Mudubugu : residents denounce unfair expropriation and lack of compensation

In Mudubugu, a village located in the district of Gihanga in the province of Bubanza (western Burundi), several families denounce an expropriation deemed abusive of their land. They accuse the local military camp of prohibiting the exploitation of these plots, thus depriving inhabitants of their means of subsistence.

INFO SOS Médias Burundi

The conflict concerns several hectares located in the vicinity of the Mudubugu military camp. According to residents, these lands have belonged to individuals for years, well before the installation of the camp.

“The military decided to prohibit any exploitation of the surrounding lands. However, these plots have legally belonged to us since the establishment of the camp. During the initial consultations, we had agreed to give up part of our lands in exchange for fair compensation, to allow the construction of the camp. But now they want to extend their hold without compensation,” complains a resident.

Farmers in distress

The majority of the affected residents are farmers for whom these lands represent the main source of income. “If we are deprived of our land, we will have nothing left to feed our families. We risk dying of hunger,” they warn.
A few days ago, the tension rose a notch. Farmers who came to harvest their crops were denied access to their fields. One of them was shot and wounded after a soldier fired on him. The victim was hospitalized.

A military silence and a powerless administration

Contacted on this subject, the local administration declared that this dispute exceeded its competence. Officials of the military camp, for their part, refused to comment on the subject.

Residents are now calling for rapid intervention by the Ombudsman institution, which has already been seized of the case. They hope to obtain justice and recover their land.

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Inhabitants expropriated of their lands at Mudubugu stage a sit-in before the office of the governor of Bubanza (SOS Médias Burundi)