Bwagiriza : a mother of three children detained by the police because of the absence of her husband

On Friday, February 28, 2025, the police, accompanied by the Camp administration, conducted searches in five homes of members of the Banyamulenge community in sections 25 and 37. This operation resulted in the arrest of Nyamutarutwa Murorunkwere, a mother of three children and member of the Banyamulenge community. The detainee is a refugee from the Bwagiriza camp located in the province of Ruyigi (eastern Burundi). Her only fault : the absence of her husband at the camp.
INFO SOS Médias Burundi
According to local sources, the reasons for her arrest are linked to the absence of her husband at the camp. Police suspect that he may have crossed the border into Congo, where an armed conflict is taking place between the Armed Forces of the Democratic Republic of Congo (FARDC) and the M23 rebels. His family says he went to Bujumbura, Burundi’s commercial city, like other refugees, looking for odd jobs to support his family in the camp. The refugee community considers the accusation by the local police and the camp administration to be unfair.
The arrest has caused panic among refugees, particularly the Banyamulenge community.
Recent restrictive measures imposed on refugees limit their movement, making it difficult for them to access economic opportunities. Some refugees, who were doing odd jobs in Bujumbura to support their families in the camps, are finding it increasingly difficult to return to the camp due to ongoing arrests along the way.
To date, any refugee caught outside the district hosting the camp without an exit ticket is arrested by the police or by the youth activists of the ruling party, the CNDD-FDD, the Imbonerakure.
Refugees have expressed concerns about these arrests, particularly that of Nyamutarutwa.
Odette, a refugee from Bwagiriza camp, says, “It’s a very difficult situation. We already have enough problems without the police adding another layer of fear. We are here to flee violence, not to suffer more.”
The search and arrest of Nyamutarutwa raises concerns among refugees about the safety and rights of refugees in Bwagiriza Camp. Burundi has welcomed nearly 50,000 new Congolese refugees fleeing war in the east of the vast central African country. They joined nearly 90,000 other Congolese refugees who were already sheltered by the small east African nation.
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Part of the Bwagiriza Congolese refugee camp in eastern Burundi, October 2024 (SOS Médias Burundi)