Bare life and the developmental state: implications of the militarisation of higher education in Eritrea

Abstract

In this article Eritrea is discussed as a developmental state based on biopolitics. Taking the example of higher education, it is shown how the biopolitical project as applied to education policies and human resource development at first succeeded in terms of reinforcing personal nationalism, while at the same time opening up spaces for the fulfilment of personal aspirations. Of late, however, the biopolitical project has turned ‘pernicious’ and has become a tool of oppression. These developments, if they are to continue, will not only jeopardise the state's developmental agenda but may lead to the Eritrean polity in its present form becoming unviable.

Realising rights within the Israeli asylum regime: a case study among Eritrean refugees in Tel Aviv

“…Haile was a student at Asmara University in Eritrea in 2001, when students for the first time protested against government orders for additional service and in consequence were sent to a desert-camp for punishment (for details see Müller 2008 are already opposers, when we left the country we became opposers, we were not leaving our country legally by the airport, we were just escaping, running.…”

From rebel governance to state consolidation – Dynamics of loyalty and the securitisation of the state in Eritrea

“…Even though, various observers have rightly argued that until the 1998-2000 Eritreo-Ethiopian war the PFDJ-led government commanded significant capital of 'spontaneous loyalty' and popular legitimacy; in spite of frustrations a vast majority of Eritrea's in-country citizens were prepared to go along with interferences into their lives as long as it helped the overall development of the country (Hirt, 2000;Ottaway, 1999). The latter included different strata of youth and extended to the privileged few who secured a place at the University of Asmara, the only institution of tertiary education (Müller, 2004(Müller, , 2006(Müller, , 2008. Importantly, the same has been true for the large sections of the diaspora that had played a vital role in supporting the struggle for independent statehood.…”

“…Those were, as Bernal (2004, p. 3) notes, 'aimed at bolstering the Eritrean state's capacity to wage war' not earmarked for alleviating suffering caused by the war. The war thus initially served -like the liberation war earlier -as a unifying element and gave fresh impetus to a propensity for personal sacrifice among all strata of Eritrean society (Human Rights Watch, 2009;Müller, 2008). It thus acted as an important mechanism to strengthen the PFDJ-propagated version of Eritrean nationalism and is in line with the general observation that fighting wars may be the only way to make people pay more taxes and feel more loyalty towards the state at the same time (Herbst, 1990a,b).…”

“…Military training is incorporated into and partly dominates the curriculum (Human Rights Watch, 2009). In a parallel move, the University of Asmara has been closed and been replaced by the Eritrean Institute of Technology at Mai Nefhi that was initially under military control (for details see Müller, 2008).…”

“…I have argued elsewhere that Eritrea's most valuable asset after liberation has been the dedication of its collective citizenry that had its concrete embodiment in numerous actions of sacrificing personal fulfilment for the common good. But the Eritrean state-building project also created new ambitions for which at least some degree of realisation needs to be possible in the foreseeable future for young Eritreans (Müller, 2008(Müller, , 2009). The youth encountered in Tel Aviv embarked on their journey because the only future they could see was indefinite service combined with complete disregard for their own aspirations.…”