/ 3 February 2005

When will justice return from its long absence?

For much of the past decade, it has been civil war that has compromised the safety of Burundians. Now, crime appears set to take over where the combatants are leaving off.

Statistics for a three-month period that ended in November last year reveal the extent of this trend.

“Three hundred murders, 72 ambushes, 500 armed robberies, plus actions by the anti-government National Liberation Forces — and vehicle thefts — were reported” said Burundian President Domitien Ndayizeye during a meeting called towards the end of last year to discuss soaring crime.

The National Liberation Forces is the last rebel group still active in Burundi, (although reports issued last week indicate that it is willing to being peace talks with government). The country plunged into civil war in 1993 after the assassination of its first democratically-elected president, Melchior Ndadaye.

Ndadaye, a member of the majority Hutu group, was killed by members of the army, which is dominated by minority Tutsis.

Burundi has long been plagued by clashes between Hutus and Tutsis, who have traditionally controlled the country. However, peace talks currently led by South African Deputy President Jacob Zuma resulted in the establishment of a transitional government in 2001, in which Hutus and Tutsis share power. This administration will replaced by a permanent government after elections scheduled for April this year.

United Nations officials in Burundi have also expressed alarm at the apparent lawlessness in the country, saying about eight people are killed in the capital — Bujumbura — every day as a result of crime.

The United Nations Operation in Burundi, active since June 2004, oversees peacekeeping efforts in the state. In December last year, it also began demobilizing former rebels and government troops.

“One by one, people are being killed. When will justice return from its long absence and put the law back in power?” asks a young resident of Bujumbura. “The total absence of the state will force the people to create their own justice.”

Poverty and the proliferation of firearms are often cited as being amongst the main causes of crime. Impunity and corruption also play a role.

“Criminals are arrested, the inquiries are conducted, and unfortunately the criminals are released openly and publicly in front of the victims and their families,” said Adrien Ndayisaba, executive secretary of the rights group Iteka.

As a result, he says, “The phenomenon of impunity … has taken up residence in this country … People commit crimes and recommit them without concern.”

But why this laissez-faire approach on the part of officials who are supposed to clamp down on crime?

“I think that there’s been a letting go, a discouragement among all those in charge of hunting down criminals,” said Burundi’s Minister of Public Security, Donatien Sindakira. “But the greatest share of the responsibility must be borne by judges, who are supposed to conduct preliminary judicial investigations.”

Attorney General Gerard Ngendabanka offers a less sweeping criticism: “There are many complaints that criminals are released. Such cases do exist, but the justice system should not be blamed. These are the actions of particular judges — one should not generalize.”

The conduct of combatants during the civil war has also assisted in creating a climate of impunity in Burundi, say activists.

“The war contributed extensively to the increase of crime, because violence was never punished,” says Pie Ntakarutimana, vice president of the International Federation for Human Rights. “People saw that killing was easy and that they didn’t have to worry about the consequences.”

He adds that combatants known to have committed crimes have even been given government posts under the peace agreements between Bujumbura and the rebels, as if their actions were praiseworthy.

A proposal to make certain violent crimes punishable by death is now before parliament.

“This proposed law is a response to ever-increasing crime, as well an attempt to bolster a penal code that has become somewhat dated,” says Jean Kaburundi Berchmas, spokesman for the Ministry of Justice.

But, human rights organisations are firmly opposed to the proposed law.

“We do not support capital punishment,” says Ndayisaba. “There are better ways of fighting crime than resorting to the death penalty.” — IPS