Eritrean President Isaias Afwerki: Three decades, one leader - how independence hopes were dashed

Isaias Afwerki promised elections when he came to power in 1991 but these have still not been held.

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Isaias Afwerki now spends much of his time at his rural residence on a dusty hillside some 20km (12 miles) from the capital, Asmara.

With the cabinet not having met since 2018, all power flows through him, and like a potentate he receives a string of local officials and foreign dignitaries at his retreat.

It is also a magnet for ordinary Eritreans hoping in vain that Isaias might help them with their problems.

The 79-year-old has never faced an election in his three decades in power and there is little sign of that changing any time soon.

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cx2ekjvg17xo


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