Moīse Nyarugabo, a Congolese lawyer, has appealed for the respect of the rights of Congolese Banyamulenge refugees, following what he described as mass arrests against them in Burundi.
He made the urgent plea for action on Saturday, February 15, through a post on his X page.
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Nyarugabo addressed his petition to Burundian President Evariste Ndayishimiye.
"Mr President of the Republic of Burundi. I am sending you this message as the only means of urgently reaching you about the mass arrest organised this morning against the Banyamulenge living in your country,” Nyarugabo, wrote on his X page on Saturday.
"Some you have received them kindly as refugees for years and especially since this time of acute crisis in our country, and others as foreigners residing there in different capacities,” he said.
In recent days, Nyarugabo pointed out, many very hostile messages to the Banyamulenge have circulated on social networks treating them as enemies and calling for vigilance and action against them.
"This morning, young people, men and even women were arrested by your services. Therefore, I request you, Mr. President, to ensure that the services do not give in to the amalgamation and confusion linked to the war that is in my country, but also that these people can regain their freedom,” appealed to Ndayishimiye.
He cited a list of the Banyamulenge arrested in six neighbourhoods in Burundi. The neighbourhoods are Nyabutege, Mutakura, Kamenge, Jabe, Mutanga, Kanyosha, Nyakabiga neighbourhood.
Also, he cited those who were arrested at Gatumba border between DR Congo and Burundi, on February 8, 2025, who were still detained.
He added that others, whose names he does not yet have, continued being arrested "and this worries us to the greatest extent.”
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On February 11, SOS Medias Burundi – a non-governmental organisation defending press freedom – reported that several Congolese from the cities of Goma, Bukavu and Uvira, in the provinces of North Kivu and South Kivu in the east of DR Congo were fleeing to Burundi as the result of the advance of the M23, the armed group that recently took control of Goma, the main city in eastern Congo and capital of North Kivu.
But, it added, some of them were blocked at the border or arrested, then locked up in the custody of the Burundian secret services, adding that most Congolese who were arrested at the Gatumba border between the provinces of Bujumbura (western Burundi) and South Kivu (eastern Congo), were members of the Banyamulenge community.
For decades, the Banyamulenge have been falsely labelled as "foreigners (from Rwanda)" despite their centuries-long presence on the territory of what is known today as DR Congo, according to their representatives.
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The government of Burundi has been accusing the government of Rwanda of supporting RED Tabara, a rebel group the former says seeks to destabilise its security. The latter denies such allegation.
As M23 rebel group is at war against the DR Congo government, a fight it says intends to ensure the protection of rights of Kinyarwanda-speaking Congolese, who have been persecuted in their country, Burundian army soldiers are in an alliance with Congolese army to fight it.
On February 1, Rwanda’s Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation, Olivier Nduhungirehe, refuted the claim made by President Ndayishimiye that the Burundi National Defense Forces (FDNB) were deployed to eastern DR Congo to "fight foreign armed groups," wondering why they did not attack genocidal militia FDLR – which seeks to destabilise Rwanda’s security.