SPECIAL RAPPORTEUR ON HUMAN RIGHTS IN BURUNDI EXPRESSES CONCERN OVER EXECUTION OF DEATH-ROW PRISONERS
Press Release
HR/4333
SPECIAL RAPPORTEUR ON HUMAN RIGHTS IN BURUNDI EXPRESSES CONCERN OVER EXECUTION OF DEATH-ROW PRISONERS
19970812 GENEVA, 11 August (UN Information Service) -- The Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in Burundi, Paulo Sergio Pinheiro, has expressed deep concern over the announcement of the execution on 31 July of six persons who had been condemned to death.The executions were specially serious since the condemned had not been provided with any of the judicial guarantees they were entitled to, the Special Rapporteur said in a statement issued today. In his report to the fifty-first session of the Commission, submitted last February, Mr. Pinheiro observed that in the 150 cases examined by the three criminal chambers of Burundi up to that time, 89 death sentences had been handed down, although none of the accused had benefited from the assistance of a legal adviser or lawyer during their trials. He underlined the summary character of those first sentences, most of which had been delivered in two to three hours, according to his estimates.
The Special Rapporteur agrees with the Government of Burundi that the fight against impunity is indispensable to the re-establishment of the rule of law and the restoration of a climate of confidence and reconciliation among Burundians. However, he adds, this fight, and efforts to break the cycle of murderous violence, must be based on equitable justice, unlike the state of affairs that prevailed during the trials that led to the execution by hanging of the six death-row prisoners. Without pronouncing himself on the charges against the six, the Special Rapporteur says he fears that the executions may exacerbate feelings of revolt and injustice in certain sectors of the population.
The Special Rapporteur invites the Government of Burundi to cease the execution of persons sentenced to death as long they do not have access to legal assistance during appeal procedures or the possibility of requesting review of their sentences. He also calls on the Government to examine the country's penal legislation in the light of United Nations recommendations for the abolition of the death penalty.
Without the minimal conditions for a state of law, he continues, the execution of death sentences does not contribute to political reconciliation or to reassuring the families of the condemned and the victims that justice is
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being done. On the contrary, he says, on the eve of new and important political negotiations, he is convinced that the executions will contribute to the further polarization of the factions in conflict in Burundi. Impunity and violence will not be effectively eradicated as long as Burundi does not engage in a transition towards democracy and peace, he affirms.
The Special Rapporteur invites the High Commissioner/Centre for Human Rights to expand its programme of technical legal assistance aimed at guaranteeing the impartiality of Burundi's judicial system and at encouraging the return of the rule of law and national reconciliation. He also appeals to the international community to support, financially and politically, the efforts of the High Commissioner/Centre for Human Rights to guarantee the right to a defense of the accused and of civil parties, in conformity with Burundian law and international standards.
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