Summary
This report has been prepared in accordance with the provisions of Security Council resolution 1612 (2005). It is presented to the Security Council and its Working Group on children and armed conflict as the first report on Burundi from the monitoring and reporting mechanism referred to in paragraph 3 of that resolution. The report, which covers the period from August 2005 to September 2006, provides information on compliance and progress in ending the recruitment and use of children and other grave violations being committed against children in armed conflict situations in Burundi and outlines progress achieved in that regard. Despite the substantial progress achieved in addressing the grave violations of children's rights detailed in resolution 1612 (2005), violations are still occurring and the competent authorities have not always conducted criminal investigations nor punished those responsible. Violations of children's rights were reported in the provinces where there was armed conflict during the reporting period. The report explicitly identifies the parties to the conflict responsible for serious violations, including the Parti pour la libération du peuple hutu-Forces nationales de libération (PALIPEHUTU-FNL), the Burundi National Defence Force (FDN), the National Intelligence Service (SNR) and the Burundi National Police.
During the preparation of this report, a Comprehensive Ceasefire Agreement was signed on 7 September 2006 at Dar-es-Salaam between the Government of Burundi and Agathon Rwasa's FNL, the last active rebel movement. While implementation of the ceasefire remains a major challenge, its signing constitutes a major step forward in the Burundi peace process and could mark the end of armed clashes in the country. In implementing the ceasefire agreement and subsequently demobilizing the FNL combatants, priority needs to be given not only to demobilizing children to allow them to be immediately reunited with their families and reintegrated into their communities, but also to releasing the children currently detained by the Government and accused of collaborating with FNL.
The report contains a series of recommendations with a view to securing strengthened action for the protection of war-affected children in Burundi and preventing any action which could affect their rights after the signing of the Agreement.
I. Introduction
1. This report outlines the progress achieved from August 2005 to September 2006 with respect to the protection of children involved in armed conflict and identifies the serious violations committed against them in Burundi. It takes into account developments in the situation during the period under review and reflects the challenges that lie ahead and the progress made in Burundi to redress the violations of children's rights referred to in Security Council resolution 1612 (2005). The report identifies parties to the conflict responsible for several categories of serious violations, including violence to life, maiming and causing bodily harm, the recruitment and use of children in armed groups, kidnapping and illegal detention of children accused of being members of armed groups, or members of PALIPEHUTU-FNL in this instance, and sexual violence during armed conflict. The main source of information for this report is the cases identified by the Human Rights Division of the United Nations Operation in Burundi (ONUB) and reviewed by members of the Working Group. However, a comprehensive picture of the situation cannot be presented because of difficult access to some parts of the country and sometimes to some places of detention and the fact that ONUB human rights observers are not deployed throughout the country.
II. Political, military and social situation
2. Burundi is gradually emerging from 12 years of civil war that resulted in hundreds of thousands of casualties and major internal and external population displacement. Burundi, which has a population of about 7.3 million, is one of the poorest countries in the world. More than 50 per cent of the population is comprised of children and young people below 18 years of age.
3. The Burundi peace process initiated in 1998 by the neighbouring States under the informal Regional Initiative for Peace in Burundi and facilitated by Julius Nyerere, the late President of the United Republic of Tanzania, who was subsequently replaced by Nelson Mandela as facilitator, went through several phases, culminating in the signing of the Arusha Peace and Reconciliation Agreement for Burundi in August 2000. The Agreement was the starting point of a political transition during which the Conseil national pour la défense de la démocratie/Force de défense de démocratie (CNDD-FDD) joined the peace process upon the signing of a comprehensive ceasefire agreement in 2003. The Agreement marked the cessation of hostilities throughout much of the country.
4. Pursuant to the Arusha Agreement, the country has undergone a democratic electoral process which led to the adoption of a new Constitution on 28 February 2005 and the establishment of new state institutions. The newly-elected President, Pierre Nkurunziza, of CNDD-FDD, took office on 26 August 2005, bringing a threeyear period of transition to an end.
5. As a result of continuing hostilities by Agathon Rwasa's FNL, the last active rebel movement, the Government of Burundi undertook negotiations under the Regional Initiative with FNL which culminated in the signing of a Comprehensive Ceasefire Agreement on 7 September 2006.
6. During the period under review, the general human rights situation was characterized by allegations of summary and extrajudicial executions and continuing arbitrary arrests and detentions of civilians and members of civil society by the Burundian authorities.
7. The Burundi National Defence Force (FDN), the Burundi National Police, the National Intelligence Service and members of the FNL armed group have been accused of violating children's rights. While Agathon Rwasa's FNL and Jean Bosco Sindayigaya's dissident movement continued the forced recruitment of children, the Government illegally detained scores of children accused of being members of armed groups, or suspected members of FNL in this instance.
8. While there has been some improvement in the security situation, the proliferation of arms among civilians continues to be of great concern. According to a study by the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), about 100,000 households in the country have small arms and light weapons for self-defence, resulting in a high crime rate, accidents (for example in July, a child was seriously wounded after stepping on a grenade) and more wanton acts of violence by civilians.
9. In the period under review, the strategic economic recovery and poverty reduction framework paper was reviewed as part of an expanded consultation process with the communities, civil society, donors and the United Nations system. This document will cover the period 2006-2008. Its aims include strengthening peace through the continuation of the programme for the demobilization, disarmament and reintegration of former combatants; the professionalization of the defence and security forces; the disarmament of the civilian population; and combating the proliferation of small arms and light weapons.
10. On the social front, the Government has undertaken a number of reforms geared towards improving the welfare of children, including the introduction of free primary education and free medical care for children under five years of age.
11. Although the country's humanitarian situation is improving gradually, there is still considerable food insecurity, especially in the northern provinces that have experienced several consecutive months of drought. That situation triggered a population exodus to the United Republic of Tanzania, leading children who accompanied their parents in their quest for food and work to drop out of school. From May to June 2006, about 1,600 Burundians who had been living in the United Republic of Tanzania for a long time without being recognized as refugees were expelled to Burundi. The children of mixed couples were separated from one of their parents.
12. In October 2005, the Government requested the withdrawal of ONUB. The subsequent negotiations resulted in an agreement in principle on the gradual withdrawal of ONUB. The withdrawal of the peacekeeping mission troops began in January 2006 and will end on 31 December 2006. In order to provide coherent support to Burundi in its efforts to consolidate peace, the Security Council adopted on 30 June 2006, resolution 1692 (2006) on the establishment of the United Nations Integrated Office in Burundi, commencing in January 2007.
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