meskerem 3-16-05: Charter distribution to member organizations confirmed.
Meskerem has confirmed through reliable source that the charter has been given to member organizations and that members of the organizations have been discussing the charter for sometime. This  contradicts with what the Secretary General of EDA  stated in his interview with GIC on Marc 13, 2005.  He said ,".. it will be published in the coming time. The delay of its publication is due to technical reasons of which, for instance, precision in translation is one."

The Eritrean Democratic Alliance: Advice to EDA ..Eritrean Political Watch Group 16 March, 2005

How will the public support or  how will the public ask questions, request clarifications and offer comments  if the charter is not distributed to the public before the public meets the EDA?
meskerem 3-15-05  EDA Charter not ready for distribution.  In an interview with an Eritrean media GIC, Mr. Hussein Kalifa, the Secretary General of EDA , said,  "The delay of its publication ( of the charter) is due to technical reasons of which, for instance, precision in translation is one."   The EDA completed its meeting on March 5, 2005 and the leaders signed the charter on March 06, 2005. The charter is yet to be made public.
  Unconfirmed reports indicate that the EDA organizations might have the charter and might be sharing it with their members. The public is wondering why  the leadership is heading to the Eastern Sudan on a tour to meet with the public while the charter is still not ready for the public distribution. This will certainly deprive the public from asking questions,  requesting clarification, supporting.. the charter .

Meskerem 3-9-05: Charter is not ready  yet for distribution to the public,  said Mr. Menghisteab Asmerom, Head of EDA's Information Office.  Reached by phone this morning and asked why there is such a delay in making public the "agreed upon" " and "publicly signed" EDA Charter, Mr. Menghisteab Asmerom, member of the Executive body and Head of the Information Office of the EDA , said that the leadership is in its final stage of preparing the Charter/document. He pointed out that there were corrections and changes made to the original draft and these changes are being incorporated into the charter. Asked whether the charter will be made public, he stated that it should. Not making public such a document would not make sense, would it, he added.  Menghsiteab Asmerom is also member of the Executive Committee and Head of Information Office of the Eritrean Liberation Front -Revolutionary Council (ELF-RC)..

meskerem 3-8-05: Eritrean National  Salvation Front (ENSF aka 4+1)  and Eritrean Democratic Assembly ( 7 organizations) head to meetings of their respected organizations. Reports coming out of Khartoum indicate that the Eritrean National  Salvation Front will have its meeting in Addis Ababa and that the leadership of the member organizations have started to depart to Addis. The seven organizations that created the Eritrean Democratic Assembly will meet in Khartoum, Sudan. 
   The ENSF had promised to merge and create one organization. There are some issues in front of the ENSF.
- It is to be remembered that the Eritrean Afar Movement had denied that it agreed to dissolve itself to become part of the new organization. 
- The merger will raise issues whether one organization can have 10 seats in the 27 member council and 5 seats in the 11 member executive positions in the new  EDA. 

ECMS 3-6-05 via Awna1.com :ECMS, in its report  of  the signing ceremony,  wrote that the EDP and Two Islamic organizations  collided  concerning  system of governance and the separation of state and religion in Eritrea.
    ECMS reported  apparent clash  between EDP representative and member of EDP central council,  Mr. Mussie Efrem,  and leaders of  two Islamic organizations,  Sheik Kalil Mohamed Amer, Chairman of Islamic Party for Justice & Development and Mohammed Taher Shengeb, Secretary General of Popular Congress.
   In ECMS report posted by  Awna1 , Mr. Mussie Ephrem  is reported to  have stated that,  although the meeting was positive, it did not mean that there were no differences. He stated that his organization stands for a secular government and  for a system of government with clear separation of state and religion. The report added  that the leaders of the Islamic organizations, Mr Mohammed Taher Shengeb and Sheik Khalil Mohammed Amer,  rejected secular system of  government for Eritrea and reiterated their position that they do not believe in the  separation of state and religion... (Mr. Mohammed Taher Shengeb is the head of the organizational office of the EDA.)

Burden of Democracy.
.Berhan Hagos March 5, 2005

A statement by the Eritrean Federal Democratic Movement

concerning EDA representation

By EFDM  Secretariat  March 2nd 2005