Prosecutors in Burundi have charged 24 people with engaging in same-sex acts and inciting homosexuality in others, part of a crackdown on LGBTQ+ rights that has been criticized by the United Nations. Police arrested 17 men and seven women as they attended a seminar organized by an HIV/AIDS charity in the capital, Gitega, in late February, a Burundian activist told French news agency AFP this week.
The UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, Volker Türk, expressed concern over the case, which he said formed part of "growing agitation against the rights of LGBTIQ+ individuals in many countries, most recently in East Africa." In his latest update to the Human Rights Council this week, Türk also cited a proposed "anti-homosexuality" bill in Uganda, a revised version of legislation struck down in 2014 that had sought to punish same-sex relations with life imprisonment. "It is unthinkable that we are facing such bigotry, prejudice, and discrimination in the 21st century, holding back development of all members of society," Türk said in reference to the developments in both Uganda and Burundi.
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