Advanced Search

1. Any person born of an Eritrean father or mother is an Eritrean by birth.
2. Any foreign citizen may acquire Eritrean citizenship pursuant to law.
3. The details concerning citizenship shall be regulated by law. (Art. 3)

…
3. Every citizen shall have the right to participate freely in any economic activity and to engage in any lawful business.
…
5. The National Assembly shall enact laws guaranteeing and securing the social welfare of citizens, the rights and conditions of labor and other rights and responsibilities listed in this Article. (Art. 21)

…
7. Every citizen shall have the right to practice any lawful profession, or engage in any occupation or trade.
… (Art. 19)

We, the people of Eritrea, …
Realizing that in order to build an advanced country, it is necessary that the unity, equality, love for truth and justice, self-reliance, and hard work, which we nurtured during our revolutionary struggle for independence and which helped us to triumph, must become the core of our national values;
…
Convinced that the establishment of a democratic order, through the participation of and in response to the needs and interests of citizens, which guarantees the recognition and protection of the rights of citizens, human dignity, equality, balanced development and the satisfaction of the material and spiritual needs of citizens, is the foundation of economic growth, social harmony and progress;
Noting the fact that the Eritrean women's heroic participation in the struggle for independence, human rights and solidarity, based on equality and mutual respect, generated by such struggle will serve as an unshakable foundation for our commitment to create a society in which women and men shall interact on the bases of mutual respect, solidarity and equality.
… (Preamble)

1. All persons are equal under the law.
2. No person may be discriminated against on account of race, ethnic origin, language, colour, gender, religion, disability, age, political view, or social or economic status or any other improper factors.
3. The National Assembly shall enact laws that can assist in eliminating inequalities existing in the Eritrean society. (Art. 14)

Without consideration to the wording of any provision in this Constitution with reference to gender, all of its articles shall apply equally to both genders. (Art. 5)

The rights enumerated in this Chapter³ shall not preclude other rights which ensue from the spirit of this Constitution and the principles of a society based on social justice, democracy and the rule of law. (Art. 29)

1. The National Assembly or any subordinate legislative authority shall not make any law, and the Executive and the agencies of government shall not take any action that abolishes or abridges the fundamental rights and freedoms conferred by this Constitution, unless so authorised by this Constitution. Any law or action in violation thereof shall be null and void.
… (Art. 28)

…
5. A declaration of a state of emergency or any measures undertaken or laws enacted pursuant to it shall not:
a. suspend Articles 14(1) and (2); 16; 17(2); and 19(1) of the Constitution;
b. grant pardon or amnesty to any person or persons who, acting under the authority of the State, have committed illegal acts; or
c. introduce martial law when there is no external invasion or civil disorder. (Art. 27)

1. The fundamental rights and freedoms guaranteed under this Constitution may be limited only in so far as is in the interests of national security, public safety or the economic well-being of the country, health or morals, for the prevention of public disorder or crime or for the protection of the rights and freedoms of others.
2. Any law providing for the limitation of the fundamental rights and freedoms guaranteed in this Constitution must:
a. be consistent with the principles of democracy and justice;
b. be of general application and not negate the essential content of the right or freedom in question;
c. specify the ascertainable extent of such limitations and identify the article or articles hereof on which authority to enact such limitation is claimed to rest.
3. The provisions of Sub-Article 1 of this Article shall not be used to limit the fundamental rights and freedoms guaranteed under Articles 14(1) and (2); 15;16; 17 (2), (5), (7) and (8); and 19 (1) of this Constitution. (Art. 26)