Deadly ambush in Burundi's Cibitoke province
There is growing fear of renewed violence in Burundi following recent killings of civilian populations. Yesterday, a bus travelling to the Rumonge district from the Bururi Province, in the south, was ambushed by gunfire. Two people were killed and two more injured, one critically.
By Marie-Claire Ndikumana, Bujumbura
It was 4:40 AM when the Cibitoke-Buriri bus left the Buganda district for the Rumonge district. The bus was carrying traders as well as the owner of the vehicle, as confirms one of the survivors of the attack which occurred shortly after departure: “After firing repeated rounds at our vehicle, they (the assailants – RNWL) stripped us naked and took all our belongings. We were told to lie face down and they poured gasoline on us. We begged in vain them to take everything but our lives. A while later they put the bus owner back into the vehicle. They asked him three times if he was Girukwishaka. He replied in the affirmative and they burned him alive inside the bus”. According to this eyewitness, at least eight people carried out this attack which also claimed the life of the bus driver.
Confusion and despair
The families of the victims were utterly devastated. The bus owner’s brother is adamant: “Those who killed my brother knew him. They are people who were hired to take his life. He hasn’t done anything wrong. He only went out to win the daily bread for his family and, less than an hour later, he is dead! Before he was killed, his driver had recognised three of these criminals. Why kill innocent people who are not even members of a political party? Why humiliate him by stripping him naked before taking his life? Why burn him alive?”, he asks.
One of the two injured, a mentally disabled who was passing by at the time of the ambush, was hit in the waist by a bullet and is currently in hospital.
Fears of renewed violence
Overwhelmed by an event some local residents link to the bloody conflicts that Burundi experienced in the last decade, the Governor of the Cibitoke Province condemned and regretted the attack. He advised populations to avoid travelling at night for their safety.
The Burundian army had recently confirmed the defection of a large number of soldiers who could have joined or formed new insurgencies.
Roaming bandits
According to government authorities in the Burundian capital, Bujumbura, these acts of violence could be attributed to bandits roaming the area. Others suspect former FNL (Forces Nationales de Libération – National Liberation Forces) rebels to be behind the latest atrocities against civilian populations.
Since the demobilisation and disarmament of the FNL in 2009, Burundi has experienced a period of relative [related-articles]peace after years of insurrection. However, the situation deteriorated after the 2010 elections. The FLN (National Liberation Front), an opposition party, accused the ruling party, the CNDD-FDD (National Council for the Defence of Democracy-Forces for the Defence of Democracy) of rigging the polls.