Switzerland : organizations and experts raise concerns about returns to Burundi and call for a reassessment of asylum practices

Geneva, May 27, 2026 — Civil society organizations, supported by legal experts and human rights specialists, held a press conference on Wednesday to denounce Switzerland’s continued forced returns of Burundian asylum seekers. They believe that the current situation in Burundi exposes those returned to serious risks of persecution, arbitrary detention, and ill-treatment.

According to the organizers, the conference, held via videoconference, brought together at least 130 participants. Its aim was to draw the attention of Swiss authorities to the limitations of current assessments of asylum applications concerning Burundi and the need to better integrate recent reports on the human rights situation in the country.

The United Nations Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in Burundi, Fortuné Gaëtan Zongo, reiterated that compliance with administrative procedures alone does not guarantee adherence to the principle of non-refoulement if the risk assessment in the country of origin is inaccurate or incomplete.

He stated, in particular :

“Switzerland may have complied with all procedural steps—deadlines, hearings, and appeals—and yet still violate the principle of non-refoulement if its assessment of the situation in Burundi is inaccurate, incomplete, or based on sources that do not reflect the reality on the ground.”

He also added :

“In the current Burundian context, simply seeking international protection abroad is perceived as an act of disloyalty to the regime.”

Arrests and documented cases

Emma Lidén, a human rights lawyer, states that she has documented several cases of people arrested upon arrival in Bujumbura, sometimes detained and forced to pay money for their release.

She explains :

“Some deportees were arrested upon arrival […] forced to pay money for their release.”

Armel Niyongere, a lawyer and human rights defender, warns against the silence of deportees, which he believes does not necessarily reflect the absence of risk, but rather a climate of fear and surveillance.

He states :

“The silence of some deportees does not signify the absence of risk but may be the result of a climate of fear.”

Professor Marco Motta, from the University of Lausanne (UNIL), mentioned the case of a Burundian national deported in April 2026, identified by the alias “Ali.” According to his testimony, he was detained in Switzerland before his deportation, then had to flee again shortly after returning to Burundi.

He states :

“Sending someone back to Burundi today puts them in grave danger.”

Testimony given anonymously

An asylum seeker identified by the pseudonym “Eric” reports being abducted in 2022 by Burundian intelligence services and detained for three weeks, during which he claims to have been tortured.

He testifies :

“In 2022, I was abducted by the Burundian intelligence services. For three weeks, I was tortured, then I managed to escape. I arrived in Switzerland, where I applied for protection. The State Secretariat for Migration rejected my application on the pretext that my story was not ‘plausible.’ Since then, I have been living on emergency aid, I am afraid, and I sleep very poorly.” I urge Switzerland to stop deportations to Burundi because this puts us in serious danger.

Case reported by SOS Médias Burundi

In at least one case, SOS Médias Burundi has confirmed that agents of the National Intelligence Service (SNR) visited the home of a person recently deported from Switzerland. According to our information, this individual was alerted beforehand by sources close to the government, which allowed them to avoid immediate arrest.

Arrivals in Bujumbura

These individuals were met upon arrival at Bujumbura International Airport, the only airport in the small East African nation, located in Bujumbura, Burundi’s commercial capital, where the United Nations agencies and the country’s central administration are concentrated. It is also the city of origin for the majority of those deported, according to a count by SOS Médias Burundi.

The organizations are calling on Swiss authorities to suspend returns to Burundi and to conduct a thorough reassessment of their asylum practices, taking into account the principle of non-refoulement and the documented risks of serious human rights violations.

The press kit and the conference recording are available through the organizers’ channels.