To All Living Things
Last Week's Column

Amnesty Action:
Torture/Fear for Safety in Burundi
by Kathy Gay

his week’s action from Amnesty International concerns fourteen people, at least two of them minors, who were arrested last month in Burundi. They are believed to have been detained on suspicion of involvement in a series of mine explosions in the capital city of Bujumbura. Although their cases have now gone to the Public Prosecutor's Office, it does not appear that they have been officially charged.

Amnesty has received reports that four detainees are being held in incommunicado detention and are being tortured. Their families have not been allowed to visit them or to leave food for them. These reports have raised serious fears for the safety of all the detainees.

Background Information

Although Major Pierre Buyoya promised to end human rights violations when he came to power after a coup d'etat in July 1996, Amnesty International has documented thousands of cases of extrajudicial execution, "disappearance," arbitrary arrest and torture since that date. Critics and opponents of the government have also been harassed, arrested and tortured in a pattern of attacks on political opponents aimed at eliminating effective political opposition.

More than 100 -- and possibly as many as 150 -- arrests have taken place over the course of the last few weeks in Bujumbura. Those arrested are predominantly young men, mostly members of the Hutu ethnic group. None are known to have been charged and at least two men have died as a result of torture and ill-treatment.

More than 6,500 civilians, mostly Hutu, including at least 2,600 accused of involvement in massacres in Burundi, are held in various prisons and detention centers around the country. The majority are held without charge or trial. Torture by members of the security forces is reported to be carried out systematically and with impunity. Deaths in custody are often reported.

Amnesty International has repeatedly called on the Burundi authorities to investigate human rights violations, including extrajudicial execution, "disappearance," torture, ill-treatment and arbitrary arrest committed by members of the Burundi security forces who continue to act with complete impunity.

How you can help

Currently no mail is getting into Burundi. Please send a letter to Burundi's Ambassador to the United States (or, if you are not American, to Burundi's ambassador to your country) as soon as possible, but no later than June 25, 1997. You may use the sample letter linked below or use it as a model to write your own letter. If you choose to use the sample letter, please cut off or delete all website information at the very top of the letter. If you choose to write your own letter, make sure that it is politely worded and non-partisan (i.e., not used as a vehicle for political expression). Care must be taken to ensure that nothing is written that will cause harm to any of the detainees. Be sure to include both your name and address, as well as the date, on your letter.

If you would like to send a fax or telegram to a government official in Burundi, please address it to one of the following:

Lt-Col. Epitace Bayaganakandi
Ministre de l’Interieur et de la Securite Publique
Ministere de l’Interieur
[Telegram: Ministre Interieur, Bujumbura, Burundi]
[Fax: 011 257 22 21 48 or 011 257 21 30 55]

Monsieur Terence Sinunguruza
Ministre de la Justice et Garde des sceaux
Ministere de la Justice
[Telegram: Ministre Justice, Bujumbura, Burundi]
[Fax: 011 257 22 21 48]

Questions?

If you have any questions, just post a message to me (Kathy Gay) at the Pub, and I will respond as soon as I can. I greatly appreciate your interest and support.

To see the sample letter for this action, click here.

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Kathy Gay is a vegan, and has been a member of Amnesty International for nearly 10 years, where she has worked on numerous campaigns. She lives in the San Francisco Bay Area and is a business analyst for a leading California bank.

Kathy's column, To All Living Things, is a regular feature of VegSource On-Line Magazine.