STATEMENT
Human Rights Council 54th Session.
Item 4 - Interactive dialogue with the Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in Burundi.
Statement delivered by Ambassador Mr. Tormod C. ENDRESEN
Permanent Representative of Norway on behalf of the Nordic Baltic countries: Denmark, Estonia, Finland, Iceland, Latvia, Lithuania, Norway and Sweden
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22 September 2023
I have the honour to speak on behalf of the Nordic-Baltic countries [– Denmark, Finland, Estonia, Iceland, Latvia, Lithuania, Sweden, and my own country Norway].
We thank the Special Rapporteur for his dedicated efforts.
We remain deeply concerned about continued human rights violations and abuses in Burundi, including impunity for extrajudicial killings, forced disappearances, torture and sexual violence. We worry about human rights defenders, journalists, opposition, and civil society that are punished for exercising their rights to freedom of expression, association, and peaceful assembly.
We urge the Burundian government to thoroughly investigate all incidents and hold perpetrators accountable.
The government of Burundi is responsible for protecting the human rights of all citizens of Burundi. We strongly urge the government to fully take on that responsibility. And to that end, cooperate with the Special Rapporteur on the human rights situation in Burundi by allowing full and unhindered access to the country and by providing all information needed to fulfil its mandate.
Special Rapporteur, in your report you underline the need for an inclusive inter-Burundian dialogue. In the current situation marked by political stalemate, do you see room for such a dialogue?
Thank you.