More than 100,000 people from Burundi have fled to neighbouring countries since political violence that culminated in a foiled coup attempt this week erupted in April, the United Nations said Friday. UN refugee agency spokeswoman Karin de Gruijl said nearly 70,200 people had fled to Tanzania, 26,300 to Rwanda and nearly 10,000 to the South Kivu region of the Democratic Republic of Congo since early last month.
The number was more than double the figure provided by UNHCR a week ago, with the number of refugees in Tanzania in particular showing a nearly four-fold rise since then. The announcement came after an attempt to overthrow Burundian President Pierre Nkurunziza ended in failure, with coup leaders detained or being forced to go on the run, ending uncertainty over who was in charge of the small, landlocked and poor nation.
The country has been gripped by political crisis over Nkurunziza's controversial bid to stand for a third term in June 26 polls. UN human rights chief Zeid Ra'ad Al Hussein said Friday he was "deeply worried by the extremely tense situation in Burundi," warning there was a real risk the country would slide deeper into chaos.
"We are receiving alarming messages from human rights defenders and journalists fearing for their safety," he said, urging authorities to "guarantee that there will be no unlawful reprisals" following the failed coup. De Gruijl meanwhile said the increased unrest in the country had sent many fleeing to neighbouring Tanzania, which reopened its borders on May 4.
"In particular in Tanzania, numbers have risen very, very sharply over the last few days," de Gruijl said, pointing to numbers from local immigration authorities saying more than 50,000 Burundians were "living rough" on the shore of Lake Tanganyika in the small village of Kagunga. "There are also reports of at least 10,000 people waiting to cross the border into Tanzania," she said.