Congolese Refugees Choose Death Over Camp Life as Thousands Demand Return Home
Busuma, 18 January 2026
Over 4,000 Congolese refugees at Burundi’s Busuma camp protested on 16 January 2026, demanding voluntary repatriation despite ongoing conflict in eastern DRC. Police fired shots to disperse demonstrators who cited starvation and inadequate healthcare as reasons for preferring death in their homeland over camp conditions. Some refugees report receiving no food for over two weeks, whilst disputed death tolls range from 25 official fatalities to 139 claimed by refugees themselves.
Mass Protest Erupts in Overcrowded Camp
The demonstration on Friday, 16 January 2026, saw over 4,000 refugees attempt to march from Busuma camp towards the town centre in Ruyigi district, demanding immediate voluntary repatriation to the Democratic Republic of Congo [1][8]. Police intervention quickly turned violent, with officers firing shots to disperse the protesters, causing widespread panic throughout the camp [1][8]. The protest followed the arrest of approximately ten refugees on Wednesday, 14 January 2026, who had been leading earlier demonstrations against the World Food Programme’s food distribution system [1][8].
Humanitarian Crisis Behind the Unrest
Refugees at Busuma camp face severe food shortages, with some reporting they have received no assistance for over two weeks since arriving [1][8]. One refugee explained the desperation: “We are hungry. I have been in this camp for three weeks and, since our arrival, we have received no assistance. Every day, we bury people here. We ask for either dignified humanitarian aid or for a voluntary return home” [1][8]. Healthcare provision remains critically inadequate, with children suffering from malaria and diarrhoea receiving only paracetamol as treatment [1][8]. The stark reality of camp conditions prompted one young woman to declare: “It’s better to return to your country and die there than to die in this camp” [1][8].
Disputed Death Tolls Highlight Information Gaps
Conflicting reports about mortality rates within the camp have emerged, with refugees claiming 139 deaths have occurred, whilst the Organisation for the Protection of Refugees and Asylum Seekers (ONPRA) officially reports only 25 fatalities, including three from cholera [1][8]. This significant discrepancy has fuelled refugee suspicions that UNHCR and ONPRA are concealing the actual number of deaths in the camp [1]. Fiacre Nkunzimana, ONPRA coordinator for Buhumuza camps, has attributed delays in aid distribution to fraudulent registration practices, including single households registering multiple times [1][8].
Regional Conflict Driving Mass Displacement
The Busuma camp, established in December 2025, houses over 67,000 Congolese refugees who form part of approximately 100,000 people who have arrived from South Kivu province since early December 2025 [1][8]. The mass displacement stems from ongoing fighting between M23 rebels and the Congolese Armed Forces (FARDC), supported by troops from regional allies and Wazalendo militias [1]. M23 rebels, who reactivated in 2021, now control strategic areas across North and South Kivu provinces, including the cities of Goma and Bukavu, as well as the crucial Rubaya mining area [1][8]. Despite the Washington Agreement signed on 4 December 2025 between the DRC and Rwanda, fighting continues to rage in eastern Congo [1][8]. According to the Congolese Ministry of Interior and Security, Burundi has deployed over 29,000 soldiers to eastern Congo to fight alongside FARDC and Wazalendo militias against M23 [1][8]. The humanitarian crisis has left Burundi managing over 200,000 Congolese refugees on its territory [1].