CAT/C/71/D/900/2018 constitutes a failure by the State party to meet its obligation to undertake an effective review of asylum applications, under article 3 of the Convention. 8.6 In order to determine whether the complainant is currently at risk of being subjected to torture if he is returned to Eritrea, the Committee must examine the alleged inconsistencies and contradictions in his statements and communications that were mentioned by the national authorities. The Committee deems it appropriate to evaluate the complainant’s statements in the light of various reports on the human rights situation in Eritrea; it notes, however, that the reports cited below were published after the Swiss authorities issued their decisions on the complainant’s asylum application. The Committee notes that, according to the 2019 report of the Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in Eritrea, even though Eritrea and Ethiopia signed a peace agreement in 2018, the human rights situation in Eritrea remains worrying, since, among other things, the duration of national and military service remains indefinite, conscripts are at risk of ill-treatment and abuse, evading conscription can lead to arrest and detention, and the exit visa requirement for those wishing to go abroad has been reinstated.30 According to this report, the Government of Eritrea indicated in March 2019 that reforms to the military service would begin when it had the resources to create job opportunities for conscripts.31 More recent reports by non-governmental organizations show that these reforms have not yet been carried out.32 8.7 The Committee also notes the findings in the report that was written by the State Secretariat for Migration and published by the European Asylum Support Office in September 2019. According to this report, the national service in Eritrea has a military component and a civilian component.33 All conscripts first undergo military training and are then assigned either to the military component, under the Ministry of Defence, or to the civilian component, under the responsibility of one of the other ministries. The punishment for desertion, draft evasion and illegal exit continues to be applied arbitrarily and inconsistently by military commanders and other representatives of the security forces. 34 Anecdotal information suggests that deserters and draft evaders are likely to be arrested during round-ups or on their return from abroad and then to be sent to prison for a term that generally ranges from 1 to 12 months. While they are in detention, they may be subjected to torture. Persons who left the country without prior authorization may face higher prison terms of up to 3 years. Returnees who have paid a tax and signed a letter of regret are likely to be arrested and conscripted into the national service after a grace period. No official information on the treatment of deserters, draft evaders and persons who left Eritrea illegally is available. As at August 2019, there were no indications that the signing of the peace agreement with Ethiopia in 2018 had led to more leniency towards these groups. 8.8 The Committee notes that according to the record of the complainant’s second hearing, when the national authorities asked the complainant to explain in detail his reasons for seeking asylum, he said that he had left his country in order to continue his education and then find a job. When asked to specify all his reasons for seeking asylum, the complainant said that there had been frequent round-ups and that, as a result, he had not been able to live freely and had had to go into hiding. The Committee considers that the mere fact that a person had multiple reasons for leaving his or her country does not exclude the possibility of that person being at risk of torture in the event of return. The Committee also notes that the complainant gave a detailed account of what he did during the two round-ups that took place in his village a few months before he left the country, and that he was able to answer the other questions about the circumstances surrounding his departure. 30 31 32 33 34 GE.21-13784 A/HRC/41/53, paras. 8, 13 and 26–30. See also A/HRC/38/50, para. 108 (b), (c) and (h); and CCPR/C/ERI/CO/1, para. 37. A/HRC/41/53, para. 31. See Human Rights Watch, “They Are Making Us into Slaves, Not Educating Us” – How Indefinite Conscription Restricts Young People’s Rights, Access to Education in Eritrea (August 2019); and Human Rights Watch, “World Report 2020 – Eritrea: events of 2019”. European Asylum Support Office, Eritrea National Service, Exit, and Return – Country of Origin Information Report (September 2019), p. 24. Ibid., pp. 9–10. 13