Burundi: Minority Groups

(asked on 22nd November 2016) - View Source

Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what recent discussions he has had with (a) President Nkurunziza and (b) Foreign Minister Alaine Aimé Nyamitwe on the protection of (i) ethnic, (ii) religious and (iii) other minorities in Burundi.


Answered by
Tobias Ellwood Portrait
Tobias Ellwood
This question was answered on 28th November 2016

​Senior UK officials, including our High Commissioner in Rwanda (who is also our non-resident Ambassador to Burundi), met with President Nkurunziza most recently in January 2016. During the course of this meeting a broad range of issues was discussed, including human rights, security and the importance of maintaining the principles of the 2000 Arusha Agreement, including the protection of minorities in Burundi.

Our officials take part in regular consultations with Foreign Minister Nyamitwe alongside other EU member states pursuant to Article 96 of the African, Caribbean and Pacific Group of States (ACP)-EU Partnership Agreement (also known as the Cotonou Agreement) of 2000, most recently in October 2016. These consultations include discussion of human rights, civil and political rights, and the importance of maintaining the principles of the 2000 Arusha Agreement.

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