Burundi : an MP escapes a kidnapping attempt in Bujumbura

SOS Médias Burundi

Bujumbura, May 12, 2025 — MP Jean Baptiste Sindayigaya, a co-opted representative of the Batwa community at the National Assembly, was the victim of a particularly violent kidnapping attempt Saturday evening in Bujumbura. Intercepted by a group of armed men at the Gare du Nord (North Station), in the north of Burundi’s commercial capital, he only survived thanks to the intervention of passersby and local police officers. The injured MP denounced a targeted attack and called for an official investigation.

Jean Baptiste Sindayigaya claims his vehicle was blocked by an unmarked van from which four men in civilian clothes and a fifth armed man in police uniform got out. They attempted to force him into the van. “I saw a tortured person inside, covered in blood,” he confided.

His screams alerted local residents and local police. Faced with this mobilization, the attackers fled after a tense confrontation. The MP, seriously beaten, said he nearly lost an eye and claimed to have been robbed of 500,000 Burundi francs and a phone.

Police officers present at the scene reportedly told him that the vehicle used belonged to the National Intelligence Service (SNR). The MP takes this information with caution : “We must ensure that criminals do not pose as official agents,” he insists.

A representative of the Batwa community, a marginalized minority present in Burundi, Rwanda, and the DRC, Sindayigaya sits in Parliament thanks to a co-optation mechanism provided in the Burundian Constitution, which promotes the inclusion of vulnerable groups in national institutions.

Outraged by the National Assembly’s silence, the MP has contacted several authorities, including the Prime Minister, the Ombudsman, and the Minister of the Interior. He calls on the President of the Republic to order a swift and impartial investigation.

“If even elected representatives are no longer safe, what about ordinary citizens?” he asks.

This incident occurs in a tense political climate ahead of the 2025 legislative and district elections. The UN Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in Burundi, Fortuné Gaétan Zongo, warned in July 2024 of the “endangerment” of fundamental rights, citing increasing militarization, persistent impunity, and a worrying shrinking of civic space.

In this context, Burundian intelligence services are regularly accused of kidnappings, torture, and inhumane treatment targeting opponents and critics of the regime. MP Jean Baptiste Sindayigaya, known for his outspokenness, appears to have paid the price.

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MP Jean Baptiste Sindayigaya, who escaped a kidnapping attempt in the commercial city of Bujumbura on May 10, 2025, DR