Torture on the rise in Burundi, warns UN

The UN High Commissioner for Human Rights is warning of a spike in the number of Burundians being subjected to torture.

Kampala - The UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, Zeid Ra’ad Al Hussein, is warning of a spike in the number of Burundians being subjected to torture and ill-treatment and the existence of illegal detention facilities.

“Since the beginning of the year, my team has recorded at least 345 new cases of torture and ill-treatment and the existence of illegal detention facilities, both in Bujumbura and in the countryside,” said Al Hussein in a Monday press release.

These shocking figures are a clear indicator of the widespread and growing use of torture and ill treatment by Government security forces.

The Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) estimates that about 595 people have been ill-treated or tortured since April 2015, a figure which is likely to be an under-estimate.

“Torture and ill-treatment mainly take place at the time of arrest, upon arrival or during detention, especially in facilities run by the Service National de Renseignements (SNR), the police and, to a lesser extent, the army.

Perpetrators of torture and ill-treatment have so far enjoyed total impunity,” Zeid said.

“Many detainees visited by our team in the past few weeks had fresh wounds on their bodies. Some were unable to walk without assistance after being beaten with belts, iron rods or sharp objects, or burned.

“I am profoundly disturbed by these terrible accounts and I urge the Burundian Government, in the strongest terms possible, to put an immediate end to these unacceptable and illegal practices,” he added.

Most of the tortured and ill-treated detainees say they were denied medical treatment. Some said intelligence services hid them in the toilets for days so their torture wounds could heal before they were returned to cells holding other prisoners.

During a visit by a UN human rights team to SNR facilities in Bujumbura last week, 30 of the 67 people held there displayed physical signs of torture.

Many irregularities were identified during the visit, including the fact that 25 of the detainees had been kept in custody beyond the prescribed maximum time limit.

In addition, while all detainees had been arrested for what were reportedly minor offences, the accusations entered against many of them in the SNR registry were for much more serious criminal offences, including undermining State security, illegal possession of arms and espionage.

OHCHR also indicated that several cases of ill-treatment and torture have also been reported at police stations, especially in those located in the two Bujumbura neighbourhoods of Citiboke and Musaga, and at the Mutakura military camp.

The High Commissioner noted that the use of torture and ill-treatment was also widespread in the countryside, noting a case of two men who said they were arrested by SNR agents in Nkamba province at the end of March.

They said they were seriously beaten and repeatedly dropped in Lake Tanganyika with their hands tied on several occasions in order to force them to confess to crimes.

“I recognise the efforts made by the Government in releasing at least 45 demonstrators following the Secretary-General’s visit. However, in addition to the reports of torture and ill-treatment in official detention facilities, I am deeply concerned about information emerging about the existence of secret detention facilities across the country,” the High Commissioner said.

According to OHCHR, a man who was arrested at the end of March by unidentified armed individuals stated that he was taken blindfolded to an unfinished building in an unknown location, where nine other people were also being held.

The victim reported witnessing the execution of two fellow detainees before he managed to escape.

Reports have also been received of another illegal detention facility, allegedly set up by the police with the support of the Imbonerakure militia, in the city of Ngozi, in the northern part of the country.

The High Commissioner said he had also received “persistent reports of arrest, detention, torture, ill-treatment, enforced disappearances and assassination of certain members of the police and military by other government forces.”

Members and officers of the former Burundian Armed Forces - known as ex-FAB and which was predominantly Tutsi - appear to have been particularly targeted, including some retired soldiers.

Many soldiers interviewed by the UN Human Rights Office while in detention said that the torture or ill-treatment they endured was aimed at forcing them to confess their support for rebel groups or to provide names of other people suspected of supporting them.

– African News Agency