OCHA Situation Report
Burundi
08 - 14 November 2004


Source: UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs

HUMANITARIAN ACTIVITIES

1 ICRC announces radio tracing program

The International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) announced the launch
of a radio tracing program, aimed at reuniting Burundian children
separated from their families during recent years of conflict.
Announcements regarding the children are to be broadcast by national radio
RTNB on Mondays and Thursdays from 17h00 to 17h10 for an initial period of
three months. "For these unaccompanied children, we try to find a family
member by visiting former household addresses, contacting administrative
authorities, churches and NGOs," ICRC said in a statement. "We try to post
lists in public places, we broadcast messages over the radio. Once we
locate family members, they can exchange messages with the child through
the ICRC. Once the family and children agree, ICRC can facilitate
repatriation of the children and reunion with their families."

2 WFP food distribution update

Last week, the World Food Programme (WFP) supplied more than 1,429 mt to
over 207,000 beneficiaries in Ruyigi, Mwaro, Gitega, Bujumbura Mairie and
Kirundo provinces. In Busoni and Bugabira communes of Kirundo Province,
nearly 570 mt of emergency food assistance were distributed to 106,180
persons, including those who returned from Rwanda recently.

3 Burundian refugee returns update

As of 14 November, 80,879 facilitated and 6,133 spontaneous returns of
Burundian refugees were reported since 1 January 2004 by the Office of the
UN High Commissioner for Refugees in Burundi.

SECURITY INCIDENTS

Elements belonging to Pierre Nkurunziza's FDD were surprised during the
evening of 10 November while collecting money from local residents in
Ngagara zone of Bujumbura city, Bonesha radio reported. According to
witnesses, each family was required to give 5,000 Burundian francs (US
$4.50). Alerted by families, the head of Ngagara zone intervened and had
the CNDD/FDD elements arrested.

Beginning on 10 November, combatants of Agathon Rwasa's FNL and the
Interahamwe were reported to be massing on the Congolese side of the
DRC/Burundi border, following joint MONUC/FARDC military operations aimed
at their disarmament. Burundian forces have been placed on a high state of
alert.

Fighting between Nkurunziza's FDD and Rwasa's FNL erupted on 11 November
in Nyamaboko, in Kanyosha Commune of Bujumbura Rural Province, leaving
five FNL combatants dead. Some 30 civilians who fled fighting denounced
exactions committed by the FDD.

An FDD position in Ruyaga, located in Bujumbura Rural Province, near the
Kiriri University campus, was reportedly attacked by Rwasa's FNL around
21h00 on 11 November, according to national radio RTNB. Alerted of the FNL
presence by local residents, the FDD organized an ambush, killing 10 FNL
elements and injuring several others. One FDD combatant was injured.

On 14 November, a bus transporting passengers to Rushubi, Bujumbura Rural
Province, was ambushed two kilometers from National Route 1 by unknown
gunmen who killed five passengers, including two policemen, RPA reported.
The passengers, mainly businessmen, were robbed of their belongings.

LATEST EVENTS AND POLITICAL DEVELOPMENTS

On 10 November, President Domitien Ndayizeye removed Vice President
Alphonse-Marie Kadege from office. In Decree No 100/140, Ndayizeye
enumerated the reasons for Kadege's dismissal, which included publicly
rejecting the Pretoria power-sharing accords; failing to participate in
Cabinet discussions to discuss the draft post-transition Constitution, and
inciting others to do likewise, thereby "displaying his determination to
block the regular functioning of government institutions and to sabotage
the process to adopt the post-transition Constitution". On 11 November,
Member of Parliament Frederic Ngenzebuhoro was officially designated Vice
President, after the National Assembly voiced its approval with 196 of 199
votes and the Senate expressed unanimous support. Ngenzebuhoro is a member
of the predominantly "Tutsi" Union pour le progres national (Uprona)
political party, to which Kadege also belongs.

Five ex-rebel movements including CNDD (Leonard Nyangoma), Kaze-FDD (Jean
Bosco Ndayikengurukiye), FROLINA (Joseph Karumba), Palipe-Agakiza (Etienne
Karatasi) and FNL-Icanzo (Alain Mugabarabona) have requested recognition
as political parties, Bonesha radio reported on 8 November.

Paul Ngarambe, chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission
(CENI) announced on 9 November that the means for holding the
constitutional referendum were gradually being made available by donors,
national radio RTNB reported. For his part, President Ndayizeye officially
launched a national information campaign regarding the referendum on 12
November in Gitega, central Burundi.

Presidential spokesman Pancrace Cimpaye announced on 9 November that
demobilization of ex-combatants, which has experienced repeated delays,
would begin on 29 November.

Burundi General Prosecutor Gerard Ngendabanka announced on 10 November
that two key witnesses in the assassination trial of former WHO
representative in Burundi, Kassy Manlan, had disappeared, RPA reported.
Ngendabanka said he had no hope of having Dieudonne Nkurunziza and Parfait
Mugenzi testify, although he had given assurances that they were being
housed in a safe place.

During a conference for indigenous youths held in Bujumbura,
representatives called on the governments of Burundi, the Democratic
Republic of the Congo (DRC) and Rwanda to ensure they have equal access to
land, education and health care as other ethnic groups in these countries,
the UN humanitarian information service IRIN reported on 10 November. "We
want to offer an opportunity to the youths to learn all the international
legal instruments that would allow them to pressure their respective
governments," Vital Bambanze, the secretary-general of the Unissons Nous
pour la Promotion des Batwa, an association for Burundi's indigenous
people, known as the Batwa, told IRIN. He said that indigenous groups in
Africa's Great Lakes region lacked access to basic rights because states
and other ethnic communities had marginalised them. However, he noted that
the situation of the Batwa in Burundi was slightly better than in other
countries, as the Batwa are represented in the country's institutions and
that an accord signed by political leaders in August in Pretoria, South
Africa, stipulates that the Batwa be given three seats in the Senate and
three in the National Assembly. Also, he said there were 200 Batwa
students currently in secondary schools and six at the university level.
The youth representatives announced they would form a Batwa youth network
to share experiences and help the community to lobby for their rights.

COORDINATION

After many weeks of delay due to questions over land ownership of the
proposed site, OCHA is coordinating ? in consultation with the provincial
government, UN agencies, NGOs and ONUB ? the organization of the
relocation of some 12,000 displaced persons in Kabezi town, located in
Kabezi Commune of Bujumbura Rural Province, to an area located an
appropriate distance from a government military base and an ONUB
peacekeeping base. The work, expected to take some 40 days, could be
delayed by the rainy season. Responsibility for management of the site
remains under discussion.

On 8 November, OCHA revived regular coordination meetings among UN
agencies, NGOs and provincial authorities in Ruyigi Province, eastern
Burundi. Participants agreed that such meetings would be held twice
monthly, at 14h00 on the second and fourth Tuesdays of each month. The
next meeting is scheduled for 23 November, during which current projects
and future initiatives will be discussed. In the meantime, OCHA will be
collecting information from all humanitarian actors in the province in an
effort to update the map of "Who Does What, Where?"

For further information and contributions to future updates:

Adelaide Habonimana
OCHA Information Unit
E-mail: habonimanaa@un.org

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