Senate of Burundi Sénat du Burundi | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Type | |
| Type | |
| History | |
| Founded | 1965 [1] |
| Leadership | |
| Structure | |
| Seats | 39 senators |
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Political groups | |
Length of term | 5 years |
| Elections | |
| Electoral college | |
| Meeting place | |
| Gitega | |
| Website | |
| www | |
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 Burundiportal |
The Senate is the upper chamber of Parliament in Burundi. It consists of between 39 and 56 members who serve 5-year terms. The current Senate was elected on 20 July 2020 [3] and consists of 39 members. [4]
In each of the country's 18 provinces, two Senators (one Hutu and one Tutsi) are chosen by electoral colleges of communal councilors. Voting takes place using a three round system. In the first two rounds, a candidate must receive a supermajority of two-thirds of the vote to be elected. If no candidate is elected in these rounds, a third round is organized for the two leading candidates, of which the candidate receiving the majority of votes is elected. Three Senators represent the Twa ethnic group and additional members may be co-opted to meet the 30% gender representation quota for women. Former heads of state are Senators by right.
A provision of establishment of Senate was in the 1962 constitution of the Kingdom of Burundi, however, the body was only established in 1965. [1] The Senate was disestablished in 1966 after the coup of Michel Micombero. [1]
The Senate was re-established following Arusha Accords. [5] The transitional constitution was adopted on 18 October 2001. [6] The transitional senate was designated by the President and Vice-President of Burundi, and by the Office of the National Assembly, and was designed to balance political, ethic and regional representation. It was chaired by Libère Bararunyeretse and included the three former heads of state, three Twa people and at least two people with different ethnicity from each province. [5]
In a popular referendum on 28 February 2005 the people of Burundi overwhelmingly approved a post-transitional constitution. Senate members were indirectly elected on 29 July 2005 by an electoral college of commune and provincial councils. [6] The National Council for the Defense of Democracy-Forces for the Defense of Democracy (CNDD-FDD), which obtained the majority of seats in communal elections held in June, won an overwhelming majority (30) of the seats. The Front for Democracy in Burundi (FRODEBU) won 3 seats, while the remaining seat went the National Council for the Defense of Democracy (CNDD), a breakaway faction of the CNDD-FDD.
Four former heads of state - Jean-Baptiste Bagaza (PARENA), Pierre Buyoya (UPRONA), Sylvestre Ntibantunganya (FRODEBU), and the current transitional president Domitien Ndayizeye (FRODEBU) will occupy seats in the Senate along with three Twa members. In order to meet the 30% quota for women, eight seats were co-opted giving the chamber of total of 49 seats.
On 19 August 2005, the Senate and National Assembly (acting as an Electoral College) elected Pierre Nkurunziza president of the republic. He took office on 26 August 2005.
Gervais Rufyikiri, a member of the CNDD-FDD, was elected president of the Senate on 17 August 2005. On 25 June 2015, he fled the country saying he felt threatened after opposing President Nkurunziza's bid for a third term. [7] His replacement, Révérien Ndikuriyo, has made remarks comparing political opponents to cockroaches, similar to what politicians did during the Rwandan genocide, raising fears of another genocide. [8] [9] [10]
The Politics of Burundi takes place in a framework of a transitional presidential representative democratic republic, whereby the President of Burundi is both head of state and head of government, and of a multi-party system. Executive power is exercised by the government. Legislative power is vested in both the government and the two chambers of parliament, the Senate and the National Assembly.
Burundi originated in the 16th century as a small kingdom in the African Great Lakes region. After European contact, it was united with the Kingdom of Rwanda, becoming the colony of Ruanda-Urundi - first colonised by Germany and then by Belgium. The colony gained independence in 1962, and split once again into Rwanda and Burundi. It is one of the few countries in Africa to be a direct territorial continuation of a pre-colonial era African state.
The Front for Democracy in Burundi is a political party in Burundi.
The Burundian Civil War was a civil war in Burundi lasting from 1993 to 2005. The civil war was the result of longstanding ethnic divisions between the Hutu and the Tutsi ethnic groups. The conflict began following the first multi-party elections in the country since its independence from Belgium in 1962, and is seen as formally ending with the swearing-in of President Pierre Nkurunziza in August 2005. Children were widely used by both sides in the war. The estimated death toll stands at 300,000.
The National Council for the Defense of Democracy – Forces for the Defense of Democracy is the major political party in Burundi. During the Burundian Civil War, the CNDD–FDD was the most significant rebel group active and became a major political party in Burundi. The party's rule has been described as authoritarian.
Pierre Nkurunziza was a Burundian politician who served as the ninth president of Burundi for almost 15 years from August 2005 until his death in June 2020.
The National Assembly is the lower chamber of Parliament in Burundi. It consists of 100 directly elected members and between 18 and 23 co-opted members who serve five-year terms.
The position of vice-president of the Republic of Burundi was created in June 1998, when a transitional constitution went into effect. It replaced the post of Prime Minister.
Gervais Rufyikiri is a Burundian politician who was Second Vice President of Burundi from 2010 to 2015.
Alice Nzomukunda is a Burundian politician and former Second Vice-President of the country, from 29 August 2005 to 5 September 2006. She is an ethnic Hutu and was a member of the National Council for the Defense of Democracy-Forces for the Defense of Democracy (CNDD-FDD).
The National Council for the Defense of Democracy is a political party in Burundi.
Parliamentary elections were held in Burundi on 4 July 2005. The result was a victory for the National Council for the Defense of Democracy – Forces for the Defense of Democracy (CNDD–FDD), which won 64 of the 118 seats in the National Assembly
Parliamentary elections were held in Burundi on 29 June 2015. The vote had been initially set for 5 June 2015, alongside local elections, but it was delayed due to unrest. Indirect elections to the Senate occurred on 24 July.
General elections were held in Burundi on 20 May 2020 to elect both the president and the National Assembly. Évariste Ndayishimiye of the ruling CNDD–FDD was elected president with 71% of the vote. In the National Assembly elections, the CNDD–FDD won 72 of the 100 elected seats.
Révérien Ndikuriyo is a Burundian politician, currently serving as secretary-general of the National Council for the Defense of Democracy – Forces for the Defense of Democracy (CNDD–FDD), a position he has held since 2021. From 2015 to 2020, he served as president of the Senate. He has also served as president of the Football Federation of Burundi since 2013.
Pascal Musoro is a politician from Burundi who was Hutu Senator for Kirundo Province from 2005 to 2010.
Emmanuel Ndemeye is a politician who was elected senator for Kirundo Province, Burundi in 2010.
The 2005 Senate of Burundi sat from 2005 to 2010.
The National Assembly of Burundi (2020) was elected in May 2020. The ruling CNDD-FDD party retained its majority in the National Assembly of Burundi.
Philippe Rivuzumwami is a politician from Burundi who was Tutsi Senator for Kirundo Province from 2005 to 2010.