Christian Foundation Calls on Canada to Investigate YouTuber for Attacks on “former Eritrean prisoner of conscience”

“Our elders are truly suffering, and this must be addressed. Let us not be divided by ethnicity, race, or region, but unite to help our people,” the report quotes Helen as saying in the video recording. 

In his September 15 program, the CSW report indicates, “Mr. Syum, whose full name is reportedly Solomon Tesfamariam Sium, accused Ms. Berhane of lying about both the plight of the elderly Eritreans and the 32 months she spent imprisoned in shipping containers in Eritrea’s Mai Serwa prison, despite the fact that her ordeal has been confirmed by released inmates and comprehensively documented by several human rights organisations.”

The YouTuber is said to have vilified Helen, describing her as “snake-like”, “insane”, “a Tigrayan, born and raised in Asmara”, and a “spy” of the Tigray People’s Liberation Front (TPLF).

According to CSW, Mr. Syum “falsely accused her (Helen) of meeting with Brad Sherman, a US Congressman … who advocates for firmer action against the Eritrean regime, including funding the opposition” and yet she has never met him.

The YouTuber is said to have “claimed, erroneously, that Ms. Berhane has been paid to ‘demonise’ Eritrea and has lied about her imprisonment and torture in order ‘to push for the imposition of sanctions on the government and people of Eritrea.’”

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In the report, CSW says it has established that Mr. Syum “was granted asylum in Canada along with his family on the grounds of having fled persecution. However, since November 2020, when Eritrea joined Ethiopian forces in attacking the Tigray region, he has used his YouTube channel to support the regime and insult and threaten its opponents.”

Helen is quoted telling CSW that the YouTuber “has been harassing her for three years. The harassment began when she spoke against the use of rape as a weapon of war during the Tigray crisis, and he accused her of spreading fake news.”

“We are appalled by this unwarranted and mendacious attack on Ms Berhane. Mr Syum should be held accountable if she is harmed in any way as a result of his falsehoods,” the CEO of CSW, Scot Bower, is quoted as saying.

Considering that the insults and threats extend beyond the September 15 video recording, Scot calls “on the Canadian authorities to investigate Mr. Syum’s activities as a matter of urgency.”

“Not only does he appear to have claimed asylum on questionable grounds; by inciting his sizeable audience to attack and intimidate members of the diaspora who oppose the Eritrean regime he is also facilitating its transnational repression,” the CSW official says. 

He adds, “We urge YouTube to close down Mr. Syum’s channel, given his inflammatory broadcasts and his encouragement of attacks on individuals in the Eritrean diaspora.”

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