Statement attributable to the Spokesman for the Secretary-General on Burundi (14.07.2016)

UN Burundi

NEW YORK, United States of America, July 14, 2016 -The Secretary-General condemns the assassination of Hafsa Mossi, former Burundian Minister for East African Community Affairs and Member of the East African Legislative Assembly, in Bujumbura this morning. He extends his deepest condolences to Ms. Mossi’s family. This despicable act of violence only serves to promote divisions, entrench mistrust, and destabilize the country.

The Secretary-General reiterates the need to intensify efforts to find a negotiated settlement to the crisis in Burundi and calls on all parties concerned to engage fully and in good faith in the peace process led by the East African Community (EAC). The United Nations will continue to provide assistance to the EAC-led dialogue process and its Facilitator, former President of the United Republic of Tanzania H.E. Mr. Benjamin Mkapa.

MSD Communique “MSD – main opposition party to Nkurunziza, was excluded from peace talks. It denounces mediation team” (11.07.2016)

Burundi 11.07.2016 Letter Dialogue

Wasn’t it supposed to be Civilian Authority is and always above Police Authority; What happen to justice for all?

Clark Kent, Superman Comic

It’s not my way to utter these words, but I feel I need it, not because I am right man; I am far from being the right man to address it. As I was raised in peace, lived in peace and endured peace. Still, feeling the sorrow of the lost in Juba, the extra judicial killings in Kenya, and the unarmed African American citizens killed across the United States, while an armed former Afghan Veteran kills 5 Police officers. The scores are so uneven, the justice is not prevailing and the cases are staggering. The Police brutalities in dozen countries like Kenya, Uganda, Zimbabwe and Zambia; the Police are detaining without charges, torturing and battling the citizens as they are vicious armed criminals.

All of these killings, all of these Police Officers acting on behalf of oppressive states, the others are systemic inaccuracies blended with the ignorance and racial bias. The state of affairs is different in the United States, compared to the other Nations, but the systems are still brutally attack the civilians like they are cows ready for slaughter. Instead of fearing the public they are harassing it silence. The tormented and the families who lose their loved ones, the ones that are bystanders and just happen to be by a Political Rally or pass by a Demonstrations in a town; gets shot, get killed and even detained as they are vile creatures instead of a human being.

Nairobi 16.05.2016 Police P1
Nairobi, Kenya, 2016

The color of skin, the creed, political affiliation or faith should not be the factor if you’re waking safe down street or taking a public transport… Instead they are law-abiding citizens who even comply and do their duties to demonstrate, to act upon the fate of affairs, conduct meetings and rallies, the cost is detained at police post, taken away from their homes on conspiracy and even killed. These matters are happening to often in 2016.

The leaders of these reactions to the Government, the leaders who are addressing the civil concerns of the state, are prosecuted, detained and even monitored by the Security forces of the states, as they are worse criminals then rebels or terrorists. They are addressed in speeches by the leading fractions and the MPs connected to the ruling regime as personal vermin, people who fronts sectarian violence and creates the problem. Even if the state security forces are the ones that makes issues in peaceful affairs and puts gasoline on the fire. Not that all demonstrators are peaceful or correct, but that does not give the Police rights to shot live bullet, water-canons and tear-gas at any given movement of crowds against uneven and unrighteous cause.

The killings, the brutality, the sincere atrocities, the blatant ignorance, the little fear of the ruling regime, the masters of violence, the killers and Police Officers are guarded by the ruling regimes. As they are co-conspirators with the ones that systemically control the state ordered violence and want to shut down the spirit of any organized demonstrations, movements that are positive for democratic change or even just question the legitimacy of the ruling regime. This does not comes to mind in the United States, there it is more racial biased approached as the human and gun-laws are yet again proof of misguided regulations as the loss of life in small-fire arms shootings are staggering. Still, the Senate and Congress are not able to sustain and make amendments that can stop the guns from coming to hands of people who have a unsteady mind and unsound health condition to pull the trigger at innocent citizens. While the Police Officers are nearly hunting on the innocent and creating an atmosphere, where your guilty until proven innocent, which is not any ideal approach.  

Jinja Police 10915 P1
Uganda, 2016

We can all wonder when this power-struggles, when the bullets, when the tear-gas, when the water-canons and when the ignorant violence, when the killings will stop and to what extent does it has to happen, before the hash-tags, before the blazing guns and blistering barnacles!

There are just to many lives, to many hurt and to many questions, to many unsolved mysterious, too much blood and to many tears. There are something sinister and something uncertain as the attempt to sustain power by any means, the profits, the structure of society, the fabric of our existence, the approach the viciousness and vile attempt of resigning to the fact the only way we can solve the fear of each is with guns and ammunition. There must be other ways of dialogue than with John Wayne, Al Capone and Giles de Rais. There are too many men and woman who have lost their life, too many who have been taken away from their loved ones and too many to mention.

While the laymen are prosecuted and the civilians are too, the men in charge are walking away, the men and woman who protect the manufactures, the military, the Police Commanders and the Executives are just free-men and can do as they please, as the violence, the killings are reappearing as the sun is setting and making sure it has the energy for another day.

The men and woman who are in charge, the men and woman are taken away; we’re supposed to be living in the same society, under the same laws and under the same regulations; where justice and freedom should prevail, where men and woman are equal, where there isn’t fear and isn’t unbalanced treatment between State Security Organizations and the Civilians. As long as there are unbalance, as long as there are inaccurate procedure and executives are not handling it peacefully, if they are giving way to impunity and injustice, their rule will be remembered for the justifications of these vile attempts of self-justice, these atrocities under their leadership and reason for the loss of these lives.

Burundi Report Police
Burundi, 2015

The deaths, the murders and senseless killings proves the arrogance of leadership, the certainty that guns can create power, that the guns can solve matters and prove justified to settle either political framework or even power-struggle, the fear and amassed causes the personal bias, the blatant accurate shootings and killings are vicious. The men and woman deserves more than becoming a hash-tag. The terrorist killings in Turkey, Paris, Brussels, Beni, San Bernadino and all the others, deserves more than the hot-minute of fame, change of status on Facebook and blended Profile Picture, they deserve more credit and remembrances, as all the souls of the lost got vanished by brutal force in matters of hours.

The continued civil, political and armed unrest in Libya, Syria and Yemen, the skirmished between Eritrea and Ethiopia; proves the hostile environment other places, the Somalian forces are both fighting in their own territory, but also going against their oppressors on their domain  to retaliate. While the Burundian are detaining school-kids for painting slurs on the President Nkurunziza’s pictures and killing opposition, being violent and answering the men and woman who demonstrated against the 3rd Term President of the Burundian Government. President Magufuli have detained a man for writing hostile words on WhatsApp and charged and detained MP for calling him a ‘dictator’, as the President proves that he is similar to his counterparts in the rest of the East Africa. This is not vile crimes, but proves how far the government uses their security forces to control their citizens and their will to speak. I am sure in one of these countries, they would detain me in second, to silence my train of thoughts.

The 2016, have been and is bloody, as the boats of immigrants from the civil wars are drowning in the Mediterranean sea as they cross in tiny boats by smugglers to safety in Greece or Italy; as the safe heaven are supposed to get them safe from the spoils of war and power struggle between government forces, militias and armed opposition forces, as the death-toll and weak government structure that we’re centralized under one big-man is fractioned and dwindling away as the Civil Society Organizations, International Organizations and Multi-National Dialogue and stakeholders doesn’t have the capacity or the will to take charge of the unrest and uncertainty.

We have to question; will our government deal with the matter at hand? Will the government who are in charge take approaches for dialogue, for talks and creating a space where the safety and the justice have a place in the society, where the force of the state is not killing and not abundantly forcing themselves with violence on the civilians. The system of oppressive behavior and the crisis of leadership as the problems in the states, the dissolved the assertiveness of people, as the men and woman are torn, the parties are polarized and the peace has crashed; the tensions between the sovereign power and the self-righteous state officials that aggravate the public, it is not right for the leaders to use their internal squabble for power create havoc that birth more violence between two parties. That is not in the parties that one part is the state, the other is peaceful protesters, which is a different scenario, than when both are armed and kill each other to secure power and rule indefinably.

Section80 Lamar

Is this what we want to remember 2016 for the civil unrest, the civil wars, the civil casualties after the violence and state organized shut-down of the public disobedience…? The disobedience and the demonstrations should be able to happen without any reactions that create a problem for the state or the state goes in a turn it into a battleground. There are so many questions, so much we miss and so many political and structures that needs to be reformed, so many leaders who need a bit of humility, the humility of Police Officers, the humility of the Executives and the leadership of the States. It’s complicated, it’s all very HiiiPower. We have to ask and we cannot let this go, we cannot let these men and woman just die for so little, as a hashtag and a little social media drops. There are just too, we have to question the powers to be and what they are doing to stop this. We cannot be silent, accept it and let it go. This is just too much. I know I am not the right man, I am the wrong man, but I had to say my peace, I just couldn’t let this one be. Hope you start to think, question and wonder why we let them get away with it. Peace.  

Press Release: EU aid for African Great Lakes region getting through, but may be to expensive say auditor (04.07.2016)

EU Audits 04.07.2016 P1EU Audits 04.07.2016 P2

Talks on Course – Burundi Amabassador (Youtube-Clip)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yzQ58wBXIhA

“Now Burundi celebrated its 54thindependence anniversary on Friday, in a low key event attended by representatives of several African countries. The venue for this year’s celebrations was semi-deserted as the public failed to turn up due to heightened insecurity in some parts of the capital, Bujumbura. In Kampala, the celebrations went as planned. Isabella Tugume, spoke to the Burundian Ambassador to Uganda Jean Bosco Barege about the current situation in Burundi and the progress of the peace talks” (NBS TV Uganda, 2016)

President Obama’s letter to President Nkurunziza as tomorrow is the 54th National Day in Burundi (30.06.2016)

Barrack Obama Burundi

Nkurunziza reaffirms his position as president (Youtube-Clip)

 

“President Pierre Nkurunziza has reaffirmed his position as Burundi’s President by stating that God is on his side of power and party. He issued the sentiment on Sunday during an extraordinary congress organised by the ruling party, the National Council for the Defense of Democracy – Forces for the Defense of Democracy. “Many people in the world have stated that there will be no elections in Burundi. But God has always been stronger and we thank him because he has been with us and also has bee…” (Africa News, 2016)

Crossing border between Rwanda and Burundi needs Yellow Fever Vaccination Cards (Volcano Ltd Announcement)

Rwanda Burundi YF Announcement

Burundi: UN experts call for concrete steps to end crisis (17.06.2016)

UN Burundi

GENEVA, Switzerland, June 17, 2016/At the end of their second visit to Burundi, the three human rights experts of the United Nations Independent Investigation on Burundi (UNIIB) called for concrete steps to be taken to end the crisis in the country.

“One of the most significant developments since the beginning of the year has been the significant drop in the number of executions. This is extremely welcome and we reiterate our call on all parties to stop the use of violence as a political tool, “ said Christof Heyns, one of the three experts and the Head of UNIIB.

“However this relative calm should not be confused with long term stability. Serious human rights concerns remain and there are no signs that disappearances and torture have subsided,” said Pablo de Greiff. “Impunity for serious present and past violations remains the order of the day.”

The experts also noted that many political prisoners remain in jail and that a new pattern of mass arrests has emerged recently, mostly affecting ordinary people, including children. “In various parts of the country, school children have been arrested or suspended from school because their books had scribbles on pictures of the Head of State. Some of them face the prospect of spending five to 10 years in jail. We will continue to closely follow these cases, including the actions taken by the National Human Rights Commission on them,” said Heyns.

“It has been particularly disconcerting to see the state of disarray of civil society in Burundi, and the continuously shrinking space for what remains of it. Many NGOs remain suspended and those that continue to function operate in a climate of fear and intimidation. I was particularly struck by the fact that some of the NGO representatives  we met during our last visit in March have fled or are now too scared to talk to us,” said Maya Sahli-Fadel.

2016-01-15_2151_itw_burundi_un_ohchr

“For Burundi to move away from violence and conflict, it needs a truly inclusive political dialogue that will address the roots of the political crisis. The talks which recently started in Arusha and Brussels are a positive step forward but should be broadened to ensure that all actors of the crisis are included,” said Heyns. “Real progress in power sharing will be crucial to achieving sustainable peace.”

“These are preliminary observations, and we look forward to working further with Burundian authorities and society to take the protection of human rights forward,” he added.

During their mission, the experts met with national authorities and other political actors, members of civil society, victims of human rights violations, as well as with humanitarian organisations, including UN agencies, and international and regional partners operating in Burundi. They also visited the Mpimba prison in Bujumbura.

The UNIIB is composed of Mr. Christof Heyns (South Africa), the UN Special Rapporteur on Extrajudicial, Summary or Arbitrary Executions; Ms. Maya Sahli-Fadel (Algeria), the African Union Special Rapporteur on Refugees, Asylum Seekers, Migrants and Internally Displaced Persons; and Mr. Pablo de Greiff (Colombia), the UN Special Rapporteur on the Promotion of Truth, Justice, Reparation and Guarantees of Non-Recurrence.

The Independent Investigation recently deployed human rights monitors to Burundi, with the aim of helping the three human rights experts gather information on human rights violations and abuses committed in the country since April 2015. They are scheduled to submit their final report to the Human Rights Council in September 2016.

Burundi: Communique De Presse Sur la Situation Securitaire de Mugamba (15.06.2016)

Burundi 15.06.2016 P1Burundi 15.06.2016 P2