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Vincent (real name withheld) is a Burundian politician, a member of the opposition party. In the past, he held important positions in the government and the Burundian national assembly and was one of the most outspoken critics of the party in power. In 2013, V. I. openly contested a government measure that intended to amend the Constitution. A few days later, he was...

Sidoine (real name withheld) was the night porter at a hospital. One night, two vehicles driven by local officials arrived outside A&E. Without any explanation, the officials threw two injured men to the ground, seemingly following an altercation. While asking for details of the patients’ condition, Sidoine was slapped by the men driving the vehicles. He tried to...

Mr Pierre-Claver Mbonimpa is a prominent defender of human rights in Burundi. In May 2014, he publicly spoke out against the Burundian government’s policy of recruiting and training youths aligned with the party, who go by the name of “Imbonerakure” and are often accused of abuse perpetrated against civilians (pillage, violence, etc.). The day after taking this stanc...

A prominent member of a Burundian opposition party, Henri (real name withheld) was arrested on his way to work in 2010. Before even reaching the police station, the agents had started beating him. The acts of abuse lasted for hours and continued while he was incarcerated. On top of the torture and the threats, Henri was held under deplorable conditions: for five days...

Mr O.R. was an active member of an opposition party. In 2011, his life crumbled after he began being harassed by an agent of the National Intelligence Service (Service National des Renseignements, or SNR). The agent told him to join the party in power and denounce his colleagues. He received similar phone calls up to four times a day. A few months after the threats...

Marc (real name withheld), was a member of the Burundian military and father of two children. He was arrested at the same time as many of his colleagues, falsely accused of plotting a coup. Marc denied the allegations for hours but his prison guards did not give up, resorting to torture to make him “confess”. He was subjected to blows from chairs, gun butts and be...

In 2012, a false accusation led to the arrest of Marius (assumed name). At the police station, he was kicked with boots and lashed with belts so violently that he lost consciousness. Left in this critical condition without getting the slightest bit of care, he had to wait several hours before being taken to hospital. Today, Marius still suffers from the physical and...

Kurt (real name withheld) was an active member of the opposition. He was arrested by around 15 police officers at his home in the early hours of the morning in 2007. Taken to the police station, those officers wanted Kurt to testify against the former president of his party and to acknowledge that he himself had tried to destabilize the party in power – which was by...

A member of the Burundian police, Jeff (real name withheld) witnessed rampant corruption among his ranks while at work. The fact that he was courageous enough to publicly report such abuse led to his arrest and then arbitrary detention for several weeks. The intimidation continued after his release: more or less explicit warnings, dismissal and, finally, death thr...

I.V. was a young man from Burundi invested in politics, an active supporter of an opposition party. After he openly showed his support for the party in question during an electoral campaign, I.V. began receiving anonymous phone calls with explicit death threats such as “You have very little time left to live”. Terrified, the victim abandoned his studies and distanced...

Mr H.T., a Burundian citizen, was a member of the CNDD-FDD, the party in power in Burundi, before joining an opposition party where he held various prominent positions. Harassment began immediately after Mr H.T. switched parties. Old friends and colleagues from the CNDD-FDD insistently tried to convince him to come back, but their proposals gradually became threats....

At the beginning of 2008, in front of his home, Jean (real name withheld) listened to the story of Fabien (ibidem), a member of his family. The latter told him of a recent altercation with a representative of the State, who had tried to extort official documents from him. During the discussion, the same representative burst in front of Fabien, once again insisting to...