A CALL FOR JUSTICE IN BURUNDI AS FIGHTERS BEGIN TO DISARM

Efforts towards peace and justice were made on all sides this week as the UN voted in support of Burundi’s struggle to turn the tide on decades of ethnic fighting.  The UN Security Council voted unanimously Wednesday to approve Burundi’s call for international support in its investigation into the Gatumba massacre, a tragic and brutal incident all too indicative of the atrocities the country has faced.  Gambian officials sought help to identify and bring to justice those responsible for 160 ethnic Tutsi Congolese killed on Aug. 13 in the Gatumba refugee camp.

The resolution was particularly noteworthy for its only slightly veiled intent to refer the case to the International Criminal Court.  The U.S. had tried for weeks to block the resolution’s reference to the Court, which it opposes.  But the resolution’s final language expressing Burundi’s desire for “international support as appropriate" has been widely regarded as a clear reference to the ICC.

The resolution, which also extended the U.N. peacekeeping mandate until June 1, 2005, which recently begun the disarmament process for ex-combatants. Over 200 former fighters in Burundi turned in their weapons at a United Nations-run center that began operations Thursday in Muranmvya.  Two more centers in Gitega and Randa, are expected to open in the coming days. UN officials are hopeful that hundreds of child soldiers will be among those voluntarily disarming in the coming weeks.

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Updated December 2, 2004

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