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Ethiopia: Whether the Ethiopian Embassy issues passports to Ethiopians of Eritrean descent, including those who were deported from Ethiopia to Eritrea, and to those who have no identification documents; whether applicants are denied identification documents because of their Eritrean descent

In a 2 June 2004 telephone interview, a visa officer at the Embassy of Ethiopia in Ottawa provided the following information: the visa officer explained that in general, Ethiopia does not issue passports to Eritreans. However, new regulations allow for Ethiopians of Eritrean descent to be issued Ethiopian passports if they possessed an Ethiopian passport that was valid up to 1998, if they have lived for some time in Ethiopia, but outside Eritrea (i.e. that they have not lived all their life in Eritrea), and if they have never held citizenship in any other country (2 June 2004a).

Regarding whether the embassy would issue passports to people who have been deported or who possess no identification documents, the visa officer explained that in such cases, some proof was needed that the applicants were Ethiopian (2 June 2004a). He indicated that acceptable identification included birth certificates and school certificates, but in their absence, applicants could provide the embassy with details including the complete addresses and contact information of relatives in Ethiopia who would be able to verify the identity of the applicant (ibid.). In a 2 June 2004 interview, a different representative of the Ethiopian embassy in Ottawa indicated that at least two witnesses were required to verify the identity of an applicant and to confirm that he or she was "Ethiopian."

Both representatives agreed that Ethiopians of Eritrean descent could be denied identification documents such as passports (2 June 2004a; ibid 2 June 2004b). The visa officer explained that since Eritrea has gained independence from Ethiopia, certain documents obtained in Ethiopia before independence could be invalidated (2 June 2004a).

This Response was prepared after researching publicly accessible information currently available to the Research Directorate within time constraints. This Response is not, and does not purport to be, conclusive as to the merit of any particular claim for refugee protection. Please find below the list of additional sources consulted in researching this Information Request.

References

Embassy of Ethiopia, Ottawa. 2 June 2004a. Telephone interview with a visa officer.

_____. 2 June 2004b. Telephone interview with a representative.