Burundi: Four human rights activists arrested before takeoff at Bujumbura airport

Burundi’s authorities have detained four human rights activists about to fly from Bujumbura airport to Uganda for a conference.

Audace Havyarimana, legal representative of the Association for Peace and the Promotion of Human Rights; Sylvana Inamahoro, the group’s executive director; Sonia Ndikumasabo, president of the Association of Women Lawyers of Burundi; and Marie Emerusabe, the association’s general coordinator have been arrested by agents from the National Intelligence Service, according to the witnesses.

It is unclear why the activists have been detained and authorities have not made any comment about the arrest confirmed by Anschaire Nikoyagize, the president of Ligue Iteka, the country’s oldest human rights organization.

Crackdowns on rights activists in the eastern African country are very common.

On a recent visit to Burundi, the European Union special representative for human rights, Eamon Gilmore, expressed concerns about “human rights challenges” there, African News reports.