Country Report on Human Rights Practices for 1990
BURUNDI
.
The Republic of Burundi is a one-party state led by President
Pierre Buyoya, an army major who came to power in a coup in
September 1987. As President of the Republic and head of the
80-member National Party for Unity and Progress (UPRONA)
Central Committee, the ultimate decisionmaking body, Buyoya
exercises considerable executive, legislative, and regulatory
powers. The 22-member predominantly civilian Cabinet manages
the day-to-day business of government. UPRONA is the only
significant political entity in Burundi.
Throughout its history, Burundi has been plagued by ethnic
conflict, characterized by the traditional dominance of the
minority Tutsi ethnic group over the majority Hutu ethnic
group. Following violence in 1988, in which 5,000 to 10,000
people were killed, Buyoya appointed an ethnically balanced
Cabinet and a high-level assembly of representatives of both
ethnic communities, the National Unity Commission, to study
and recommend long-term solutions to the ethnic problem. Its
report, issued in May 1989, calls for sweeping changes in
nearly every aspect of national life, culminating in the
adoption of democratic institutions.
In May President Buyoya presented the draft National Unity
Charter to the Burundi people and announced a timetable for
political reform. This document is intended to provide a
guarantee of equal rights for all Burundis regardless of
ethnicity and thus help bring about national reconciliation.
The Government has scheduled a referendum for its adoption in
February 1991. The ruling Military Committee for National
Salvation was dissolved in late December and replaced by the
transitional UPRONA Central Committee A constitutional
commission is to be convened in early 1991, with the declared
mandate of creating permanent civilian institutions for the
nation.
The security police are responsible for internal state
security, including the monitoring of dissent; a much larger
regular police force is responsible for maintaining law and
order. The state security police have the same powers of
arrest as the regular police and are subject to the same
process of judicial review. An ethnically balanced National
Security Council was created in 1990 to oversee the activities
of the various security forces, which continue to be dominated
by the Tutsi ethnic group.
Landlocked Burundi is extremely poor and densely populated.
Over four-fifths of the working population is engaged in
subsistence agriculture, working small, privately owned
plots. The small monetary economy is based on coffee, which
accounts for 85 percent of exports, and other cash crops. The
donor community is supporting a structural adjustment program
designed to reverse the economy's heavy dependence on
centralized administration. AIDS is an increasingly serious
economic and social problem.
While a special party congress in late December provided the
potential for far-reaching political reform, at year's end
restrictions on freedom of expression, assembly, and the right
of citizens to change their government by democratic means
remained in place. Important progress was made in 1990 in the
campaign to eradicate ethnic discrimination, Burundi's most
serious human rights problem. In addition to beginning to
address the problem of ethnic imbalance in the security forces
through the new National Security Council, the Government
further eased tensions by releasing all those detained as a
result of the August 1988 ethnic violence as well as those
detained for political subversion in March 1989.
RESPECT FOR HUMAN RIGHTS
Section 1 Respect for the Integrity of the Person, Including Freedom from:
a. Political and Other Extrajudicial Killing
There were no reports of politically motivated or governmentinstigated
killings in Burundi in 1990.
b. Disappearance
There were no reports of politically instigated disappearances.
c. Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman, or Degrading Treatment or Punishment
Torture is forbidden by law, but cruel treatment of suspects
or detainees is known to occur in the form of beatings at the
time of arrest or interrogation. Security forces are rarely
disciplined for such abuses.
The Buyoya regime allows regular inspection of prison
conditions and visits to prisoners by representatives of the
International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC), which
established an office in Burundi in 1990. While visits to
detainees were occasionally restricted in 1988 and 1989, there
were no known instances of restricted access to any prisoners
or detainees in 1990. Prison conditions remain severe in
Burundi due to lack of adequate hygiene, medical care, and
food. The Government has begun a program of gradually
improving conditions; to date, efforts have been focused on
increasing the supply of food and clothing.
d. Arbitrary Arrest, Detention, or Exile
Police officers are empowered to detain suspects without an
arrest warrant but must submit a written report to the public
prosecutor's office within 24 hours. The public prosecutor
examines the report and may either order the release of the
detainee or issue an arrest warrant valid for 5 days. The
public prosecutor must then state the charges before a
magistrate in the presence of the detainee. The magistrate
either releases the detainee or issues orders confirming the
detention, initially for 15 days and subsequently for 30-day
periods as necessary to prepare the case for trial.
There is no absolute limit on the length of pretrial
detention. Bail is set only in cases of embezzlement or
similar crimes involving financial wrongdoing. In general,
the prescribed procedures for arrest and imprisonment are
followed. However, time limits for issuance of arrest
warrants and appearance before a magistrate are often
exceeded, usually due to a shortage of magistrates and
prosecutors. The Government has begun to address this problem
by increasing the number of magistrates.
There were no known political detainees at the end of 1990.
On the occasion of the September 3 anniversary of the founding
of the Third Republic, 51 persons detained in the wake of the
August 1988 ethnic violence and 20 persons arrested in March
1989 in connection with an alleged coup plot were granted
executive anmesty and released from custody. Formal charges
had never been filed against any of the detainees. Amnesty
International's 1990 report was critical of the arbitrary
manner by which some of those released were originally
detained: "It appeared that some were imprisoned on account
of their leading role in their community, not because of any
direct involvement in the intercommunal killings of August
1988. "
With the exception of those who have left the country, the
signatories of the August 1988 open letter to President Buyoya
criticizing the army's role in the ethnic violence, including
the six Hutu intellectuals who were detained for 4 months,
have been fully reintegrated in their former positions.
During 1990 several Jehovah's Witnesses were arrested by local
authorities. All were later released by order of the
Government, which told a delegation of visiting Witnesses in
June that it had issued orders to stop arrests of individual
members on religious grounds. No Witnesses were known to be
in custody for religious reasons at the end of the year.
The Government does not exile its nationals as a means of
political control. Since his ouster in 1987, ex-president
Bagaza and his spouse have been denied permission to return to
Burundi, but the Buyoya Government has stated that it is
willing to negotiate the conditions of their return. Three
Bagaza daughters, all minors, remain in Burundi with
relatives; they are free to leave, however.
e. Denial of Fair Public Trial
The judiciary is not independent; it is expected to adhere to
the guidance and recommendations of the party, the Government,
and the President. Judges are appointed by and serve at the
pleasure of the President. In practice, there is a high
degree of autonomy in the court's daily administration of
justice. The President has the power to pardon or reduce
sentences. In cases of major political interest, the
Government occasionally intervenes in the judicial process.
Burundi has separate court systems to deal with military,
civil/criminal, and state security cases. In addition, the
Cour des Comptes (Court of Accounts) was established in 1989
to investigate and prosecute cases of official corruption, a
special target of government policy. To date, most of the
cases this Court has handled involve actions that occurred
under the previous regime.
Military tribunals have jurisdiction over military personnel,
and persons suspected of committing crimes against the
military. The cases of those detained in connection with an
armed attack by Burundi refugees from Tanzania against a
military camp in August, which resulted in several deaths
among soldiers and attackers, are being handled by the
military justice system. The State Security Court has
jurisdiction over both civilian and military personnel, and
its proceedings need not be made public. To date, this Court
has been used only once, in prosecuting ex-president Micombero
in the mid-1970 ' s.
Burundi law provides the right to counsel, and indigents are
provided defense counsel by the State. Pretrial proceedings
may involve lengthy investigations. The courts are hampered
by a lack of trained legal personnel and by heavy case loads.
The Government released over 2,000 prisoners in September,
including many who were serving time for petty criminal
offenses, just prior to the Pope's visit and for the declared
purpose of promoting national reconciliation. The Government
maintains that no political prisoners remain.
f. Arbitrary Interference with Privacy, Family, Home, or Correspondence
The inviolability of the home and of private correspondence
were provided for in the suspended constitution and are still
respected in practice. A judicial warrant is required for a
law enforcement official to enter and search a private
residence. The state security office monitors political
dissent through the state security police and by employing
informers who report on discontent and dissent as well as on
criminal activity. Membership in the sole legal party is not
required by law.
Section 2 Respect for Civil Liberties, Including:
a. Freedom of Speech and Press
While significant restrictions on freedom of expression remain
in place, there was unprecedented public debate on formerly
taboo subjects, including ethnic relations and official
corruption. However, political debate is largely confined to
UPRONA meetings, the forum for political and social dialog
officially sanctioned by the Government. The Government's
tolerance for public criticism outside the party is limited.
In the weeks leading to the Pope's visit in September, the
Government tolerated the circulation of numerous opposition
tracts, some signed by persons resident in Burundi. There
were no known arrests of any of the signatories.
The Government regulates domestic print and broadcast media.
A French-language daily and a Kirundi-language weekly
newspaper are published by the Ministry of Information, which
also operates the domestic radio and television stations. The
official media are traditionally required to support the
fundamental policies of the party and the Government. Some
criticism of the Government is permitted, but journalists are
state employees and subject to disciplinary action if their
criticism goes beyond what is considered tolerable. The
Government has interfered on occasion with the distribution of
foreign news publications but has never interfered with radio
reception from foreign sources. Public censorship occurs only
in the case of sexually explicit foreign film material or
publications.
Following its earlier pledge to respect freedom of expression,
on December 13, 1988, the Buyoya regime issued an ordinance
allowing but also regulating private print media in Burundi.
(Private broadcast media are not yet authorized.) Any news
publications must have prior authorization from the Ministry
of Information. Two news publications have emerged under the
Government's liberalized media policy, one a Catholic biweekly
in Kirundi and the other a monthly magazine published in
French by an association of Burundian intellectuals. The
editorial boards of both publications thus far have refrained
from taking controversial positions on critical issues.
Academic freedom is limited, in that primary and secondary
school teachers are expected to support government policies.
Professors at the University of Burundi come from a wide
assortment of national backgrounds and are generally permitted
to lecture freely in their subject areas, conduct research,
and draw independent conclusions. Three university professors
were among the six persons detained for signing the August
1988 open letter to President Buyoya.
b. Freedom of Peaceful Assembly and Association
These rights are restricted. No political meetings or
associations other than those tied to UPRONA are currently
permitted. Following the August 1988 ethnic violence, a
nationwide ban on public assemblies of more than five persons
was in effect for 2 1/2 months. The widespread public protest
against the Government's rules for the secondary school
entrance examinations was initiated by an unauthorized march
by over 1000 Hutu and Tutsi university students. The
Government did not interfere with their march, and there were
no instances of participating students being arrested or
harassed subsequently. The Government permits nonpolitical
private associations but requires that they be registered and
accorded legal recognition before they may function.
c. Freedom of Religion
The Buyoya Government reversed the repression of religious
expression under the previous regime of Colonel Jean-Baptiste
Bagaza. Buyoya has freed religious prisoners, reopened the
closed churches, returned confiscated church properties,
including houses and schools, authorized workday religious
services, reinstituted the activities of the catechists, and
authorized church schools (including seminaries and literacy
and catechism classes), publications, and radio broadcasts.
Most missionaries who were expelled are being allowed to
return, and there are no restrictions on new missionaries for
authorized churches.
The Catholic Church in particular, plays an important role in
the development of the country and in the lives of both rural
and urban Burundis. A visit by Pope John Paul II in September
underlined the dramatic changes in church-state relations
under the Buyoya regime.
Religious organizations are subject to the same rules and
restrictions that apply to secular organizations. All
religious associations must obtain approval from the
Government to operate in Burundi, and a Burundi citizen must
be designated as legal representative of each association.
The approval process, which includes an investigation of the
association's activities in its home country, can be lengthy,
though the Government has announced that the law governing
registration, which dates from 1959, will be revised to
simplify and speed up decisions. Recognition has been
restored to the Seventh-Day Adventist church, which was banned
under the Bagaza regime, and has been granted to several other
religious organizations that applied since the Buyoya
Government came to power.
Other groups have applications for legal status that are
currently under review. Among them are the Jehovah's
Witnesses, who were banned under the Bagaza regime. A visit
by an international delegation of Witnesses in June 1990 to
examine a pattern of arrests and harassment of church members
by local government officials resolved some issues, but the
Government still had not granted the group legal status at the
end of the year, allegedly because of Witnesses' refusal to
acknowledge secular authority.
Religious groups may not engage in political activity critical
to the Government. There are no barriers to the maintenance
of links with coreligionists in other countries.
Participation in religious life does not exclude membership in
the UPRONA or eligibility for social benefits.
d. Freedom of Movement Within the Country, Foreign Travel, Emigration, and Repatriation
The Government has not instituted nationwide restrictions on
internal travel since the aftermath of the August 1988 ethnic
violence. Since that time, localized travel restrictions have
occasionally been enforced in areas experiencing unrest. The
most recent example occurred in areas of Makamba province in
southern Burundi following the August 13 armed attack on a
local infantry camp.
The Government's policy is to discourage urban migration
through rural development programs and a public education
campaign. A voluntary resettlement program exists to promote
migration from densely populated areas to parts of the country
where more land is available.
Foreign travel and emigration are relatively free. In
February the Government abolished the requirement that Burundi
citizens who travel abroad must surrender their passports to
the immigration office on their return to Burundi. Citizens
are not required to have passports for journeys to neighboring
areas of Rwanda and Zaire. Foreigners residing in Burundi
must have passports and exit visas to leave the country.
All but approximately 1,000 of the more than 50,000 Burundi
citizens who fled to southern Rwanda following the August 1988
ethnic violence have returned voluntarily to their homes and
resumed their normal activities. At year's end the United
Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) was seeking
permanent homes for those who refused to return to other areas
of Rwanda and in Zaire.
The official estimate of Burundi's refugee population is
267,500, most of whom are Rwandan Tutsis who have resided in
Burundi since the 1960 's. The Government works closely with
the UNHCR in refugee matters and does not generally force
resettlement. However, a group of approximately 100 Somalis
who arrived in Burundi in late 1989 were refused asylum and
placed under house detention. In 1990 the majority of these
Somali were persuaded to depart voluntarily, were resettled in
other countries, including the United States or were deported.
The Government is working with the UNHCR to resettle five
special Rwandan refugees in third countries. The resettlement
is part of an agreement with the Rwanda Government that the
two countries each expel five particular refugees from the
other country for political activities incompatible with their
refugee status. The Government occasionally repatriates
Rwandans and Zairians who lack residence permits or who have
been arrested on suspicion of criminal activities. At
present, Burundi citizenship can only be acquired through
birth to Burundi parents; however, a new citizenship law that
would allow naturalization is under study.
Section 3 Respect for Political Rights: The Right of Citizens
to Change Their Government
As of the end of 1990, citizens did not have the legal right
to change their government through democratic procedures.
Power continues to be wielded by President Buyoya and the
UPRONA. In May President Buyoya announced a timetable for
political reforms in keeping with the recommendations of the
National Unity Commission. As a first step, a national
congress convened in late December, at which time the ruling
Military Committee for National Salvation was dissolved and
replaced by an interim UPRONA Central Committee.
A constitutional commission is to be convened in early 1991,
after the expected adoption of the National Unity Charter,
with the declared mandate of designing permanent civilian
governmental institutions. In his announcement. President
Buyoya called for the commission to work in close consultation
with the people and to consider, inter alia, the establishment
of a multiparty system.
Political participation currently takes place only within the
one-party structure, and voters can express dissatisfaction
only by voting against incumbents for party positions. The
party is open to all Burundi citizens supporting its
principles. Both men and women are active members and
officeholders. The UPRONA, together with its youth, women's,
and labor affiliates, claims a membership of approximately 1.4
million persons, over three-quarters, of the adult population.
However, many registered party members are inactive.
Section 4 Governmental Attitude Regarding International and
Nongovernmental Investigation of Alleged Violations
of Human Rights
At the end of 1990, two local groups have applications pending
before the Government for recognition as human rights
organizations. The Government allows international and
nongovernmental organizations to investigate human rights
conditions in Burundi. After initially rejecting calls for an
international investigation into the August 1988 ethnic
violence, it allowed an extensive survey of conditions in the
affected areas by local U.N. representatives. An Amnesty
International delegation visited Burundi in June 1989,
primarily to investigate the status of the detainees arrested
in the aftermath of the violence. The ICRC, which established
a local office in Bujumbura in June, was allowed to visit all
prisons and other detention facilities in 1990.
Section 5 Discrimination Based on Race, Sex, Religion,
Language, or Social Status
Historically, the minority Tutsi have dominated the majority
Hutu people. Serious civil strife resulting in thousands of
deaths has erupted between the two groups several times in the
modern era, most recently in April 1972 and August 1988. In
both instances, Hutus accounted for a large majority of the
victims. Following the 1988 ethnic violence, the Government,
with the support of the international community, moved rapidly
to restore ethnic confidence, including the appointment of a
National Unity Commission to recommend fundamental ethnic
reforms.
De facto discrimination by Tutsis against Hutus remains in
many areas of society, although it is not condoned by law.
There are few Hutus in the army, and the majority of civil
service jobs, as well as university positions, go to Tutsis.
As a result of President Buyoya ' s ethnic reform efforts, Hutus
have made substantial inroads into the civil service, and the
number of Hutus now exceeds the number of Tutsis entering
secondary school. The pace of integration in the military
remains slow, although some progress was made in 1989 and
1990. Tutsis dominate the modern economic sector, while in
rural areas economic opportunities are roughly equivalent for
both ethnic groups.
The status of women, who hold a secondary position in Burundi
society, is evolving slowly from traditional patterns. The
suspended constitution provided for legal equality, and this
continues to be respected in practice. The current legal code
prohibits polygamy and a dowry requirement, allows women some
control over family matters, and provides for land inheritance
by women. However, there are legal restrictions that pertain
to women in several areas, including the provision that a
married woman cannot start a business without her husband's
permission. Fewer women than men obtain a formal education;
however, once a degree is attained, women can generally find
suitable employment. The Government has not discriminated
against women in hiring, and the civil service pay scale makes
no distinction between men and women. Women are not
significantly represented in business, the professions, or at
higher levels of government, although the situation has
improved in recent years.
Violence against women, especially wife beating, is known to
take place, but as there are no studies available, the extent
of the violence is difficult to quantify. While police do not
normally intervene in domestic disputes, severe cases are
dealt with by the legal system. The Government officially
discourages violence against women and addresses the problem
largely through the Burundi Women's Union, which provides
counseling and, when deemed necessary, referral to legal
authorities.
Section 6 Worker Rights
a. The Right of Association
Workers do not have the right of association as defined by the
International Labor Organization (ILO), and Burundi is
signatory neither to ILO Convention 87 on freedom of
association nor to Convention 98 on the right to organize and
collective bargaining. The UPRONA controls the National Trade
Union Confederation (UTB) and has institutionalized this
single trade union structure by means of legislation. No
other unions are allowed by law. While the UTB ' s constitution
calls for election of all officeholders by the full
membership, its present leadership was appointed by President
Buyoya. New leadership is to be elected at a national
conference planned for 1991. The principal role of the UTB is
to serve as an intermediary between workers and employers in
labor matters. Labor policy in Burundi is formulated by the
National Labor Council, on which employers, the UTB, and the
Ministry of Labor are represented. The Council debates labor
issues and makes policy recommendations to the Government.
Strikes are permitted only if authorized by the Ministry of
Labor after negotiations have failed, and advocacy of an
unauthorized strike or lockout is a criminal offense. The one
strike repored in 1990, among ship crews on Lake Tanganyika,
was not approved by the Government, but no sanctions were
imposed on the strikers. Public sector employees are not
allowed to strike. The UTB is affiliated with the
Organization of African Trade Union Unity.
b. The Right to Organize and Bargain Collectively
Workers do not have the right to organize outside the UTB.
Collective bargaining is supervised by the Government. There
are no limits to the issues which can be bargained between the
UTB and the empoyers. However, the two sides are bound by
wage and working conditions guidelines established by the
National Labor Council and approved by the Government.
To resolve labor disputes outside of collective bargaining
situations, a three-step process is employed: Direct
employer-employee negotiations under the auspices of the UTB;
an administrative hearing before a government labor inspector;
and a legal proceeding before the Labor Court (or an
administrative court, in the case of public employees), in
which the UTB represents the employee (whether a union member
or not). The UTB is often successful in forcing employers to
change their practices through this process. The UTB
estimates that between 80,000 and 100,000 workers,
approximately 50 percent of the country's wage-earning
employees, are union members. Antiunion discrimination is
prohibited by law and is not a problem in practice because of
the protections provided to employees under the Labor Code.
There are no export processing zones in Burundi, and labor
laws are applied uniformly throughout the country.
c. Prohibition of Forced or Compulsory Labor
Forced or compulsory labor is prohibited by law and is not
practiced. Burundi has ratified ILO Conventions 29 and 105
which deal with forced labor. The ILO's Committee of Experts
(COE) reiterated in 1990 that various legislative provisions
which call for imprisonment and an obligation to work as
punishment for expressions of political views contrary to
those of the party are not in compliance with Convention 105.
The COE noted the Government's stated intention to review the
offending legislation and to bring it into conformity with the
Convention. The COE also noted that provisions of ordinances
concerning land usage are in violation of ILO convention 29.
The UTB states that while many prisoners do agricultural or
artisanal work to help feed themselves, there is no compulsory
convict labor in Burundi.
d. Minimum Age for Employment of Children
In the modern, urban sector of the economy, children under the
age of 16 may not be employed in any capacity. Enforcement of
this minimum age by inspectors from the Ministry of Labor is
limited. However, as a practical matter in this poor, largely
rural country, many children are obliged by custom and
circumstance to help their families in subsistence agriculture.
e. Acceptable Conditions of Work
Over 90 percent of the population of Burundi is engaged in
subsistence agriculture. Minimum labor standards are
established by the National Labor Council and promulgated by
the Government in the Labor Code, but these standards have
relevance primarily for workers in the small wage sector of
the economy. The established minimum wage rate is the
equivalent of $1 per day in the cities of Bujumbura and
Gitega, and $0.87 per day in smaller towns and rural areas.
This wage level is inadequate to provide a decent living for
urban families, who frequently supplement their income through
family gardening or petty commerce. Wages are higher in the
few private sector businesses and in skilled jobs. The
maximum workweek is fixed by law at 45 hours. Saturday
afternoons, Sundays, and holidays are times of rest, and civil
servants are allowed one afternoon per week for organized
athletic activities. In the modern economic sector, minimum
health and safety standards are incorporated in the Labor Code
and are monitored by the Ministry of Labor. The enforcement
of these standards is limited due to a lack of resources, such
as safety inspectors
