Government demands explanation over Bihozagara's death

Government has asked the Burundian Government to explain the circumstances that led to the death Rwanda’s former ambassador to Belgium, Jacques Bihozagara, who is alleged to have been assassinated in Burundi’s Mpimba Prison where he was jailed. A statement from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs issued Thursday said Bihozagara’s case was just the latest as more Rwandans have been killed in Burundi in similar circumstances. “Mr. Jacques Bihozagara is one of many Rwandans in Burundi who died violently or suspiciously in the past months. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Cooperation of Rwanda wishes to obtain precise information from the Burundian authorities on the circumstances of his death and clarifications on the reasons for his detention since last December.” The statement called on the Burundian authorities to facilitate the family of the deceased in their efforts to repatriate the body to Rwanda. Yesterday, Rwandans took to Twitter to condemn the alleged assassination, saying his death is yet another direct confrontation from Burundi and calling for immediate explanations. MP Jean-Marie Vianney Gatabazi described Bihozagara’s death as heart-breaking and called on the Government of Burundi to shed more light on the circumstances under which he died. Olivier Nduhungirehe, Rwanda’s ambassador in Belgium, also tweeted, “Saddened by assassination in a Burundian prison of Amb. Jacques #Bihozagara, one of my predecessors in Belgium.” The exact cause of Bihozagara’s death is yet to be confirmed. Reports say the late Bihozagara was arrested last December and imprisoned at Mpimba Prison over allegations of espionage when he was on a private business trip to Burundi. The deceased served in cabinet in the post-Genocide Government before being appointed ambassador to Belgium. He had set himself to doing private business in Burundi, a country in which he had lived before the 1994 Genocide against the Tutsi.

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Government demands explanation over Bihozagara's death