Burundi: Punishing the population - reprisal killings escalate.

Index Number: AFR 16/006/2002
Date Published: 31 May 2002
Categories: Africa, Burundi

Since December 2001 over 100 unarmed civilians have been extrajudicially executed in a systematic pattern of reprisal killings by government troops during or following so-called counter-insurgency operations. None of these killings are known to have been investigated, or even publicly condemned, by the highest state authorities. Numerous human rights abuses have also been committed by armed political groups, equally failing to prevent or condemn human rights abuses by their combatants. This report documents some of these killings and sets out a number of recommendations for preventing further deaths.