According to a report [Reuters report] on Monday, the Burundi Interior Ministry issued an order last week withdrawing permits from a prominent human rights group and four other non-governmental organizations (NGOs). The Association for the Protection of Human Rights and Detained Persons (APRODH) [advocacy website, in French], a major human rights group in the area, as well as the other NGOs and various rights and development groups, lost their permits due to claims of siding against the government. Pierre Claver Mbonimpa, leader of the APRODH and prominent human rights activist [HRW profile], has criticized President Pierre Nkurunziza [BBC profile] for seeking a third term. Mbonimpa and others have also accused security forces of human rights abuses. In a separate order, the government suspended the activities of five other organizations for similar reasons.

Earlier this month the National Assembly of Burundi [official site, in French] voted to withdraw [JURIST report] from the International Criminal Court (ICC) [official website] amid criticism the court only prosecutes African nationals. The vote drew concern [JURIST report] from the president of the ICC’s governing body Sidiki Kaba, who stated that such a withdrawal “represent[s] a setback in the fight against impunity and the efforts towards the objective of universality of the Statute.” Violence in Burundi began in the wake of Nkurunziza’s announcement that he would seek a third term of office, to which he was elected [JURIST report] last year. Last month the United Nations (UN) Independent Investigation in Burundi (UNIIB) [official website] stated their grave concern [JURIST report] about the current human rights situation in Burundi. In August UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon and UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Zeid Ra’ad Al Hussein expressed concern over increased violence and rights violations in Burundi and called for an “inclusive political dialogue” [JURIST report] to end the ongoing struggle.