VI.

Government

Burundians approved a new constitution in a February 2005 referendum. The new constitution was crafted to create a balance of political power between the Hutu majority and the Tutsi minority.

A.

Executive

Under the terms of the 2005 constitution, the president is the head of government and the commander in chief of the armed forces. The president is elected by universal suffrage, except for the first president who was elected by a two-thirds majority in both houses of the legislature. The president can serve a maximum of two, five-year terms. The president has the power to declare war and to nominate members of the cabinet and members of the Constitutional Court and the Supreme Court. The president’s appointees to the 20-member cabinet must be 60 percent Hutu, 40 percent Tutsi, and 30 percent women. The president selects two deputies (vice presidents), a Hutu and a Tutsi, who are chosen from the elected members of the legislature and who represent two different political parties.

B.

Legislature

The legislature consists of the National Assembly and the Senate. Under the terms of the 2005 constitution, the National Assembly is to be composed of at least 100 members, of whom 60 percent are to be Hutu, 40 percent Tutsi, and 30 percent women. Three members must be from the Twa tribe. Members are directly elected to five-year terms. Legislation in the National Assembly must be passed by a two-thirds majority. The Senate is composed of two representatives from each of Burundi’s 17 provinces. Its members are chosen by an electoral college. At least 30 percent of the senators must be women, and legislation is passed by a two-thirds majority.

C.

Judiciary

The legal system is headed by the Supreme Court and is based on German and Belgian codified law and traditional customary law. The 2005 constitution created a Constitutional Court, which is designed to rule on the constitutionality of lower court rulings and government actions. The Supreme Court, however, is the final court of appeal.

D.

Local Government

Burundi is divided into 17 provinces, each subdivided into arrondissements and communes. Local authorities tend to be dominated by the national government.

E.

Political Parties

The dominant political party is the Forces for the Defense of Democracy (FDD), which won a majority in both the National Assembly and the Senate in 2005 elections. The FDD is predominantly Hutu, but under the 2005 constitution all political parties must be ethnically integrated. Other significant political parties are the predominantly Hutu Burundi Democracy Front (Front pour la Démocratie au Burundi, or FRODEBU) and the predominantly Tutsi UPRONA.

F.

Social Services

Burundi’s health and social security systems are rudimentary and underfinanced. AIDS, typhus, tuberculosis, pneumonia, dysentery, and kwashiorkor (severe protein deficiency) are the most serious health problems.

G.

Defense

Burundi’s armed forces are composed of a paramilitary gendarmerie (police force) and an army, which includes naval and air units. In 2004 the total force numbered 50,500, all volunteers. Since independence the military has been very politically active and in turn has fallen victim to corruption and often violent purges.

H.

International and Regional Organizations

Burundi is a member of the United Nations (UN), the East African Community, and the African Union and is a signatory of the Lomé Convention (agreements of cooperation between the European Union and many developing countries).