Word: burundian
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Dates: during 1980-1989
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...rumor gave way to fact, it became clear that the former Belgian colony had suffered a terrible horror. Last week the Burundian government confirmed that ten days of tribal massacres in the verdant, mountainous communities of Marangara and Ntega had left as many as 5,000 people dead and tens of thousands homeless. Western observers estimate that some 38,000 refugees have fled across the border into neighboring Rwanda, with more arriving every...
Hutu refugees in Rwanda said the latest clash began three weeks ago, when troops of the all-Tusi Burundian army started rounding up educated Hutu in the hills of the Marangara district. Fearing another massacre, the Hutu struck first, using machetes and spears to kill the soldiers and hundreds of unarmed Tusi. Hutu refugees reported that the ensuing army reprisals included such atrocities as the bayoneting of unarmed prisoners and use of helicopters and machine guns to fire on fleeing Hutu women and children...
...Burundian government attributed the unrest to Hutu activists in Rwanda, who it says incited fellow tribesmen to attack the Tusi. In a press conference last week, Burundi's President, Major Pierre Buyoya, who took power in a bloodless coup last September, said he regretted the need to use force but denied that the army used napalm...
...Burundian capital of Bujumbura was calm last week under a nationwide dusk-to-dawn curfew. Calling an end to all major military activity, Buyoya has mounted a program of pacification and has opened centers for returning Hutu refugees. At the same time, Burundi's President has made it clear that he will not tolerate any further violence. Said Buyoya: "Force will be used again if necessary...