Amnesty International urges focus on human rights

In a press statement released on Monday to coincide with the donor conference on Burundi in Paris, the international human rights organisation Amnesty International has urged international donors to focus on “rebuilding human rights” in Burundi. Amnesty said that strengthening the country’s judicial system, support for refugee protection in neighbouring countries, and protection of internally displaced people (IDPs) within Burundi were areas in which international aid and assistance could decisively influence efforts to enhance respect for human rights. Meanwhile, the Burundi human rights group, Ligue ITEKA, has urged the international community to exert its influence on the Great Lakes region to ensure implementation of the Arusha accords on Burundi, and to bring to an end rebel attacks from neighbouring Tanzania and the DRC. In a statement released on Monday to commemorate the 52nd anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, the organisation urged the Burundi government to do “everything possible so that the 28 August agreement does not become a fiasco”.