Corporate report

Human Rights Priority Country update report: January to June 2016

Updated 8 February 2017

This was published under the 2015 to 2016 Cameron Conservative government

The overall human rights situation in Burundi showed no improvement in the first half of 2016, following the political crisis that began in 2015. There was a drop in the number of assassinations but impunity for crimes remained. Many political prisoners remain in jail and we saw an increase in arbitrary arrests and detention, often involving ordinary citizens, including children.

Peace talks started in Arusha in May, led by former Tanzanian President Mkapa. This was a positive first step towards finding a political solution to the crisis. However, the first round of talks was not inclusive. The umbrella CNARED opposition group was not invited to take part. Government representatives stuck firmly to the regime’s entrenched position, including advocating changing the constitution and altering the Arusha Accords of 2000 which have played a critical role in underpinning Burundi’s stability for the past decade.

During the 32nd UN Human Rights Council session on 29 June in Geneva, the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights (HCHR) drew attention to a range of human rights violations in Burundi, including arbitrary arrests and detentions, torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatments, extrajudicial executions, and enforced disappearances and sexual violence. According to information received by the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), the majority of these violations and abuses were committed by members of the defence and security forces, the youth wing of the ruling party (Imbonerakure), or unidentified armed opposition groups. The HCHR also raised his concern over the escalation of ethnic-based violence due to prevailing ethnic hate speech and teachings in the country.

Many NGOs, independent media, and human rights organisations remained suspended, with their leaders and members exiled. Those that continued to function operated in a climate of fear and intimidation. Two radio stations did re-open with more nuanced content, having struck deals with the government. The disappearance of the treasurer of Burundi’s oldest human rights defence organisation, Ligue Iteka, was further evidence of the volatile human rights situation. Human rights observers continued to work in difficult conditions, including being subject to regular vehicle searches, making it difficult to carry out their mandates and obtain clear evidence of the latest human rights situation.

Since the beginning of the year, Burundian human rights monitoring organisation, SOS Torture, recorded more than 500 new cases of torture and ill treatment. Some victims were unable to walk without assistance after allegedly being beaten with belts, iron rods or sharp objects, and even burned. Many were denied medical treatment.

Mass graves were identified in areas around Kanyosha commune and in Ruvubu National Park, sometimes guarded by youth militia. Numerous bodies were reportedly found in the streets or in ditches, and dozens of civilians simply disappeared in tit-for-tat violence pitting pro-government forces against armed opposition groups. Prisons remained overcrowded and poorly maintained, leading to the spread of contagious diseases.

Some Burundian women in neighbourhoods labelled as anti-regime were sexually abused by police and members of the youth militia. More than 300 children were arbitrarily detained between January and June 2016. Most of them were detained in prisons for adults, in deplorable conditions. UNICEF (the UN Children’s Emergency Fund) and its partners have been continuously appealing for their release, and more than 134 have now been released to their families. Others have been moved to centres specifically dedicated to children.

Dozens of school pupils in a number of communes (including Ruziba, Gisuru, Gihanga, Muramvya, Kinama) were victims of arbitrary detention, arrest and imprisonment for doodling on a picture of the President contained in a textbook. Despite the Minister for Education intervening with pardons, up to 20 students remain imprisoned, with more than 500 expelled and 3,000 paying a fine.

Reports suggest a growing trend of human trafficking of girls, especially to Saudi Arabia and Oman in the guise of housemaids, with the Burundian police eventually acknowledging the problem and making arrests. Statistics vary with police citing 267 trafficked since April and credible reports from local human rights groups claiming up to 2,500.

The British Embassy Office continued to monitor and report on human rights violations during the period. The UK’s Conflict, Security and Stability Fund (CSSF) supported activities to monitor and report on incidents of human rights abuses, violence, intimidation, hate speech and other triggers of conflict in all 18 provinces across Burundi. The UK government conducted a Joint Analysis of Conflict and Stability (JACS) review of Burundi, including 2 visits by internal and external experts during the period.

The UK Special Envoy for the Great Lakes attended the Arusha peace talks in May and visited Burundi in June to encourage a political solution and accept the UN Security Council recommendation of a police mission to Burundi. The police mission would help put an end to human rights violations, regardless of who perpetrated them. The UK Department for International Development has contributed £21m since 2015 towards the UN Refugee Agency regional response plan to support Burundian refugees who have fled the insecurity to neighbouring countries.