Originally written on 05-04-2005.

Release Eritrea welcomes a statement given by the General Conference of Seventh-day Adventists, at the 61st Session of the commission on human rights in Geneva, stating that the Eritrean Government has now received and authorised registration application made by the Seventh-day Adventist Church of Eritrea. In response to strong lobbying from Dr Jonathan Gallagher, UN liaison Director of the General Conference of Seventh -Day Adventists, Dr Amare Tekel head of the Eritrean delegation at the commission stated that the technicalities for registration of the Adventist church are now complete and the church should be operational once bureaucratic processes have been fully carried out. In his statement Dr Gallagher stated; ‘I have been informed this past Friday by the distinguished Ambassador of Eritrea that the Church has now been registered and will be able to operate soon’

Release Eritrea welcomes this move and hopes that it is an indication on the part of the Eritrean Government now moving to process the applications of all other minority churches which have been pending for two years now.

In a statement welcoming the pronouncement Dr Berhane Asmelash—director of release Eritrea said; ‘naturally I am delighted that the Government has now indicated its willingness to recognise and register minority faiths in Eritrea, however I am concerned about the very notion that churches, which have had recognition previously are required to re-register –a requirement that doesn’t seem to be applicable to the four main religions enjoying recognition’.

If the Seventh-day Adventists gains recognition it would be the fifth recognised religious group in Eritrea Joining the Orthodox, the Catholic and, the Evangelical churches of Eritrea and Islam as the only religions recognised by the government.