U.S. Committee for Refugees and Immigrants World Refugee Survey 2007 - Burundi

Refoulement/Physical Protection

There were no reports of refoulement in 2006.

At Mwaro camp, an agent of the National Intelligence Service beat a young refugee for having written a memoir on life in camp, which the agent suspected of being political.

Rwanda alleged that rebel groups recruited asylum seekers and took them to training centers in the Kibira Forest. In March, Rwandan Government agents reportedly infiltrated Musasa camp in Ngozi Province to intimidate asylum seekers into returning. At Mwaro camp, authorities arrested three suspected spies.

In December 2005, after international criticism of mass expulsions that year, the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) brought in experts in refugee status determination to work with Government officials to assess claims. These joint teams made recommendations to an eligibility commission, which was responsible for final decisions. In March, when the number of Rwandan asylum seekers grew to about 20,000 – some returning after the Burundi Government had expelled them and others having evaded expulsion by hiding with Burundians – the Government and UNHCR quartered them in camps. In April, the Government announced that it would expel all Rwandans whose cases it rejected and the number of applicants declined substantially. In May, the Government and UNHCR evaluated asylum requests from more than 1,200 applicants, granted only about 50, put them in Giharo camp in Rutana province, and turned some 570 rejected applicants over to Rwandan authorities. Deterred by the low acceptance rates, some 2,000 never registered with the Government and more than 10,500 of those who registered dropped their claims and returned.

By the end of the year, the Government decided the cases of all of Rwandan asylum seekers remaining in Burundi, granting less than two percent (46) of nearly 2,800 cases in the first instance and less than two percent (26) of the nearly 1,500 appeals. Of more than 8,000 persons (including family members) who persevered in the process, authorities granted asylum to just over 200 and transferred them to the Jiharo transit center in Rutana Province. Many applicants – perhaps as many as 3,400 – left the country without waiting to hear the outcome. About 16,000 Rwandans repatriated in all.

Burundi recognized Congolese as prima facie refugees only if they lived in camps. Congolese refugees and asylum seekers in urban centers had to undergo screening by the Police de l'air, des frontières et des étrangers (PAFE) and approval by the CEC. They had to present themselves to authorities upon their arrival, but the process was lengthy and bureaucratic because of a long waiting list, inadequate PAFE equipment, and the requirement that the Minister of Interior personally sign each grant of refugee status.

Burundi was party to the 1951 Convention relating to the Status of Refugees (1951 Convention), its 1967 Protocol, and the 1969 Convention Governing the Specific Aspects of Refugee Problems in Africa, but maintained reservations to the 1951 Convention's rights to work, education, freedom of movement, and residence. The 2004 Interim Constitution recognized the right of asylum, prohibited unlawful extradition (specifically listing prosecution for genocide as a legal ground for extradition), and extended to all foreigners its and the law's protection to persons and property. The 1989 Entry and Residence Law and its implementing ordinance defined refugees according to "the international conventions on the matter to which Burundi is a party" and prohibited their refoulement. It gave asylum seekers only eight days from entry to apply, but included a right of appeal and 30 days to leave the country after rejection.

Detention/Access to Courts

Authorities detained some 25 refugees and asylum seekers in violation of asylum or national law. UNHCR followed 33 cases of asylum seekers and refugees from Bujumbura and Gasorwe camps that the authorities accused of various crimes. The Government did not charge some for up to a year, despite the legal limit of 14 days, and at year's end, two were in detention awaiting trial.

Burundian law entitled asylum seekers and refugees to the same treatment as nationals in instances of violations of law and access to courts. Burundian human rights organizations provided counsel to those detained refugees and asylum seekers authorities had not accused of violent or petty crimes.

Although the Entry and Residence Law entitled refugees to cards indicating their status, the Government did not issue them to refugees in camps. All they had were UNHCR ration cards. In urban areas, some 430 Congolese asylum seekers received three-month, renewable temporary residence permits while 106 recognized refugees received cards during the year. The Government refused to issue such permits to Rwandan asylum seekers in urban areas.

Despite having completed its investigation into the 2004 Gatumba massacre of more than 150 Congolese Tutsi refugees, the Government issued no report and made no arrests.

The 2000 Arusha Peace and Reconciliation Agreement for Burundi (Arusha Accord) forbade arrest of refugees without notification and justification to its Implementation Monitoring Committee. The Constitution extended to all persons the right of access to courts and protections in criminal procedures.

Freedom of Movement and Residence

The Government restricted Rwandan asylum seekers to camps. After the surge in Rwandan asylum applications in March, the Government and UNHCR quartered them in Musasa and Sangore camps in Ngozi Province and at informal sites in Kirundo Province. Non-Rwandan camp refugees required exit permits from the camp administrator, or refugee cards, or temporary asylum permits to travel outside of the camps.

At the Government's request, UNHCR gave direct aid only to refugees living in camps. Refugees in urban areas only received legal aid and a 50 percent subsidy for medical services. Nevertheless, some 9,800 refugees and asylum seekers preferred to live in and around the capital, Bujumbura.

In early May, Burundi moved 67 Congolese refugees who had been living in Bujumbura to a camp in southwestern Rutana Province and 85 to Muyinga Province. These refugees had arrived in Bujumbura late in the previous year from South Kivu in the Democratic Republic of Congo and refused to go to government-designated camps fearing for their security. Some held sit-ins in front of UNHCR's office demanding help, but later agreed to move to the camps for the aid.

Burundi's reservation to the 1951 Convention's freedom of movement provision only applied to refugees' living in regions bordering on their countries of origin and any "activity or incursion of a subversive nature" within their country of origin. Its Entry and Residence Law, however, provided that the Minister of Interior could constrain asylum seekers to reside in a designated place while their applications were pending.

The Government issued 28 international travel documents to refugees based on UNHCR's recommendations, which required proof of acceptance to an educational institution, work requirements, or business activities abroad. The Entry and Residence Law provided that refugees should receive international travel documents, with right of reentry, "on demand."

Right to Earn a Livelihood

The Government required refugees to have permits in order to work legally and gave preference to nationals. The Government tolerated refugees working in the informal sector but required them to obtain permits for professional jobs.

The Constitution did not extend the right to work beyond citizens, and Burundi maintained a reservation to the 1951 Convention – taking its provisions on the right to work as recommendations. The Constitution did not limit to citizens, however, its rights to join unions and to strike.

Refugees could run businesses, but the required permits and conditions were stricter than for citizens. Refugees could own property, but conditions were also stricter than for citizens. The Constitution guaranteed the right to private property to all persons, specifically including foreigners.

Public Relief and Education

Refugees were eligible for public relief, rationing, and health services on par with nationals.

UNHCR and other aid agencies provided refugees living in most camps with basic assistance, medical services, housing, and primary education. Those living in urban areas received legal and medical assistance only.

The Constitution recognized a right of all persons to health services.

Primary education was free for all children. Burundi's reservation to the 1951 Convention's right to primary education, however, only required it to treat refugees better than other non-citizens and only with respect to public education. The Constitution did not extend the right to education beyond citizens.

As mandated by the Arusha Accord, the Government cooperated with UNHCR and other humanitarian agencies and granted them access to refugees. Burundi included refugees in the Poverty Reduction Strategy Paper it prepared for international donors in September but was only referring to Burundian nationals returning from abroad.