get involved in our #FreeCiham campaign.
The event will be attended by Ciham’s family, artists and poets and will be livestreamed on Amnesty International’s FB page. There will also be an open mic for people who want to share something for Ciham. Sign up for the open mic here: tinyurl.com/CihamOpenMic.
Target account:
@SecBlinken
Hashtags:
#FreeCiham #BlackLivesMatter
Suggested tweets:
“When Ciham was only 15 years old, she was detained without a trial in #Eritrea. Despite being a US national, the US government has not intervened in her case. Ciham has now been secretly detained for 8 years - @SecBlinken please act now! #FreeCiham”
" 'She is in hell. Conditions in Eritrean prisons are overcrowded. They are treated like they are not human beings' 24 year old Ciham is a dual US-Eritrean national who has been detained for 8 years. Join us in pressuring @SecBlinken to act! #FreeCiham"
“In 2012, Ciham Ali was a 15-year-old student living in #Eritrea who loved rock music and dreamt of being a fashion designer. That was her last year in freedom. Ciham is a US national - join me in pressuring @SecBlinken to get involved now. #FreeCiham”
“In 2012, Ciham’s favourite color was purple, she dreamt of becoming a fashion designer and loved Green Day & Lady Gaga. We have no idea who she is now. Ciham is a US national - @SecBlinken, it’s high time to intervene in her case & demand her immediate & unconditional release.”
“I demand the immediate release of Ciham Ali, a US-Eritrean national who was detained in #Eritrea in 2012 - when she was only 15 years old. She has not been seen since. I call on @SecBlinken to urgently intervene in Ciham's case. #FreeCiham”
“Why has the Eritrean government detained Ciham for 8 years? Why has the US government not intervened in Ciham's case, despite her being a US national? Why is the world silent about Ciham's suffering? Join me in pressuring @SecBlinken to act now. #FreeCiham”
Creative Assets:
