In 2022, Freedom House rated Burundi’s human rights at 14 out 100 (not free).
Overview
Burundi is governed as a presidential representative democratic republic, with an estimated population of 10,557,259. The country has experienced a long history of social unrest and ethnic tension between the Hutu majority and Tutsi minority, with successive civil wars jeopardizing national development since Burundi's decolonization as a Belgian territory in 1962. The most recent conflict broke out in 1993 with the assassination of Burundi's first democratically elected president, Melchior Ndadaye, and led to large-scale violations of human rights and general impunity. In line with the Arusha Agreement of August 2000, peace was brokered between rebel groups the National Council for the Defense of Democracy–Forces for the Defense of Democracy (CNDD-FDD) and the National Forces of Liberation (FNL), and a new Constitution was adopted by national referendum in 2005. The Constitution established cognitive institutions of State, including the Executive, Judiciary, and Legislature, with a view to promoting the rule of law and a more cogent human rights framework.
In 2010, the incumbent CNDD-FDD party won its second municipal elections, despite accusations of intimidation, fraud, inciting political violence, and restricting freedoms of association and expression around election time. Accordingly, the legitimacy of these newly established institutions of State has been drawn into question in light of the irregularities and repression of the elections. The major challenge facing the advancement of human rights in Burundi continues to stem from the continuance of political volatility, and the persistence of discriminatory remedies of Customary Law in the absence of an accountable justice system.
Burundi has, since gaining its independence, been cited as a State guilty of widespread violations of human rights. A 2010 Transparency International report named Burundi as the most corrupt country in East Africa.
International Legal Instruments Ratified by Burundi
Burundi has ratified and acceded to a number of significant human rights instruments, including the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR), International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (ICESCR), African Charter on Human and Peoples Rights (ACHPR), Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide (CPPCG), and the United Nations Convention Against Torture (Convention against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment – CATCIDTP). Articles 13-19 of the Burundian Constitution embody these rights.
Following the recommendations of a Universal Periodic Review (UPR) in 2008, Burundi ratified the International Convention for the Protection of All Persons from Enforced Disappearance (ICCPED), Optional Protocol to the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women (OP-CEDAW), and the Optional Protocol to the Convention against Torture and other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment (OPCAT). During the UPR, a panel of 41 delegations praised Burundi's ratification of a substantial number of international instruments.
National Independent Human Rights Commission (NIHRC)
In 2000, a rudimentary Governmental Commission on Human Rights was set up, which at the recommendation of the 2008 Universal Periodic Review (UPR) became the National Independent Human Rights Commission in 2009. However, the institution is yet to be accredited by the International Coordinating Committee of National Human Rights Institutions, thus lacks the key element of compliance with Paris Principles. Its current role as an investigatory and reporting body remains unfulfilled.
In a 2011 report, Human Rights Watch called on the government to strengthen its support for the NIHRC. The role of a national Commission has become increasingly important since the termination of a United Nations Human Rights Council mandate in the country in September 2011. This coincides with a rapid rise in politically motivated killings and general impunity throughout the country. The Burundian government, however, has been reluctant in providing adequate financial support to the Commission, thus its ability to investigate serious violations of human rights is significantly compromised.