Burundi: Witchcraft has become a pretext for Gitega’s power to eliminate all the troublesome elements in Cibitoke province
Burundians used to hear people killing each other accusing each other of witchcraft in the run-up to an election period. Today, all the elections that began in May 2020 are already over, but there is an abnormal phenomenon of people who are regularly killed in the country, accused of witchcraft, especially in Cibitoke province.
Here: Gaspard Bahaminyakamwe and his wife Hatungimana Marie, from Mugina commune, were seriously wounded with machetes in their homes on 12 December 2020, the criminals believed they had killed them; Charles Bisesumunwa, 65, from Mabayi commune, was killed on 9 Dec 2020; Michel Habonimana , 60, from Buganda commune, killed by grenade at his home station (watchman), On 8 Dec 2020; a 55-year-old man whose name has not been known, living in the commune of Mabayi, was killed by caning dated 3 Dec 2020; Virginie Kabadege, a mother of Mugina, killed by her 16-year-old son (Theogen) on 29November 2020; a teenager from Buganda commune killed his uncle on 13 November 2020; Régine Ndabazi, 75, of Bukinanyana commune, was killed and beheaded on 31 August 2020; Etc.. These are only people who have been brought to the public’s attention; those who would be killed without trace would be more numerous. Corpses that are regularly found on Rusizi in the decomposing state, and which are buried in the front quickly without identification by the administration, are not counted among these. We don’t know who’s killing them, why and how they were killed.
The people named were killed, accused of witchcraft by their executioners. For the most part, these criminals start by throwing leaflets into the next victim’s entourage saying she is a witch so that when the time comes to kill her, no one is surprised. However, they will take action later. And what is unfortunate, those who threw the leaflets are not wanted and punished (which would be a preventive action), much less those who carried out the crime. The administration merely pacifies the population forbidding them from doing justice, which “enters through the right ear to come out through the left ear”. Some people are sometimes apprehended for questioning and later released.
Here, hypotheses need to be made that have yet to be carefully tested in order to find an appropriate solution. The first and most plausible hypothesis is that these people would be members or former members of the fnl, current Agathon Rwasa NLC. As Cibitoke Province is a historic home of the Palipehutu, these regularly murdered old men are said to be veterans of this movement. Now that the cnddfdd is gradually establishing itself by sowing terror throughout the country, starting to eliminate these libraries (very difficult to corrupt) would be a good strategy. The second hypothesis, no less important, and which is related to the current security situation, is that these people would be embarrassing eyewitnesses to the activities of Rwandan genocidals who leave eastern DR congo, pass through that province to attack neighbouring Rwanda and retreat through the same route. Others settled permanently in the Kibira and refuelled with the population. To avoid information leaks, those who have been in contact with these Rwandan genocidal forces would somehow be eliminated. Accusing them of witchcraft would be easier for the public to understand. The latter hypothesis would be related to family conflicts and particularly land problems that create a lot of clashes in families. But why would this phenomenon be more remarkable in the province of Cibitoke in particular? This means that this hypothesis is not completely to be ruled out, but is less likely to be the real cause of these murders. All additional information on this subject is welcomed on the address of Urnhitamwoneza.
All these criminals who kill innocent people have been at the school of genocide ideology taught for years by palipehutu, then relayed by the palipehutu-fnl, the Frodebu to the cnddfdd now in power. They continue the implementation of this ideology by killing of course the Tutsis, but also any element inconvenient or opposed to this ideology. Hence these murders on the pretext of witchcraft.
URN HITAMWONEZA believes that it is time, if it is not too late, to mobilize all Burundians who still have clean hands to gather all the necessary means to fight all the criminals in power so that they are driven out and brought before the competent courts and punished. Choosing leaders who have no blood on their hands who can guarantee us security, peace, stability and development is our primary concern.