On the Government of Burundi's Banning of Human Rights NGOs

Source: U.S. Department of State

The United States is deeply concerned by the Government of Burundi’s announcement that it has banned five domestic non-governmental organizations (NGOs) and suspended five others that work in the fields of human rights, election monitoring, and anti-corruption. Civil society organizations, including the ones suspended, play an essential role in defending the constitutionally-guaranteed rights of all Burundians, and their closure would further shrink Burundi’s greatly diminished democratic space without addressing or ameliorating the ongoing political crisis.

The United States urges the Government of Burundi to reconsider its decision to ban and suspend these NGOs, and to engage constructively in the dialogue led by East African Community facilitator and former Tanzanian President Benjamin Mkapa. A resolution to Burundi’s crisis is genuinely possible through reconciliation and cooperation.