More than 50,000 flee Burundi to escape spiralling violence

News Stories, 11 May 2015

© UNHCR/K.Holt
An elderly woman waits among a crowd of other Burundian refugees for assistance in Rwanda's Mahama Refugee Camp.

GENEVA, May 8 (UNHCR) – The UN refugee agency on Friday warned that pre-election violence in Burundi threatens to undo some of the most promising developments in recent refugee history in Africa, with more than 50,000 Burundians fleeing to neighbouring countries since mid-April.

Since Burundi's civil war ended in 2005, solutions to the plight of many thousands of formerly displaced people have been found after more than a decade of conflict. These have included one of the world's largest and most successful voluntary return programmes for Burundian refugees – with UNHCR helping Burundi with the return of almost half-a-million people.

Neighbouring Tanzania was among the countries that hosted large numbers of Burundian refugees who had fled violence in 1972. It has in recent years offered citizenship to some 200,000 of them and their descendants, the largest number of refugees UNHCR has ever seen being locally integrated by a host country. Thousands of others have been successfully resettled overseas, including more than 8,000 in the United States.

But UNHCR spokesman Adrian Edwards told journalists in Geneva that pre-election violence over the last weeks has sent tens of thousands fleeing to neighbouring Rwanda, Tanzania and the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC).

"Many of these have crossed into Rwanda (25,004), but over the last week we have also seen a sharp increase in people seeking asylum in Tanzania (17,696) after entry restrictions there were lifted. In addition, almost 8,000 people have crossed into South Kivu province in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. In all these cases women and children, including a large number of unaccompanied children, are in the majority," Edwards said.

In Burundi's capital, Bujumbura, protests have resumed since Monday, and there are reports of daily violence. Unrest has been spreading to the provinces as well. In Rwanda, new arrivals have reported fleeing Burundi because of harassment and intimidation by Imbonerakure youth militants, who paint red marks on homes of people to be targeted.

"Some decided to leave as a precautionary measure, having experienced previous cycles of violence. There are also reports of people selling their properties before leaving the country – possibly indicating anticipation of prolonged insecurity," Edwards noted.

Many of the new arrivals are coming from the Ngozi and Muyinga provinces of northern Burundi. However, this week, UNHCR has also seen the arrival of people from urban areas, including a number of high school and university students. "With the Government of Rwanda, we are now moving the refugees to a new refugee camp, Mahama, which can host up to 60,000 refugees," Edward said.

Many people have experienced difficulties while trying to leave Burundi. Several women have reported threats of rape from armed men, and having to bribe their way through roadblocks. Some have walked for hours through the bush with their children.

In the Democratic of the Congo, 7,661 Burundians have registered as refugees so far. The new arrivals are being hosted by local families, but the growing numbers are straining available support. UNHCR is helping some 500 vulnerable refugees at a transit centre at Kavimvira and in another centre at Sange. Work is under way to identify a site where all the refugees can be moved, and from where they can have access to facilities such as schools, health centres and with proper security.

UNHCR's Edwards said that in Tanzania, nearly 4,000 people have now been registered, but more than 13,000 are still waiting to be processed. An estimated 10,000 Burundians have arrived on Kagunga island on Lake Tanganyika.

"We have started to relocate them with the help of an old ferry that can carry a maximum of 600 people. All asylum-seekers are being transported from villages and islands to Nyarugusu refugee camp, where they will receive a plot of land on which they can build a shelter and grow some vegetables," Edwards added.

UNHCR has appealed to the authorities in Burundi to allow people to move freely. "It is vital too that borders remain open, and we are grateful to commitments in this regard by neighbouring countries and for the support that host communities are giving to the refugees," the UNHCR spokesman stressed.

• DONATE NOW •

 

• GET INVOLVED • • STAY INFORMED •

Related Stories

more documents

UNHCR country pages

UNHCR DR Congo Fact Sheet

Finding a Home on Ancestral Land

Somali Bantu refugees gaining citizenship in Tanzania

Rwanda Fact Sheet

The former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia, Country Update, 1 January– 31 March 2013

Burundi Fact Sheet

Congolese Medics on Call For Refugees

Jean de Dieu, from the Central African Republic (CAR), was on his way to market in mid-January when he was shot. The 24-year-old shepherd and his family had fled their country two months earlier and sought refuge on an island in the Oubangui River belonging to the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC). Sometimes Jean crossed back to check on his livestock, but last week his luck ran out when he went to take an animal to market. A few hours later, in an improvised operating room in Dula, a Congolese border town on the banks of the Oubangui, medics fight to save his life.

Jean's situation is not unique. Over the past two years, war in the Central African Republic has driven more than 850,000 people from their homes. Many have been attacked as they fled, or killed if they tried to return. In neighbouring DRC, medical resources are being stretched to their limits.

Photographer Brian Sokol, on assignment for UNHCR, captured the moment when Jean and others were rushed into the operating theatre. His images bear witness to desperation, grief, family unity and, ultimately, a struggle for survival.

Congolese Medics on Call For Refugees

Human Misery in Katanga Province's Triangle of Death

People in the Democratic Republic of the Congo's Katanga province have long referred to the region between the towns of Manono, Mitwaba and Pweto as the "triangle of death." Despite the presence of UN peace-keepers and government military successes in other parts of the country, the situation in the resources-rich Katanga has been getting worse over the past two years. Conflict between a secessionist militia group and the government and between the Luba (Bantu) and Twa (Pygmy) ethnic groups has left thousands dead and forcibly displaced more than 400,000 people since 2012, including over 70,000 in the last three months. UNHCR has expressed its "deep concern" about the "catastrophic" humanitarian situation in northern Katanga. The violence includes widescale looting and burning of entire villages and human rights' violations such as murder, mass rape and other sexual violence, and the forced military recruitment of children.

The limited presence of humanitarian and development organizations is a serious problem, leading to insufficient assistance to displaced people who struggle to have access to basic services. There are 28 sites hosting the displaced in northern Katanga and many more displaced people live in host communities. While UNHCR has built some 1,500 emergency shelters since January, more is needed, including access to health care, potable water, food and education. The following striking photographs by Brian Sokol for UNHCR show some of the despair and suffering.

Human Misery in Katanga Province's Triangle of Death

Statelessness Around the World

At least 10 million people in the world today are stateless. They are told that they don't belong anywhere. They are denied a nationality. And without one, they are denied their basic rights. From the moment they are born they are deprived of not only citizenship but, in many cases, even documentation of their birth. Many struggle throughout their lives with limited or no access to education, health care, employment, freedom of movement or sense of security. Many are unable to marry, while some people choose not to have children just to avoid passing on the stigma of statelessness. Even at the end of their lives, many stateless people are denied the dignity of a death certificate and proper burial.

The human impact of statelessness is tremendous. Generations and entire communities can be affected. But, with political will, statelessness is relatively easy to resolve. Thanks to government action, more than 4 million stateless people acquired a nationality between 2003 and 2013 or had their nationality confirmed. Between 2004 and 2014, twelve countries took steps to remove gender discrimination from their nationality laws - action that is vital to ensuring children are not left stateless if their fathers are stateless or unable to confer their nationality. Between 2011 and 2014, there were 42 accessions to the two statelessness conventions - indication of a growing consensus on the need to tackle statelessness. UNHCR's 10-year Campaign to End Statelessness seeks to give impetus to this. The campaign calls on states to take 10 actions that would bring a definitive end to this problem and the suffering it causes.

These images are available for use only to illustrate articles related to UNHCR statelessness campaign. They are not available for archiving, resale, redistribution, syndication or third party licensing, but only for one-time print/online usage. All images must be properly credited UNHCR/photographer's name

Statelessness Around the World

Tanzania: Fleeing Burundi, Refugees Seek SafetyPlay video

Tanzania: Fleeing Burundi, Refugees Seek Safety

He used to fix broken bicycles in Burundi, but as political troubles and killings mounted Nestor Kamza decided to flee. In search of safety he and his family walked non-stop for 24-hours until they reached Tanzania. His family is among more than 100,000 people who have fled from political violence in Burundi and arrived in the Nyarugusu camp which has almost tripled in size. To alleviate overcrowding in the camp, UNHCR and its partners have planned to open three new camps and have started moving tens of thousands of Burundian refugees to a new, less congested, home
Tanzania: Setting Sail to SafetyPlay video

Tanzania: Setting Sail to Safety

More than 60,000 Burundian refugees have arrived in Tanzania since the beginning of May. On the shores of Lake Tanganyika, hundreds board a ferry to Kigoma, Tanzania, before continuing to Nyaragusu camp.
Rwanda: Flight from BurundiPlay video

Rwanda: Flight from Burundi

In recent weeks, the number of Burundian refugees crossing into Rwanda has increased significantly. According to the Government of Rwanda, since the beginning of April, 25,004 Burundians, mostly women and children, have fled to Rwanda. Many said they had experienced intimidation and threats of violence linked to the upcoming elections.