Burundi establishes NTRC

2005-01-05 20:56

Bujumbura - Burundi's long-awaited National Truth and Reconciliation Commission (NTRC) aimed at providing a measure of justice to those harmed during the central African nation's decades of war, has finally been established, the presidency said on Wednesday.

"President Domitien Ndayizeye has just promulgated the law that creates the NTRC," presidential spokesperson Pancrace Cimpaye said.

The commission is charged with "establishing the truth about acts of violence committed during the cyclical conflicts that have plagued Burundi since July 1, 1962, the day of independence, establish and identify those responsible, and identify the victims," the law says.

In the course of its probe, the panel will also propose measures to promote reconciliation, as well as decide upon restitution and other compensation to victims and those who lost property.

It will also clarify Burundi's post-independence history to fully educate the country's people about their past, according to the law.

Burundi's two principle ethnic groups, the Hutus and the Tutsis, have vastly different accounts of the country's history with each accusing each other of genocide.

- SAPA