Avocats Sans Frontières–ASF, a foreign NGO involved in defending human rights and access to justice says it will close its office in Bujumbura by December 31, 2018.
In a note made public this 17 December, ASF-Lawyers Without Borders- has said it is not able to continue working in Burundi.
“After careful consideration, we believe that responding positively to some requests from the authorities would be contrary to the very foundation of our organization and its values,” reads the note.
This organization says it regrets the closure. “After 20 years of uninterrupted presence in Burundi, we are thus forced, to our great regret, to close our office in Bujumbura”.
This happens after the National Security Council decided to suspend all foreign NGOs operating in Bujumbura for three months on 1 October. It accused them of non- compliance with the law on foreign NGOs adopted in January 2017.
Foreign NGOs were thus required to present four documents to resume activities within three months. Those documents include a cooperation agreement signed with the Foreign Affairs Ministry, a protocol on the implementation of the law governing NGOs in accordance with the national development plan, an agreement to respect the banking regulations in force in Burundi regarding foreign exchange as well as a progressive plan to correct constitutional imbalance.
ASF has been operating in Bujumbura since 1999. Its mission mainly consisted of informing people about their rights, helping civil society and lawyers to provide them with better assistance, and promoting legislative reforms designed to increase respect for human rights.
IWACU Open Data
