I want to apologise now for not making much sense and babbling but we are all very tired, very upset and very anxious.
As very few people know (it only appeared in the newspapers for the first time yesterday), there are 4 men being held prisoner in the country of Eritrea on the charges of Espionage and Terrorism. A country well known for ..and i quote... "Torture, cruel and degrading treatment, and forced labor are routine for conscripts as well as detainees. Detention conditions are appalling, with detainees typically held in overcrowded cells - sometimes underground - or in shipping containers that reach searing temperatures by day and are freezing at night."
The circumstances are HUGELY confusing, but the prisoners have been accused of crimes they havent commited and were then ditched in Eritrea by their employer.
These men were working for a company called PVI (Protection Vessels International) acting as protection for a larger ship from the (very real!) threat of piracy.
In now turns out there is a possibility that PVI were involved in a scandle involving espionage, but this wasnt the people now standing accused!
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I am creating this post because one of the men being held prisoner is my uncle, Chris Collision. For the last 6 months we have been on tenterhooks, praying for answers (though PVI were instructing us to keep quiet and not go to the press as it might anger the Eritreans, it turns out they were just trying to keep their name out of the press!).
But things are looking worse and worse, our Government having failed to achieve anything in the last 6 months but to anger the Eritrean Governement and then apologise to them again.
http
/www.facebook.com/home.php?sk=group_230800260279483&ap=1
Here also is a quote from my cousin, Sam Collison (one of the prisoners daughters).
I am also going to link the two press releases recently made.
Please remember, this is the English translation of what the Eritrean President is telling his people. He has already been shown a lot of times to have particularly cruel views. It is him personally who has refused any contact between the prisoners and any advisors.
This means a lot of what these people say is just NOT true. However, while we know Chris is innocent, we cant say the same of PVI, we dont know that they werent using the ex military men to spy! Which is why we believe that the head of PVI should be the one to face the questions in Eritrea, they have caused these problems and then ran for cover!
Recent Press release slating my uncle and bigging up PVI.
http/www.shabait.com/news/local-news/5925-press-release
First artical quoting the Eritrean Presidents opinion (who is described by UN ministers as a "lunatic")
http/www.independent.co.uk/news/world/africa/plea-to-free-captured-britons-dismissed-by-eritreas-president-2277679.html
Please join us on facebook to lend your support, you are all kind and caring people and can appreciate what we are all going through, let alone the prisoners and that all we want is our family members home safe and as well as can be possible.
As very few people know (it only appeared in the newspapers for the first time yesterday), there are 4 men being held prisoner in the country of Eritrea on the charges of Espionage and Terrorism. A country well known for ..and i quote... "Torture, cruel and degrading treatment, and forced labor are routine for conscripts as well as detainees. Detention conditions are appalling, with detainees typically held in overcrowded cells - sometimes underground - or in shipping containers that reach searing temperatures by day and are freezing at night."
The circumstances are HUGELY confusing, but the prisoners have been accused of crimes they havent commited and were then ditched in Eritrea by their employer.
These men were working for a company called PVI (Protection Vessels International) acting as protection for a larger ship from the (very real!) threat of piracy.
In now turns out there is a possibility that PVI were involved in a scandle involving espionage, but this wasnt the people now standing accused!
-------
I am creating this post because one of the men being held prisoner is my uncle, Chris Collision. For the last 6 months we have been on tenterhooks, praying for answers (though PVI were instructing us to keep quiet and not go to the press as it might anger the Eritreans, it turns out they were just trying to keep their name out of the press!).
But things are looking worse and worse, our Government having failed to achieve anything in the last 6 months but to anger the Eritrean Governement and then apologise to them again.
http
/www.facebook.com/home.php?sk=group_230800260279483&ap=1Here also is a quote from my cousin, Sam Collison (one of the prisoners daughters).
I am also going to link the two press releases recently made.
Please remember, this is the English translation of what the Eritrean President is telling his people. He has already been shown a lot of times to have particularly cruel views. It is him personally who has refused any contact between the prisoners and any advisors.
This means a lot of what these people say is just NOT true. However, while we know Chris is innocent, we cant say the same of PVI, we dont know that they werent using the ex military men to spy! Which is why we believe that the head of PVI should be the one to face the questions in Eritrea, they have caused these problems and then ran for cover!
Recent Press release slating my uncle and bigging up PVI.
http
/www.shabait.com/news/local-news/5925-press-releaseFirst artical quoting the Eritrean Presidents opinion (who is described by UN ministers as a "lunatic")
http
/www.independent.co.uk/news/world/africa/plea-to-free-captured-britons-dismissed-by-eritreas-president-2277679.htmlPlease join us on facebook to lend your support, you are all kind and caring people and can appreciate what we are all going through, let alone the prisoners and that all we want is our family members home safe and as well as can be possible.
