The Burundi Human Rights Initiative A STRANGLEHOLD ON BURUNDI’S FUTURE December 2020 A Stranglehold on Burundi's Future WHAT IS THE BURUNDI HUMAN RIGHTS INITIATIVE? The Burundi Human Rights Initiative (BHRI) is an independent human rights project that aims to document the evolving human rights situation in Burundi, with a particular focus on events linked to the 2020 elections. It intends to expose the drivers of human rights violations with a view to establishing an accurate record that will help bring justice to Burundians and find a solution to the ongoing human rights crisis. BHRI’s publications also analyse the political and social context in which these violations occur to provide a deeper and more nuanced understanding of human rights trends in Burundi. BHRI has no political affiliation. Its investigations cover human rights violations by the Burundian government as well as abuses by armed opposition groups. Carina Tertsakian, Lane Hartill and Thijs Van Laer lead BHRI and are its principal researchers. They have worked on human rights issues in Burundi and the Great Lakes region of Africa for many years. BHRI’s reports are the products of their collaboration with a wide range of people inside and outside Burundi. BHRI welcomes feedback on its publications as well as further information about the human rights situation in Burundi. Please write to
[email protected] or +1 267 896 3399 (WhatsApp). Additional information is available at www.burundihri.org or on Twitter at http://www.twitter.com/@BHRI_IDHB. ©2020 The Burundi Human Rights Initiative Cover photo: President Évariste Ndayishimiye (centre), Prime Minister Alain Guillaume Bunyoni (right), minister of interior, community development and public security Gervais Ndirakobuca (left).