Survivors and relatives of the victims of a 2004 massacre of Tutsi refugees in Burundi have filed legal cases, accusing those responsible of genocide and crimes against humanity.
The cases concern the massacre of approximately 160 Congolese Tutsi refugees at a camp in Gatumba, Burundi, near the border with the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC).
Paris-based lawyer Dominique Inchauspe confirmed by telephone that three complaints have been lodged in Burundi, the DRC, and Rwanda—the countries associated with the suspected perpetrators. Additionally, a complaint has been submitted to the International Criminal Court (ICC) in The Hague.
While the complaints have been formally filed against unknown individuals, they specifically mention Agathon Rwasa, the former leader of Burundi’s Hutu rebel group, the National Liberation Forces (FNL), who is now a prominent figure in Burundian politics. The complaints also name Pasteur Habimana, the FNL’s former spokesperson, who initially took responsibility for the massacre in a radio broadcast, only to later claim that his voice had been “imitated.”
United Nations reports and victim testimonies also implicate militias integrated into the DRC’s army, as well as members of Rwanda’s ethnic Hutu rebel group, the Democratic Forces for the Liberation of Rwanda (FDLR), which was formed by some of the perpetrators of the 1994 genocide against Tutsis in Rwanda.
The killings in August 2004 were documented by both the United Nations and Human Rights Watch, but those responsible have yet to be brought to justice.
“It is absolutely scandalous that such an atrocity, documented by the UN, has not been prosecuted, and that no compensation has been paid,” said Inchauspe, who represents the Gatumba Refugees Survivors’ Foundation. He emphasized the importance of justice and recognition of the suffering endured, even if identifying the 200 to 300 assailants remains challenging.
In 2013, after refugees in Burundi lodged a complaint against Rwasa, prosecutors launched a formal investigation into the former rebel leader, but it never resulted in a trial.
Rwasa, now 60, has since disarmed and was granted provisional immunity. However, the prosecutor’s office at the time clarified that this immunity does not extend to “crimes against humanity or war crimes.”
Since then, Rwasa has been elected to Burundi’s parliament and came second to President Evariste Ndayishimiye in the 2020 presidential election.