Why Burundians continue to flee By Thijs Van Laer August 24, 2017 1 Share: Despite government claims that Burundi is safe, refugees say they will only consider returning under three conditions. Burundian refugees at a camp in the Democratic Republic of Congo. MONUSCO / Abel Kavanagh.
Burundian refugees at a camp in the Democratic Republic of Congo. MONUSCO / Abel Kavanagh. On 20 July, President Pierre Nkurunziza left Burundi for the first time since his 2015 bid for a third presidential term plunged the country into crisis. On his visit to Tanzania, he urged Burundian refugees to come home, insisting the country is now at peace. Despite Nkurunziza’s reassurances, however, Burundians continue to flee the country. Since April 2015, hundreds of people have been killed and more than 415,000 have crossed the borders. Most have ended up in Tanzania, which hosts more than 250,000 refugees, while others have sought asylum in Rwanda, the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) and Uganda. While there is less open violence now, new arrivals seem to outnumber those returning to Burundi. Those who flee tend to cite repression and violence as the primary reasons. Henri*, 27, arrived in Uganda this April. “I left Burundi because of the security situation,”, he told International Refugee Rights Initiative (IRRI). “I was apolitical, but the Imbonerakure [the youth wing of the ruling party] forced me to become a member of the [ruling] CNDD-FDD. Some of my friends were arrested and killed when they refused to join.” Others explain that not being a member of the CNDD-FDD is considered a “sin” or “crime” and often triggers abuses. IRRI recorded terrible stories of torture and rape by the Imbonerakure and of disappearances and executions of refugees’ family members. This youth militia reportedly controls public life in the countryside and terrorises members of the opposition as well as those considered too critical or who refuse to join the party. Police and intelligence officers allegedly take part in such abuses or, at a minimum, turn a blind eye. “The Imbonerakure are stronger than the police,” said Henri. “They can lock you up and torture you.” Contrary to the government’s claims, testimony collected by IRRI and other organisations such as the UN suggests that Burundi continues to face systemic human rights violations. This includes executions, enforced disappearances, sexual violence and torture. The political crisis has also had economic consequences such as soaring unemployment and inflation. “Life has become worse. We don’t have money to buy what our family needs. It is difficult to continue living,” said Paul, a 22-year-old farmer. However, economic pushes to leave Burundi always accompanied fears over security and abuses. -- To post to this group, send email to [email protected] To unsubscribe from this group, send email to [email protected] Visit this group at https://groups.google.com/d/forum/southsudankob View this message at https://groups.google.com/d/msg/southsudankob/topic-id/message-id For more options, visit https://groups.google.com/d/optout --- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "South Sudan Info - The Kob" group. To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an email to [email protected]. To post to this group, send email to [email protected]. Visit this group at https://groups.google.com/group/SouthSudanKob. To view this discussion on the web visit https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/SouthSudanKob/CAJb14ooogeMVz%2BzyoBdieDhfVwbFN2gVoTK6tMfnHTUQaoxRsw%40mail.gmail.com. For more options, visit https://groups.google.com/d/optout.
