Visit the new AsenaTv Website

https://asenatv.com

Australian Eritreans ‘forced’ to pay illegal tax

By Santilla Chingaipe Members of Australia's Eritrean community claim they are being forced to pay a tax which has been banned by the United Nations. According to the federal government, if such a practice is occurring in Australia,

By Santilla Chingaipe

Members of Australia’s Eritrean community claim they are being forced to pay a tax which has been banned by the United Nations.

According to the federal government, if such a practice is occurring in Australia, it would be in breach of both UN sanctions and an Australian government directive.

David (not his real name) who arrived in Australia as a skilled migrant in 2009, says he’s been forced to pay the 2 per cent tax since a visit to the Eritrean Consulate in Melbourne; the country’s only diplomatic presence in Australia.

“They get to know you or catch you when you go to the consulate,” he says.

He has shown SBS receipts that indicate the payments he’s made over the years to the consulate.

David says he is taxed based on his earnings in Australia.

He says he was asked to provide evidence of his income, such as pay slips and group certificate.

David says he was unemployed when he first arrived and was asked to pay the minimum that can be taxed, which he claims is what they ask people on Centrelink benefits to pay.

He says failure to pay the tax has repercussions.

Click on the Link to Read More: Australian Eritreans ‘forced’ to pay illegal tax

aseye.asena@gmail.com

Review overview
29 COMMENTS
  • SAVING YOUNG ERITREANS March 16, 2014

    I thought the UN & US loved as ,”unlike” the Woyane & Ethiopian people. Bad ,Bad western countries..they are becoming new Woyanes..!!!

    • selamawit2 March 17, 2014

      SAVING YOUNG ERITREANS,
      i don’t really get what you want to say with this. could you say it n other words?

      • SAVING YOUNG ERITREANS March 17, 2014

        Respected selamawit2,

        What I wanted to say is the agenda of the world community did not put sanctions on PFDJ because they figured out that Papa Isaias was commiting atrocites against our people ,but rather he did not play ball with the western agenda in Somalia ,The point6 I was trying to make is ,we are not vocal…not even to the rape that is happenning in the Sinai ,so why should the world be hard on Isaias. He has slowed down in Somalia & he is not directly acting against USA . They kinow Papa Isaias hates Moslems in general & Arabs in particular ,so why bother him. They do not want Papa Isaias/PFDJ to collapse that would give way to fanatic moslems ,as there is no one to fill the vacuum ,mind you I am using the west´s mentality that is not far from the truth .Please let me know if you need more clarification, as your inquiry was civilized.

        Your Uncle SYE

        • selamawit2 March 17, 2014

          Thank you for Your answer/clarification, SYE!
          “Isaias hates Moslems in general & Arabs in particular” How do You come to this conclusion – my impression is, he feels comfortable with his arab friends…

  • Simerrr2012 March 17, 2014

    Acting under Chapter VII of the Charter of the United Nations.

    10. Condemns the use of the “Diaspora tax” on Eritrean diaspora by the
    Eritrean Government to destabilize the Horn of Africa region or violate relevant
    resolutions, including 1844 (2008), 1862 (2009) and 1907 (2009), including for
    purposes such as procuring arms and related materiel for transfer to armed
    opposition groups or providing any services or financial transfers provided directly
    or indirectly to such groups, as outlined in the findings of the Somalia/Eritrea
    Monitoring Group in its 18 July 2011 report (S/2011/433), and decides that Eritrea
    shall cease these practices;
    11. Decides that Eritrea shall cease using extortion, threats of violence, fraud
    and other illicit means to collect taxes outside of Eritrea from its nationals or other
    individuals of Eritrean descent, decides further that States shall undertake
    appropriate measures to hold accountable, consistent with international law, those individuals on their territory who are acting, officially or unofficially, on behalf of
    the Eritrean government or the PFDJ contrary to the prohibitions imposed in this
    paragraph and the laws of the States concerned, and calls upon States to take such
    action as may be appropriate consistent with their domestic law and international
    relevant instruments, including the 1961 Vienna Convention on Diplomatic
    Relations and the 1963 Vienna Convention on Consular Relations, to prevent such
    individuals from facilitating further violations;

  • Ahmed March 17, 2014

    Mr David, why did you go to the eritrean embassy in the first place.? Please next time if they ask you to pay just say no and that’s will take care of it

    • selamawit2 March 17, 2014

      Ahmed, Ahmed what a very cheap advice. “why did you go to the eritrean embassy in the first place.?”
      next time you will ask “why did you go to eritrea in the first place?”

      listen: it is not the embassy of iseyas and it is not the eritrea of iseyas!!!
      these criminals (iseyas and his gang) are not representing the eritrean people, they are a mafia-group occupying forcefully our embassies and our eritrea – against the will of the people.
      send them to hell!!!

      • Ahmed March 17, 2014

        Selamawi2

        I was just saying, there is noway they can force you to pay 2% unless you want something from them. I mean I live in USA and nobod asked me to pay, that’s just a reality. About the mafia thing, I don’t know if a mafia can have embassy all over the world legally. You like it or not, we have eritrean government and they are our liberator from the ugly people of our neighbor country but that’s does mean I agree with how the country is led at this time. Anyway my sister you calling them mafia or anything else will not change the situation in Back home so don’t get mad when you see comments that you don’t like. Remember what a democracy mean and practice it here. This is not A battle field so no body wins.

        • selamawit2 March 18, 2014

          Ahmed,
          please observe the standards you assume to follow and
          “don’t get mad when you see comments that you don’t like”.
          there is no reason to call me “Selamawi2”. if you made a typing error and you want to say sorry, o.k. accepted. 🙂

          “I was just saying, there is noway they can force you to pay 2% unless you want”. I am NOT with you because (e.g.):
          – the eritrean people want to visit their homeland,
          – they sometimes need their different kind of certificates
          – they want send parcels to their family members in eritrea,
          – they want to receive rightful heritage (culturally and materially).
          to do so they are FORCED to pay at least 2% – 2% which BTW we can assume as a financial background for detaining, torturing, killing innocent eritreans!
          the majority of the eritrean people don’t want anything “from them” because it is not “theirs (the regimes) what “they” hold back or give under arbitrarily preconditions.

          “…we have eritrean government”
          government in the sense that they occupy eritrea? yes.
          in the sense that they represent eritrea? not at all.

          “they are our liberator from the ugly people of our neighbor country”
          you mean “liberator” like all the ten thousands who are lost in the dungeons built by the ones you call “liberator”? or like all those tegadelties with the war wounds your so called “liberators” executed?
          sorry, also here i am not with you!

          The “mafia-thing”: “type of organized crime syndicate…(which make)use of violent intimidation to manipulate local economic activity, especially illicit trade; secondary activities may be practiced such as drug-trafficking, Loan sharking and fraud.” (wikipedia)
          please replace “local economic” with “national economic” and “drug-trafficking” with “human trafficking” and judge yourself…

          there many other statement you made i could comment, but i think it is enough for now, Ahmed Hawey.

          • Ahmed March 20, 2014

            Selamawit2

            Sorry I miss spell your name before but remember we only have one thing in common that’s we oppose the government but when it comes to why we oppose and how solve it , I see a lot of differences among us so may be one day we will come to a conclusion where we can say here is our problem and this is how are going to solve it. Until then we are going to do or say what we think is right. I am not trying to say you are wrong or right but we need to understand what our problems are and their solutions. For your information I don’t think you need to pay 2% to visit Eritrea. It’s very simply to see our differences , you call eritrean government mafia and I call it unconstitutional government etc. but I still respect your opinion

          • selamawit2 March 21, 2014

            Ahmed,

            thank you for you down-to-earth answer although our point of views differ.
            “we oppose the government” – and that is the most important in my opinion.
            I am also sure, when Eritrea gets rid of the regime, we will be faced with a lot of different opinions, which we all will have to deal with.
            But that is something that can be handled in a democratic system of justice.
            And whether the regime consists of mafiosi or not would be a judgement of democratic court. I could live with that very well…

            (as you maybe saw it yourself, some of the supporter of the regime use to change names by giving you the female/male form, if they want to swear at you – which i consider very nonsensical BTW.)

  • aus 17 March 17, 2014

    Is Eritrean citizenship under constsant threat? conditional, money based? or is free and unconditional, that every Eritrean is entitled to have its service?
    The deals they do, bargain as how much one could pay is nothing but blackmailing citizery rights!!!
    The maffia rule has nothing except milking money by hook or crook. Based on their philosophy: the ends justify the means.AS long as you bring money regardless how,..then is ok.To earn money… kill,steal, blackmail, use all maffia methods is ok because the aim is fetch money as they finally ended up to traficking, hostage taking, ransoming, pressing in Sinai and the sudan.
    this is the goals and objectives of Isayas Afewerki and his system in ERitrea.
    Shame to such a system in the twenty first century, in IT- age when the whole world has changed into a small village, yet Asmara is still a sub-village.

  • Zufana March 17, 2014

    The current regime in Eritrea is a part of terrorist networks that terrorizes its citizens whether inside or outside Eritrea. A government is dysfunctional or not fit to govern a nation when it’s exploits its own people for sake of its own survival.

    • tesfaldetabraha March 18, 2014

      this faild opposition are desprate fof propoganda start talking abaoutthe 2% they are flopflap from one story to the ather the 2% isue is fail the SWEEDEN GOV reject it ihave afrind in canada they are stil paying ilive in dallas iam paying so jast keep on craying iwish the ERITREAN gov ask for 10%

    • tesfaldetabraha March 18, 2014

      iam happay to see WEYANES CRAY ZUFANA & SELAMAWIT THEY CAN NOT DO SHIT abaout the 2% exept cray but they forget somthing no body mess with ERITREA no body is dear to ask because it is the ERITREAN GOV

      • Zufana March 18, 2014

        tesfaDEMHIT (Afari),
        Responding to you is like talking to brick wall. However,it seems that you have been sleeping for the last ten years, as you are still repeating the same old melodies, which have miserably failed to attract any listener in the past. You are ‘Tsemam hade derfu’. I know that you are conditioned to repeat PFDJ’s cheap talking point, like Woyane, Agame and CIA to anyone who oppose your master DIA. May be you are paid for the nonsense job! However, you and your uncle DIA are tightening up the rope that you are going to be hanged in front of Eritrean people real soon. Now tesfademhit, don’t ask me like your stupid uncle DIA ‘where is the rope’ or who is the hanger!!!!

        • tesfaldetabraha March 19, 2014

          ZUFANA AFAF YOU & YOUR STUPID WEYANE CAN NOT DO SHIT EXEPT CARAYING TO UN ABAOUT THE 2% AS LONG AS IT IS TO KIK WEYANE LIKE IF YOU REMEBER IN 1998 1999 2000 WAR EVRY ERITREAN MEN WOMEN EVRY WAS COLECTING MONEY EVEN WHRE ILIVE OUR ERITREAN COMUNITY WAS HELDING MEKETE TO COLECT MONEY SO IWILL DO IT ENY TIME ANTIL WE PUT THE ROPE IN WEYANES NECK

  • tesfaldetabraha March 18, 2014

    this faild opposition are desprate fof propoganda start talking abaoutthe 2% they are flopflap from one story to the ather the 2% isue is fail the SWEEDEN GOV reject it ihave afrind in canada they are stil paying ilive in dallas iam paying so jast keep on craying iwish the ERITREAN gov ask for 10%

  • denden March 18, 2014

    selamawit2,
    It is not an Eritrean embassy. If you think that it is a mafia Embassy then by going to the mafaian and human traffickers representative, you acknowledge that he is your representative. secondly if you are really against the mafia how on earth you want to travel to Eritrea or seek services from Mafia, you know what is going to happen if you go to Eritrea his mafia embassy already reported your activity. thirdly the world is sanctioning the mafia and you want to rescue him by investing and sending hard currency. My assumption is that that you belong to the splinter movement of mafia, those who formed a splinter HIGDEF due to personal or financial or business disagreement with the mafia administration or those who are not the mafias favourite chosen anymore. Keep doing business with the mafia by saying that it is your embassy and your Eritrea.

    • selamawit2 March 19, 2014

      Dear Denden,
      you could easily edit your statement in a way (see my suggestion below), that it would become a constructive criticism and a very good advice for everybody – then i would cosign it IMMIDIATELY!

      here is my suggestion:


      1. It is a mafia Embassy. By going to the mafaian and human traffickers representative, you would support their criminal labor. So don’t go there!

      2. If you are against the mafia, you better don’t travel to Eritrea these times and don’t seek services from Mafia. Because that would also mean a support for their criminal labor.
      And by the way: Keep in mind, everybody actively supporting the mafia, will be charged for his/her actions in the (very near!) future – it is matter of short time. It is also of course going to happen, if you go to Eritrea this mafia embassy already reported your activity.

      3. The world is sanctioning the mafia! Don’t rescue the mafia by investing and sending hard currency!

      4. Everybody be aware also of splinter movements of the PFDJ-mafia, which are formed due to personal or financial or business an similar disagreement with the mafia. Don’t mistake them for democratic movements – the only difference is that the pfdj-splinter groups want to replace one mafia-boss with another mafia-boss.

      IF YOU KEEP DOING BUSINESS WITH THE MAFIA BY E.G. TAKING THE “EMBASSY SERVICE”, YOU WOULD DECLARE THEM AS YOUR EMBASSY AND AS THE EMBASSY OF ERITREA – although they are not!!!

      Are you o.k. with that Denden?

      P.S. Even if your statement was (wrongly) full of accusation against me/my statement, i
      gladly give you some information on me:

      Since I really understood that the cruel gang ruling eritrea these times is thoroughly criminal and against our people
      – I don’t take any services from the so called “embassy” anymore
      – I don’t travel to Eritrea anymore
      – I OF COURSE don’t pay 2% and other fraud
      – I don’t build a house in eritrea (BTW i am convinced that a house built on the blood of innocent eritreans, can not bring good luck!)
      – I even preferred not to take my (material) bequest

  • denden March 19, 2014

    Dear selamawit2,
    My sincere apology to you selamawit2. My perception about you was wrong because all the points you said about yourself is also my personal character. So we are in the same boat. I am also very much happy with the edited version. Cheers. I am so annoyed by some opposition people including their leaders who are building houses and business in Addis Ababa and in Tigray and in Eritrea while telling us they are the fairest enemy of the Junta (mafia). So they are using their office and contacts in Addis Ababa for their own benefit to build business and houses for themselves.

  • selamawit2 March 19, 2014

    Dear Denden,
    to be honest, I don’t know these “leaders who are building houses and business in Addis Ababa and in Tigray and in Eritrea”. So i can not really judge it.
    But I am glad to get to know another Brother who cares about our people suffering in Eritrea an all over the word. So, nice to meet You, Brother Denden. 😉

    • tesfaldetabraha March 19, 2014

      Selamawit thanks to Denden we jast faound your identitiy he say some leaders INADIS ABEBA so if he dont know you whay did he mention adis abeba meybe he is AGAME WEYANE like you & it is funny you try to ignor him by saying you dont know no body in ADIS ABEBA COMEON YOU FORGET YOUR wushuma MELES SO THIS PERSON KNOWS YOU like isay it is shaim to be AGAME but there is nothing you can do abaout it

      • Gideon March 19, 2014

        tesfaDEMHIT AFARI & Ede,
        You are so damaged beyond repairs you urgently need a psychiatric treatment. If a person in 2014 says such a scrap should doubt his own health. I know you were long back sick thus hardly easy for you to have an objective view. You are our modern mockery, laughing stock a zombie that nobody takes seriously. You have been barking like a mad dog (your uncle DIA) for far too long so give it a rest before we get a lot harder on you poor tesfaFAGNATURA.

        • tesfaldetabraha March 21, 2014

          hi Gideon is your name ZUFAN because isow this comment before by some one name ZUFAN let me ask you are you CI CI LADY BOY so whay are you reapet the comment by ZUFAN anless ZUFAN & GIDEON are the same person

      • selamawit2 March 19, 2014

        “we” – airhead using a “majestic plural”, what a funny combination…:-)
        cool down LEZAYY.

        • selamawit2 March 21, 2014

          ““we” – airhead using a “majestic plural”, what a funny combination…:-)
          cool down LEZAYY.”

          this was of course a massage for tesfaldetabraha…

  • tesfaldetabraha March 21, 2014

    hi you 2 idiots jast sit & cray ESAYAS is going to live for long then after him there are alot of E SAYASS did you know whom he put in charge of the military after the night mare of WEYANE THE HERO WUSHU PASS ESAYAS put one of the best GENERAL PHILIPOS YHOHANS anather WEYANES NIGHTMARE in charge of the military

    • selamawit2 March 21, 2014

      tesfaldetabraha lezayy. you better take a bib.

Post a Reply to selamawit2 Cancel Reply