[Congressional Record Volume 142, Number 42 (Monday, March 25, 1996)]
[Senate]
[Page S2799]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                        THE SITUATION IN BURUNDI

  Mr. PELL. Mr. President, I bring to the attention of my colleagues 
Burundi, a small Central African country. There are 6 million people 
who live in Burundi. Each week, a civil insurgency tightens its grip on 
this poor African nation, causing the deaths of hundreds of people. The 
killing frenzy in Burundi has barely touched international headlines, 
as it has been dwarfed by the calamities striking Israel and Bosnia. 
But consider the situation if it were to occur in the United States. 
The United States has a population of about 260 million. Sliding the 
scale to the figures of the United States, we would see 30,000 
Americans dying a week; 1,560,000 a year. Burundi, my colleagues, is on 
the brink of national suicide.
  The hostilities in Burundi are between the Tutsi-controlled army and 
Hutu rebels. The current turmoil is the fallout of the explosion of 
tensions between Tutsi's and Hutu's in 1993. That year, the country's 
first popularly elected President, a Hutu, was assassinated. In the 
chaotic aftermath of his death, tens of thousands of Burundians were 
killed, hundreds of thousands were displaced. Today, Burundi is ruled 
by a coalition of moderate Hutus and Tutsis who agreed to share power 
through the mediation of U.N. Secretary General's former special 
representative, Ambassador Ahmedou Abdallah. The moderates who lead 
this Government have tried to contain the violence. Their efforts, 
however, continue to be threatened by extremists on both sides.
  A breakdown in Burundi could have catastrophic effects in the 
country, the region, and in the international community. The world 
witnessed at great length the tragedy that wrecked Rwanda 2 years ago. 
Rwanda shares the ethnic makeup of Burundi and is just barely coming to 
grips with the horror it endured. A collapse in Burundi could crack the 
fragile peace now established in Rwanda and even worse, could trigger a 
regional genocide. The international community cannot afford to sit 
back and watch another egregious slaughter.
  The international community, with leadership from the United States, 
can help. First, we should support last Saturday's meeting of African 
leaders in Tunis. This meeting was brokered by former President Jimmy 
Carter. Second, there must be diplomatic efforts to persuade the 
extremists on both sides that violence is not a credible option. If 
violence resumes, the United States, in conjunction with its European 
allies, should be prepared to impose an arms embargo, block 
international financial transactions by Burundi's extremists and stop 
all trade with Burundi with the exception of humanitarian relief. And 
third, we, the Congress, should stand behind the State Department, the 
U.S. Agency for International Development, and private American 
voluntary and relief projects whose programs promote peace and national 
reconciliation.
  Burundi represents a great opportunity for the world community to 
exercise preventative diplomacy. The United States should do its share 
of constructive engagement and assist in heading off a regional 
genocide before it is too late.

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