The UN Security Council unanimously adopted a resolution on Friday setting the stage for deployment of UN police to Burundi, where killings, torture and increased disappearances have created a climate of fear and led more than 250,000 people to flee to neighbouring countries.
The resolution asks Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon to consult Burundi’s government and coordinate with the African Union and present options within 15 days for deployment of UN police in order to increase monitoring of the security situation, promote respect for human rights and advance the rule of law.
Burundi has been hit by unrest since April 2015, when President Pierre Nkurunziza announced his decision to seek a third term, which he eventually won. His government has been wary of outside intervention, last year rejecting the idea of an AU peacekeeping force and calling foreign troops an “invasion”.
The French-drafted resolution welcomes the consent of Burundi’s authorities to increase the number of AU human rights observers from 100 to 200 and allow 100 AU military experts. It notes that 30 human rights observers and 15 military observers have been deployed so far.
The resolution also strongly condemns human rights violations including extrajudicial killings, sexual violence, torture, intimidation of civil society organisations and journalists and restrictions on fundamental freedoms.