GITEGA, September 30th (ABP) – The chairman of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission, Ambassador Pierre Claver Ndayicariye, along with other members of that commission, hosted a press conference on Thursday, September 26, 2024 in Gitega (central Burundi) for journalists based in Gitega on the theme: “The problem of land and other assets: Methodological approach of the CVR”, a check by ABP revealed.
The chairman of the CVR pointed out that the issue of land and other assets is a broad and complex topic, but that the CVR must analyze it over the entire period of its term, that is to say, from 1885 to 2008 to avoid that some do not focus on the most recent and painful periods such as 1965, 1969, 1972, 1988, 1993, etc.
He also indicated that the population must be aware that the CVR as heir to the attributions of the former land and other assets commission, is not a judicial mechanism, but will work as a transitional justice mechanism, a mechanism that works to repair a little what was not done during the commission of crimes and all the painful periods that Burundi has gone through.
“Massive violations of human rights cannot be analyzed only by isolating the dead or the victims. The land and other assets mission is a mission long awaited by the victims, a mission that connects the dead or victims to their dispossessed assets, namely houses, land properties, money, seized and sold vehicles, etc. “, Ndayicariye explained.
According to him, the CVR will also work on the cases that were pending before the former National Commission for Land and Other Assets (CNTB) and will also receive new cases provided that the victims will contact the CVR to present their case. “We are in the process of settling disputes over property that could not be settled or emptied by traditional justice, that of the courts and tribunals,” he added. To that end, he informed the public that soon, with the government’s budgetary and human resources support, the CVR will deploy provincial representatives in all provinces of the country so that victims do not have to make a long journey to Bujumbura to submit their files, but also that there will be campaigns in all provinces of the country after the latter are in place.
The chairman of the CVR also informed Burundians who really want the truth to truly serve reconciliation to contribute positively so that this truth rehabilitates the victims without forgetting the imperative of peace, security and community cohesion because, according to him, there are owners of assets but there are also people in possession of assets that do not belong to them.
It is for this reason that he called on Burundians to be more positive, to discourage liars and false witnesses and especially to demoralize people who go everywhere in the administrations with fraudulent title deeds and who complicate the resolution of the problem of land and other assets. He finally encouraged all Burundians to prepare to support the CVR in those activities.
Ndayicariye did not forget to call on parents to prepare to break the silence by telling the truth to their children if this is the case, that the house or plot of land they have occupied for a long time is not theirs because, he concluded, shortly the CVR will begin the work of listening to witnesses, and to people interested in the issue of land and other assets.