Next week Monday, human rights expert Pablo de Greiff will visit Burundi to measure traditional justice efforts taken from Burundi’s stakeholders so far.
The expert is set to evaluate traditional justice efforts, in aim to ensure the development in Burundi, assessing its tribal tones. Since Burundi obtained its independence in 1962, the country experienced severe incidents of genocide, massacring the Tutsi tribe.
Pablo de Greiff, Special Rapporteur on the promotion of truth, justice, reparation and guaranteed of non-recurrence noted that visiting Burundi for the first time notes a particularly crucial moment in Burundi’s step towards tolerance – through the creation and implementation of truth seeking; one of the main steps contained in the Arusha Agreement of 2000, and a key recommendation of the national consultations of 2009.
Greiff’s mandate extends from truth seeking and lapses into justice, repartrations and guarantees of non- recurrence. This will trickle into finding a solution for Burundi: redressing the legacies of human rights violations, assisting victims and fostering trust and strengthening reconciliation through the statutes of the country.
“I intend to assess objectively and impartially the work undertaken in all four areas of my mandate and offer my assistance to the Government and the entire Burundian society to adequately address past violations with the aim to continue to move forward,” Greiff further states.
On his examination of Burundi, Mr de Greiff will meet with government officials, law enforcement officials, civil society actors, victims of genocide, diplomatic delegations and judicial branches. He is set to travel through Bujumbura Rural province, Bubanza and Gitega. A special report will be presented on the 16th of December this year, and a final report presented to the Special Rapporteur of the UN Human rights council next year September.
This is a step forward to achieving Burundi’s psychological wellbeing of its people – healing community wounds and assessing on the field if tolerance, and a lack of tribalism is evident.
