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Read, Debate: Engage.
| topic: | Human Rights |
|---|---|
| located: | Burundi |
| editor: | Bob Koigi |
The recent decision by Burundi’s President Evariste Ndayishimiye to grant amnesty to over 5,000 prisoners, including minors, prisoners who are over 70 years old, pregnant mothers and inmates with mental disorders, is one of the commendable steps the country is taking as it seeks to put its house in order after years of running a devastating human rights track-record that has included arbitrary arrests and detention without trial of human rights activists, journalists and refugees.
Media freedom is finally being enjoyed in Burundi following over five years of thinning press freedoms that saw media houses banned and taken off the air, journalists detained and over 100 others having been forced into exile.
The December 2020 decree by President Ndayishimiye to offer pardon to four journalists who had been convicted on flimsy charges - such as posing a threat to national security - and his order to the media regulatory body to discuss the possible reopening of the banned media houses have demonstrated the government’s willingness to embrace freedom of the press, which is cardinal in any democratic state.
The new reforms to fight corruption, coupled with the President’s spirited attempt to heal the broken relationship with the international community means that the country is ready to put itself to scrutiny by ensuring transparency, respect for the rule of law, economic empowerment of its citizenry and respect for human rights.
To further uphold the value of human rights, the government must demonstrate that it is committed to protecting refugees’ rights by releasing eight former Burundi refugees who have been in custody on baseless charges after they were forcibly returned from Tanzania last year.
The continued denial of the due process and punishment, which has included torture, should be condemned by the highest office in the land, as the human rights the President is working hard to uphold must be enjoyed by every Burundian.
Image: Cndd Fdd Abagumyabanga.
