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Burundi

Burundi: Combatting the risk of weapons trafficking

MAG is improving security at Burundi's police stations and armouries in the run-up to next year's crucial general elections.

Following decades of dictatorship and a 12-year long civil war that killed over 300,000, these first elections after the transition elections will be determining for the country's future.

With the Burundian population and international community fearing electoral violence amid rising tensions, MAG is helping the Burundian police to control its weapons, limiting the risk of stocks falling into civilian or rebel hands.

In all armouries, gun racks are being installed to store weapons and bullets under lock and key. In addition, storage sites are being equipped with reinforced doors and protection on windows.

These measures - part of a comprehensive Physical Security and Stockpile Management project with the Police Nationale Burundaise (PNB) - are necessary to decrease thefts and trafficking which feed the civilian market.

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MAG has now implemented the improvements in all of Police Region South. Before the work was carried out in Rumonge - in Bururi, which has better infrastructure than most provinces - weapons were not chained or locked in any way. In many other of the country's armouries there are not even any gun racks.

The Rumonge population feels reassured by the improvements to the armouries. MAG spoke with some men in a restaurant there who said that off-duty policemen sometimes have issues with the population and unfortunately tend to run back to the armoury to grab their weapon and threaten them.

They feel that such incidents happen less frequently now that access to weapons is better controlled.

Improving the physical security of the PNB armouries was one of the main recommendations from the survey of PNB Small Arms and Light Weapons carried out last year.