Bashingantahe: “We cannot keep silent”

The Bashingantahe (wise men) celebrated the day dedicated to intahe (a traditional institution of wise men that resolves conflicts) on Saturday September 20th. They are eager to fight against anyone who is threatening the peace and security of Burundi society and risks the return into crisis.-By J.Berchmans Siboniyo

The Bashingantahe singing the anthem of their institution ©Iwacu

The day was celebrated under the theme “Intahe, the foundation of lasting peace and security in the country.”
Cassien Simbare, the Chairman of the Intahe Foundation in Bujumbura city council: “Our society was known as the most welcoming toward all kinds of people. The security situation is getting worse now. People are dying like flies here and there. Even foreign preachers of the good news are savagely murdered. Where are we heading? This should not happen in a country with wise men. We are now behaving like animals.” He relates the story of priests and nuns killed at Kiremba in 2011 and now again this year.

Simbare indicates that after the murders the government promises investigations that lead nowhere. He highlights the consequences of the low respect of the human rights. “People sigh when violence is condoned. We cannot keep silent when things are worsening this way”, he adds.
The Bashingantahe condemn the imprisonment of Pierre Claver Mbonimpa. “We will keep on asking national and international organizations to pressure the government to release him. The place of a human rights fighter like him is not in prison. Instead he should be thanked, because he was warning the government about the potential danger.”

Patricia Ndayizeye, a participant stressed the importance of educating the youth. She says that parents will always fail as long as they let their children in the hands of politicians. “Education begins at home, around the fireplaces. If we fail to instill the truth and show them good manners, the society will always suffer”, she states.