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  Banyasekera, Philippe

  Philippe Banyasekera

  Philippe and his 3 other siblings did not attend school, as it was rare to go being Hutu without experiencing harm or death. His father was the first relative closest to Philippe who was captured by the armed forces in Burundi. Philippe’s father was a woodmaker and did construction work for a living. One day on the job, his father and uncle were approached by a man they once had acquaintances with, they even helped construct parts of his home. The man, who goes by the name Bimpenda, tells Philippe’s father that he and his brother are wanted at his office for a discussion, where they assumed he had a job opportunity assorted for them. They arrived and were arrested, packed on military trucks, and taken away. A communal administrator named Nzogera, brought a group along with him and looted Philippe’s whole home, taking 24 of his family's goats. The men responsible for this claimed that they were taking traitors' belongings and how no one deserves them, to justify their actions. That same week, they forced Philippe and his family out of their homes, causing them to move in with their grandfather, on his father’s side. Days later came, where the interior minister ordered them to go back to their homes, but at that point, everything they ever owned was stolen, causing them to go back to nothing but an empty home.

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  Bukuru, Sabina

  Sabina Bukuru

  Sabina attended Notre Dame School but stopped her studies after the fifth grade to help with work at home. She completed her confirmation in 1959 at St. Michael's Catholic Church. Sabina was raised by her aunt after her parents died. She was born in Rweza but did not grow up there. She had two brothers; one was killed during the 1993 crisis, and the other went to Congo and never returned back to Burundi.

  During the tragedies of 1972, Sabina lost her husband, Commander Zacharie Harerimana. Harerimana was a soldier and abroad in Belgium for a work mission. Upon returning to Burundi on April 3, 1972, he was warned by a friend that he would die if he returned. Despite this, he insisted on returning home. On the same day he arrived home, he went directly to give the mission report at work although his friends kept warning him of impending death. He never came back.. Sabina was forced out of their government-provided home in INSS quarter, Avenue Bururi No 45, by officers. They were left homeless, and her husband was later reported dead and Sabina and her children were eventually sent to her father-in-law's house.

  Shortly after the incident, Sabina’s children were separated from her, and she did not know their whereabouts.

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  Buzirigi, Isaie

  Isaie Buzirigi

  Oral history of Isaie Buzirigi.

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  Bwasoni, Rejina

  Rejina Bwasoni

  In the interview, Rejina recounts seeing soldiers arriving in a Jeep at her school. The soldiers took away several teachers and other individuals, including her uncle, Mark Buhinja, who was an agronomist. The interviewee saw the abductions occur and mentioned that the teachers and her uncle were placed into vehicles. After the abductions, Rejina went home and found her family in complete distress. These abductions had deeply affected the community, with her uncle's wife and her mother expressing extreme grief, as anyone who loses a family member tragically would. Unfortunately, the speaker later learned that those taken, including her uncle, were killed. There were also rumors that spread and confirmed reports about the killings, including those who were tied up and transported.

  This resulted in Rejina and her family facing severe emotional distress. She was forced to drop out of school due to the upheaval and the loss of her father, who was also killed. The interviewee's father had been a soldier and was involved in burying bodies before his death.

  She also recounts how the local community and the school treated her and her siblings, by insulting them and facing discrimination. The family's suffering was compounded by the broader political violence and social upheaval of the time.

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  de Dieu Rwasa, Jean

  Jean de Dieu Rwasa

  Jean's father was taken away by authorities when he was just 12 years old. While his father was on his way to do business, in regards to his job as a shop merchant, he was later captured and never seen again. His fathers disappearance resulted in Rwasa having to drop out of school in Kibonde. Like any child would, Rwasa religiously asked the people of his community about his fathers whereabouts, After a month of uncertainty, he was told that his father had disappeared like others who were taken away. It was later revealed to the interviewee that his father had been taken where the “traitors” are placed to be exiled. He and his family fled to Rwanda during a period of unrest. They returned later but did not settle back in Rusarasi due to fears of similar repercussions. Rwasa’s father was a businessman, but after his disappearance, his family did not obtain any belongings left behind from his store in Bunyari. The store had been looted after his capture. The interviewee's life took a different route after his father was captured. He lived among priests for a period, then engaged in selling goats and later pigs until he could afford to build a house.

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  Evariste, Bivugire

  Bivugire Evariste

  Bivugire Evariste was born in the village of Rurira, Busoni commune in Kirundo province with his 3 other siblings. His father and several accused Hutus from Gitobe and Bwambarang were falsely labeled as “criminals'' engaged in political affairs. They were all placed on packed trucks on their way to imprisonment, which resulted in being killed for many. Because of Bivugire’s father being arrested, he and his siblings were bullied and labeled as a “traitor”. The day his father was put into custody, was the last day he ever saw him again. His father was killed, and two days later, Bivugire’s home was raided and robbed. For years, he and his family were labeled as those who wanted to overthrow the country and its leaders. This resulted in him and his family growing up in fear, grief, and trauma.

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  Hanyurwimfura, Dehogarasiyasi

  Dehogarasiyasi Hanyurwimfura

  Dehogarasiyasi describes the violence beginning on April 29, 1972, firstly sparked by allegations of a rebellion led by Mulele. This rebellion was falsely reported to have started in Rumonge and later spread to more communities. The crisis involved systematic attacks on individuals recognized to be Hutu, including teachers and civil service employees. Those accused were taken away, and their properties were looted..

  Teachers and other Hutu individuals were targeted and arrested. The interviewee's younger brother was a teacher in Murore, Ngozi, and was killed during the crisis. Him and other educators were taken simultaneously. Their whereabouts were unknown, and it was later inferred that they were killed. Dehogarasiyasi recalls how the properties of those arrested were seized and how people’s homes were raided. This included personal belongings, livestock, and land.

  He and his family eventually fled to Rwanda in 1973 due to fears of further violence, only to return later to find that the crisis had continued.

  Dehogarasiyasi’s brother who had not yet married and was in the process of building a house, was among those taken. His belongings were confiscated, and the house was eventually occupied by others.

  Before the crisis, there was a peaceful coexistence between Hutu and Tutsi communities. However, the crisis created divisions, and Hutu individuals were labeled as "rebels" and targeted. The social fabric was severely disrupted as trust was eroded and violence became rampant.

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  Hatunga, Remejiyo

  Remejiyo Hatunga

  Remejiyo recalls a traumatic situation from his childhood when his father was forcefully taken away by authorities while he was working in his home as a carpenter. The police arrived to ask him to come to the commune for questioning. Despite some initial hesitation, he agreed to go. The interviewee vividly remembers the details: the police in khaki clothes similar to shoes and a specific type of hat, the location (Murore), and the events leading up to his father's arrest. After his father was taken away, Remejiyo's family heard that he was loaded onto a dump truck with others and taken away. This was the last time they ever saw their father again.

  Following their father's arrest, the family faced additional hardships. Their home was later looted by thieves, taking a new bicycle and 18 goats. Having witnessed these events, the interviewee explains how it caused him to feel powerless and afraid to speak out due to fear of the authorities returning for them, just as they had taken his father.

  Remejiyo also mentions the emotional impact on his family, especially his mother who struggled to take care of them, without their fathers support. After this incident with his father being captured, Remejiyo would hear cruel comments from others speculating about his father's fate and mocking his hope that he might return.

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  Hicuburundi, Athanase

  Athanase Hicuburundi

  Hicuburundi lost his brother in 1972. On April 29 a meeting was organized at Rumonge and the leaders urged everyone’s attendance. At that time anyone who didn’t go could be jailed. Hicuburundi was a teacher at Minago but he didn’t go. Some people came running and told him that a small group of armed men with machetes, called mulele attacked the meeting. The killings continued on Monday. When they returned to school, he was told that his headmaster had been killed. People became scared, most of them fled to the priest's compound but the soldiers arrested people later. They took them to the market of Minago to dump them into the pit dug by construction machines. In that period they mostly arrested teachers and salesmen. Soldiers came to arrest Hicuburundi but they didn't find him, and he decided to run away to Congo. They killed his small brother Simbananiye and his nephew Ntangibingura. The head of village Ntagumuka is among the perpetrators who killed many people. All the people who owned lands were killed by him. He then plundered those lands. Hicuburundi’s brothers didn't continue to study they dropped out of school. The communal administrator called Nyambere is one of the perpetrators who persecuted many people.

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  Kandava, Riberata

  Riberata Kandava

  Riberata Kandava shares how she studied till the first grade and after one year, studied at catechetical school. However, she stopped attending school, because her mother viewed it as a risk, after her father was captured. Riberata narrates how armed individuals came to her home, arrested her father who was a merchant, and subsequently killed him. The perpetrators looted her family's belongings, taking away a bicycle and a radio, and later returned to take whatever remained in the house. The family was left in appalling circumstances, constantly harassed by local authorities who accused them of being traitors. The term "traitor" was unclear to the speaker as a child, but it was used as a derogatory term against those who were targeted. The interviewee also mentions an alarming practice where some perpetrators would return to marry the widows of the victims they had killed. The speaker's mother, a young and attractive widow, became a target of such advances, which intensified their hardships. The family lived in fear and poverty, struggling to survive amid ongoing harassment, as well as threats from local authorities.

  Overall, the interview paints a vivid picture of the brutal consequences of political violence and how it profoundly affected the lives of innocent civilians in Kandava during that period.

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  Macumi, Béatrice

  Béatrice Macumi

  Béatrice recounts the tragic times of 1972, where there was a massacre. She mentions incidents where people were arrested and killed, due to accusations of witchcraft or other reasons. She mentions that in 1972, some people disappeared, possibly taken away to work and never returned, presumed dead.

  Béatrice denies knowing about traitors or any specific details of the killings, indicating a lack of clear information or memory due to the passage of time. She mentions losing her husband, who was a soldier and taken away, and also losing a child during that period. She also recalls being called to live in a camp with her husband temporarily, and later returning home where her husband was again taken away and ultimately killed.

  The interview provides the interviewee's fragmented memories and the traumatic events she experienced during the 1972 massacre, highlighting the uncertainty and loss that affected her and her family.

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  Manirambona, Rehokadiya

  Rehokadiya Manirambona

  In Rehokadiya’s testimony, she explains how in 1972 people were taken away without clear reasons, often labeled as "dissidents" by those in power. She mentions how this time period was marked by confusion and a lack of understanding about the true nature of the violence. The interviewee was a student at Murehe elementary school during the genocide era. She witnessed classmates and teachers being taken away by soldiers and never seeing them again. The local population were given a warning by an Italian priest about the danger and encouraged to flee if possible.

  Rehokadiya lost two family members (cousins) during this tragedy, one was a demobilized soldier working in the governor's office who disappeared and was later confirmed dead. Another was a teacher who attempted to hide but was eventually captured and killed. She narrates how Mourning and traditional funeral rituals at the time were prohibited. Expressing grief would result in being accused of sympathizing with the victims, and could easily lead to further persecution.

  These arrests were carried out by compiled lists made by government authorities and passed down to local officials who carried out the arrests and executions. The interviewee describes mass graves in Vumbi municipality, where victims from various regions were brought to be killed. The graves were located in a large cave used for hiding and disposing of bodies. Rehokadiya heard about the massacre from a former perpetrator who described the brutal methods and locations where bodies were disposed of. This person, named Magarama, recounted the details of the killings and the state of the mass graves.

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  Mazina, Makariyo

  Makariyo Mazina

  When Makariyo Mazina was just 14-years old, he explained that Hutu militia abused, tortured and killed his father. His father was a successful business man that was taken off of is bicycle, tied up, tortured and was murdered. Mazina says after the militia took his father away, they came after him. One solider took Mazina to a banana plantation, knocked him down tied his hands behind his back, and then dragged his body to a nearby car. Mazina was dumped into a car with others who were also moaning and screaming in pain. Then Mazina said he was thrown out of the moving car, rolled down the road, and landed in a thorn bush.

  Mazina and his family were never able to ask why their father was killed, nor were they ever able to persecute the perpetrators. When his father passed away- they took all of his father’s belongings and he and his siblings were forced to flee to Rwanda.

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  Mbonibogoye, Emmanuel

  Emmanuel Mbonibogoye

  Emmanuel explains in his testimony how the violence was largely targeted at the Hutu population in 1972, and he also describes the systematic arrests, torture, and executions. When Emmanuel's mother returned from Kayanza after witnessing the brutal treatment of local people, she warned the family, prompting fears for their safety. The interviewee’s father was arrested by local authorities, accused of harboring weapons and being involved in the violence. Despite being innocent, he was tortured and eventually executed, like many other Hutus fate during the genocide. His father was taken from his home, beaten, and accused of possessing a gun to kill Tutsis. The family witnessed the brutality of the arrests and executions, with many people being forcibly detained and taken to prisons where they were killed.

  Emmanuel describes the physical and emotional impact of witnessing his father’s death and the subsequent violence. This included health problems, such as heart issues, which started after these traumatic events. He describes how the family’s property was looted, and they were left in poverty. The family had to endure harsh conditions and work under forced labor for a year.

  Despite the tragedy, the interviewee reflects on how his family survived and continued to uphold the legacy of their father. He took on his father’s profession, which provided some stability. Emmanuel’s narrative highlights the long-term impact of the violence on his life and family, as well as the broader historical context of ethnic conflicts in Burundi.

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  Mpabonimana, Anne Marie

  Anne Marie Mpabonimana

  In 1972, after Anne Marie had finished school, her family experienced a distressing event, where they were visited by police officers and gendarmes who arrived at their home in a van. The police, including two municipal officers and an administrator, arrived at the interviewee's home and arrested Anne Marie's father and uncle, Prudence Mahobwe. They were handcuffed, tied up, and locked away in a van. This was a shocking and confusing experience for Anne Marie and her family, who were not familiar with the political context or the ethnic tensions going on at the time. Her family, including her pregnant mother and grandfather, were left in a state of fear and helplessness. They observed the police searching their home and taking money and other valuables. Despite their distress, this situation made them feel powerless to intervene or protest.

  Following the arrests, Anne Marie’s family made efforts to find out what had happened. The next day, they searched for the arrested individuals but found no trace of them. Rumors soon circulated that the situation was dire, and it became evident that the arrests were part of a broader and severe wave of violence. The family was informed that the likelihood of their relatives being alive was minimal, contributing to their distress and despair. After this tragic event, Anne Marie began to understand the ethnic conflict involving Hutus and Tutsis during this period. She heard that Hutus were being targeted and that the violence was widespread, affecting various regions. This marked a turning point in her awareness of the political and ethnic tensions in the country.

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  Mugemangabo, Angelo

  Angelo Mugemangabo

  Angelo Mugemangabo lost his brother and his relative in the 1972 tragedy. All of them belong to the Tutsi ethnic group but they were killed by Tutsis. Ruberankiko Salvator, a soldier who worked in Bujumbura was killed because the perpetrators said no Hutu lived in Kirundo. Nkundabanyanka Emmanuel was a gendarme who worked in Kirundo. Ndabaneze Laurent, a former army brigade commander, took him away because he supplied food to a Hutu man who was in Kirundo prison. Angelo Mugemangango, whether he was at home or at school, saw soldiers coming to round up Hutus like teachers or other kinds of people and took them away. But he thereafter learnt that they were massacred for they were ‘Abamenja’ traitors.

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  Mwemerabugabo, Léonidas

  Léonidas Mwemerabugabo

  At the age of 15, Léonidas witnessed his father being taken away by authorities. The father, who was a catechist teacher, was arrested and never seen again. Léonidas’s family was informed about his fate through a radio broadcast that reported all the demonstrators and those arrested had been defeated by the authorities of Burundi in 1972.

  After his father's disappearance, life was filled with hardship for the widow and nine children left behind. The children faced persecution and bullying at school from classmates who were from a different ethnic group (Tutsi) and acted on the influence of their parents' beliefs. The interviewee and his siblings eventually had to drop out of school due to the abuse and discrimination they faced, being labeled as children of traitors.

  Despite these difficulties, their mother never remarried and took on the responsibility of caring for the family alone. Before their father's arrest, the family had a comfortable life with livestock and a well-maintained household. Although, after becoming widowed, their mother struggled to support nine children without the father's income or support.

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  Ndaripfane, Perajiyo

  Perajiyo Ndaripfane

  Perajiyo recounts the tragic time in Burundi in 1972, where people were rounded up and arrested by soldiers. The interviewee was at home with her husband when soldiers arrived in trucks and took him away, explaining very little about a planned plot. There was no information available concerning the husband's grave or location, despite the interviewees attempts to learn more about his demise.

  During the roundup, Perajiyo nearly escaped being arrested while at the Kabuye market. Friends alerted her and assisted in hiding her so the soldiers, who were also pillaging her house, wouldn't find her. They discovered her step-wife had been taken into custody upon their return, but soon spotted her in a local bar.

  The only person Perajiyo lost in the disaster was her husband, who was a businessman. When he was arrested, they had two kids. After that, they experienced loneliness and a lack of help; nobody came to see them or provide support. Nevertheless, they continued, deciding to endure the suffering in silence.

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  Ndarugirire, Adèle

  Adèle Ndarugirire

  Adèle Ndarugirire narrates how the massacres in 1972 occurred, describing how people by the names of Rwabaye and Maritino captured individuals from Cendajuru. The interviewee recalls that while she was cooking, her loved one was taken into custody. The Elders known as "Nyumbakumi '' were the ones who made the arrests. When asked if she knew the names of these Elders, the interviewee lists Gosito and John, among others, but says that most of them are already deceased. Adèle explains a situation where a disagreement over alcohol at a bar led to her husband's incarceration. Three people arrived and said they needed to take him with them. Adèle’s husband had previously sold alcohol, and there had been a falling out after the seller of the booze accused the husband of not making his payments. Adera’s spouse believed that he was falsely accused of claiming that Tutsis were eradicating the Hutu people during the dispute.

  The spouse was then taken to jail by the authorities, which included a man known as Mpagaceri, a councilor leader. Family members reassured him, but he never came home.

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  Ndihokubwayo, Espérance

  Espérance Ndihokubwayo

  Esperance Ndihokubwayo said , “I saw horrible things, people were being killed before me, being rounded up before me, being loaded into trucks and transported to the judicial court before me. I was living nearby, they killed them before me and each night I heard people howling and agonizing. I couldn't sleep, I felt so sad. we saw the cars transporting[dead bodies], there were things like pits that they prepared to dump them into, they then piled them full and then covered them with ashes.”

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  Ngaboyibwami, Jean Baptiste

  Jean Baptiste Ngaboyibwami

  Jean Baptiste attended school at Murore but had to stop attending in second grade due to the crisis, which prevented him from continuing his education. During the crisis, there were a series of violent incidents where people perceived as wealthy or educated were a target. Victims would often be deported, placed in sacks, murdered in collective ditches and local chiefs seized the property of the deceased.

  Jean Baptiste and his family had to flee to Rwanda to escape the violence, taking refuge with the Red Cross. His father, Karemera Nestor, and several neighbors, including a teacher named Badadi, were among those murdered. His family faced severe unrest and loss, with Jean Baptiste's father and other victims being forcibly taken away and never returning back home. Jean also witnessed his teacher being arrested and deported who goes by the name, Badadi, and described the fear and chaos among the children.

  After the crisis, Jean Baptiste’s elder brother fled the country and did not return until after the election of Ndadaye. Jean Baptiste and his mother eventually returned to their homeland after spending about a year and a half in refugee camps.

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  Nibigira, Bernard

  Bernard Nibigira

  Bernard Nibigira, also known as Ntibankange, was a nickname that was given to him at his administration sector job for protection. He attended school until the 6th grade and dropped out, due to the lack of school fees and the political state of the country.

  Government workers, including teachers, were forcefully taken by soldiers in Toyota vehicles. Perpetrators initially targeted teachers and later expanded to other civilians. The interviewee's own family was affected, with several members, including teachers and a soldier, being taken away. Bernard’s brother, Tharcisse Mugabonutwiwe, was among those arrested and taken to a place called Mukenke. The family was not allowed to visit him, and eventually he never returned. Other family members, such as a teacher named André Baranyizigiye and a cousin named Badadi, were also killed. The interviewee's brother, who was a mason, was among those who did not survive as well.

  Family members who survived were labeled as traitors and treated unfairly by others in the community. The interviewee was even publicly humiliated by local authorities, where they made him undress in a communal office due to assuming the soccer jersey he had on was some sort of government uniform.

  He describes how those arrested were killed at night, either by stabbing or hitting with hammers. The bodies were buried in mass graves, with pits being dug by machinery in places like Karama and Vumbi.The perpetrators consisted of local authorities and soldiers who would round up people based on lists and transport them to communes where they were taken to be executed. The interviewee describes how the arrested individuals were transported and the bodies were disposed of.

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  Nibona, André

  André Nibona

  Oral history of André Nibona.

  In April of 1972, Andre Nibona was taken away to be killed but he said an administrator of the commune saved him and 70 other civilians. While their lives were spared, Nibona said they were forced to become servants for a Tutsi family and spent their days living in fear. Nibona explained that the survivors burned photos of all those killed to avoid “Gucusasa” – a Kirudni word for great sorrow.

  Nibona is still trying to get his land back. The people who stole it are now dead, but their children have his land now.

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  Nijenahagera, Sylvestre

  Sylvestre Nijenahegeira

  Oral history of Sylvestre Nijenahagera. After only four months of marriage, Sylvestre Nijenahagera said the 1972 Genocide of Burundi erupted and killings began to creep into his country. He evacuated Burundi in hopes of finding safety in Tanzania. He was sent back to Burundi because he said his name was written on a list of those who should be killed. He said due to a clerical error, he was marked as dead and this mistake saved his life. Nijenahagera escaped a brutal death by hiding on the roof of a church. He said without the help of the church, and a clerical error, he would not be alive today to share his story of survival.

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  Nindamutsa, Gertrude

  Gertrude Nindamutsa

  Gertrude narrates her experiences during the tragic events of 1972 and life afterwards in Burundi. At the age of 18, Gertrude got married and soon after had a child. On the same day as her child's birth, turmoil erupted in the community, leading to extensive fear and people fleeing their homes. Despite the mayhem, the speaker's husband returned shortly before being taken away and never seen again. This marked the beginning of profound distress for the interviewee, who was left alone with a newborn during their postpartum recovery.

  Later on, Gertrude remarried but shockingly lost her second husband in 1973 during the continuing unrest. The interviewee became a widow twice due to the violence that swept through her region. Throughout these hardships, Gertrude depended on the support of her in-laws to help raise her children. In her testimony she also touches upon the origins of the tragedy, accredited to tensions among Hutu residents in the Imbo region who were allegedly planning to buy an airplane. This plan did not succeed, leading to violence that targeted both Tutsis and Hutus indiscriminately, with countless massacres reported.