A/HRC/45/32
United Nations
General Assembly
Distr.: General
13 August 2020
English
Original: French
Human Rights Council
Forty-fifth session
14 September–2 October 2020
Agenda item 4
Human rights situations that require the Council’s attention
Report of the Commission of Inquiry on Burundi*, **
Summary
Numerous serious human rights violations have been documented since May 2019 in
connection with the 2020 elections. The perpetrators were seeking to deprive the main
opposition party of any chance of winning the election. These violations were mainly
committed by members of the Imbonerakure youth league of the ruling party and by local
officials who continue to enjoy nearly total impunity. Officers of the National Intelligence
Service and the police often participated in or supported such violations or, in the case of the
police, sometimes stood by and allowed the perpetrators to act. The judiciary has also taken
part in this repression.
The survey on the economic underpinnings of the State has shown that corruption and illicit
financial flows have a negative impact on the enjoyment of human rights in Burundi. Aside
from the political transition currently under way, most risk factors still remain, and farreaching reforms are required to improve the situation in the medium and long term.
* The annexes to the present document are reproduced as received, in the language of submission only.
** Agreement was reached to publish the present report after the standard publication date owing to
circumstances beyond the submitter’s control.
GE.20-10689 (E)
310820
020920
Select target paragraph3
Connect to a paragraph
Connect to an entity
Disable highlights
Add to table of contents