Burundi
Since independence in 1961, Burundi has been troubled by tensions between the dominant Tutsi minority and the Hutu majority. In 1993, the assassination of Burundi's first democratically-elected president set the scene for years of Hutu-Tutsi violence in which an estimated 300,000 people, most of them civilians, have been killed.
In January 1994, Cyprien Ntaryamira was elected to the presidency and took office the following month. His tenure lasted just two months: returning from an overseas trip with Rwandan president Juvénal Habyarimana, he was killed in a plane crash (whose cause remains the subject of much speculation). The incident set off the genocide in Rwanda. Burundi narrowly avoided the same fate, but tensions between Tutsi and Hutu were intensified and several outbreaks of violence occurred. Colonel Pierre Buyoya, a Tutsi, took control of Burundi's government in a coup in 1996.
Following long-running talks, mediated by South Africa, a transitional, power-sharing government was set up and rebel groups agreed, months apart, to a cease-fire.
The government and the United Nations have begun the lengthy process of disarming thousands of soldiers and fighters, as well as setting up a new national army.
In March 2005, Burundian voters overwhelmingly supported the new power-sharing constitution. The constitution provided for the President to have a deputy from each of the Hutu and Tutsi ethnic groups, with 60 percent of the Cabinet being Hutu and 40 percent Tutsi. Representation in the Parliament, military and police force was designated to be apportioned on a 50-50 basis. In June 2005, violence marred the first local elections since 1993, forcing a re-run of the poll.
Although many refugees have returned from neighboring countries, continued insecurity has forced others to flee. Burundian troops, seeking to secure their borders, have intervened in intermittent unrest in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, often stranding refugees at the common border.
Pierre Nkurunziza, a Hutu former rebel leader, became the first president to be chosen in democratic elections since the start of Burundi's civil war. He was the sole candidate in the August 2005 vote in the National Assembly and the Senate after his Force for the Defense of Democracy (FDD) won parliamentary elections in June. Nkurunziza, who pledged to strive for unity, faces the pressing challenges of reassuring the Tutsi minority and of reviving the economy. At the end of 2005 he unveiled a $2bn rejuvenation plan, most of it to be funded by foreign donors, targeted at the agricultural sector.
Despite political progress, in light of continuing tensions, all areas of Burundi are potentially unstable. Sporadic violence remains a problem in the interior and while present cease-fires may hold, they have often been violated in the past. Individual bands of fighters remain well-armed and prone to spontaneous banditry or periodic grenade attacks. Local authorities cannot guarantee safety and embassies generally restrict the travel of their employees after dark. Visitors should remaining vigilant and respect any curfews in effect. Given the ongoing insecurity, travelers should not travel outside Bujumbura.
Hutu rebel factions in the Great Lakes region have committed, and continue to threaten, violence against foreign citizens and interests. The rebels also have attacked humanitarian aid workers and tourists.
