In a landmark moment at the United Nations headquarters in New York, Burundi took a bold step toward international recognition of a long-overlooked tragedy — the 1972 genocide against the Hutu population.

Held on June 25 in Conference Room 12, the event was jointly organised by the Permanent Mission of Burundi to the UN and the country’s Truth and Reconciliation Commission (CVR), marking the first time this dark chapter in Burundi’s history was formally addressed on a global stage.

Ambassador Zéphyrin Maniratanga, Burundi’s Permanent Representative to the UN, and CVR President Pierre Claver Ndayicariye, led the session that brought together diplomats, historians, and human rights advocates under tight security and by invitation only.

The gathering focused on the theme: “The 1972 Genocide Against the Hutu of Burundi: From Memory to Action in the Context of the Responsibility to Protect (R2P).”

Pierre Claver Ndayicariye opened the session with a powerful presentation of the CVR’s findings, which led Burundi’s Parliament to officially recognise the 1972 massacres as genocide.

His remarks were followed by Dr. Jermaine O. McCalpin, a professor from New Jersey renowned for his work on genocide and reparations.

“This colonial crime, committed in the silence of the Cold War, deserves justice equal to that of Armenia or Rwanda,” he declared.

The event also featured Dr.

Immaculée Harushimana, an expert in African linguistics and migration, who underscored how the violence not only decimated lives but fractured Burundi’s linguistic and cultural heritage.

“The pain of 1972 lives in the broken words and silenced songs of an entire people,” she said.

Beyond commemoration, the conference called for concrete steps toward justice and reparation, invoking the UN’s Responsibility to Protect doctrine — a principle adopted in 2005 that mandates international action when a state fails to shield its citizens from atrocity crimes.

The discussion also touched on the broader historical context.

Burundi, independent since 1962, underwent a profound transformation after a 1966 coup dismantled its ancient dyarchical monarchy and replaced it with a Western-style republic.

Speakers linked the 1972 genocide and the destruction of traditional socio-economic systems like Ubumu to enduring colonial legacies, often referred to as “coloniality.”

In February 2025, the African Union took a major step by declaring European colonisation a crime against humanity — a move hailed by many as overdue recognition of the structural violence left in its wake.

Within this framework, the genocide of the Hutu people is seen not just as an isolated event but as a consequence of a broader neocolonial architecture imposed on post-independence African nations.

As the conference closed, attendees were left with a clear message: the 1972 genocide is not buried history.

It is a living wound — one that demands recognition, reparative justice, and the collective courage to speak what was once unspeakable.