The Resurgence of Religious and Ethnic Identities among Eritrean Refugees: A Response to the Government’s Nationalist Ideology

Abstract

This article explores processes of identity formation in Eritrean diaspora communities that have reverted to subnational patterns of identification grounded in the historical-political crises of their homeland. Refugees from Eritrea’s open-ended national service have ambivalent feelings towards their national identity: on the surface, they stress the cohesiveness of the Eritrean people, but in their daily lives they embrace ethnic or religious communities. I elaborate the dilemmas of identity formation in the transnational space between religious and ethnic affiliations and Eritrean nationalism. I analyse the expansion of ethnolinguistic and regional associations among diaspora communities and discuss their impact on identity formation. I link cleavages along ethnic and religious lines to collective memories and the government’s attempts to eradicate subnational identities. The study is based on long-term participant observation and semi-structured interviews with Eritreans in exile, and engages with relevant bodies of literature discussing identity formation in African and diaspora contexts.

Return and Retreat in a Transnational World: Insights from Eritrea

“…She describes how the rights and responsibilities that cohere to Eritrean citizenship are far from uniformly experienced as "graduated policies have created different categories of citizens: external citizens, whose loyalties are cultivated so they will continue to make financial contributions to the nation, and territorially bound citizens, required to engage in national military service" (Riggan, 2013a, p. 102). Woldemikael (2018) and other scholars (e.g., Belloni, 2021;Mohammad, 2021) have further nuanced this picture of graduated citizenships by considering the ethnic, generational, and political divides within the diaspora, as well as the divides between local elite and other locals who are not connected to the power structure. This means that, depending on their background, different refugees may access different rights and duties upon their return as diaspora citizens, as we show in the next section.…”

Introduction: Eritrea’s Uneasy Futures and their Historical Contingencies

“…Currently, there are numerous political opposition parties and movements active in the diaspora, as well as a group that politically supports the PFDJ regime. Th e opposition is not a unitary pole, but highly fragmented and heterogeneous, and its alliances are dynamic and volatile (Mohammad 2021): It has tried to think through the establishment of a diaspora and transitional government or council (ባይቶ, bayito in Tigrinya), 5 if the government of Isaias ever comes to a sudden end through regime collapse, military coup, or popular uprising. Th is requires a conceptualisation of transition in the double bind of an inside and outside.…”

Sharpening the Identities of African Churches in Eastern Christianity: A Comparison of Entanglements between Religion and Ethnicity

“…Finally, as mentioned above in these three diaspora religions, it is possible to recognize an expansion of both institutional and non-institutional transnational ties with the fatherland and the mother church. In fact, these diaspora religions are continuing both to provide material and economic support for their home communities, and to influence their national political arena (Brinkerhoff 2013;Giordan and Guglielmi 2018;Mohammad 2021).…”