Burundi survivors refuse to move

The massacre victims had already fled violence in DR Congo

Congolese Tutsi survivors of a massacre in Burundi last month are unwilling to be relocated away from the Democratic Republic of Congo's border.

The United Nations is trying to move the refugees deeper into Burundi for their own safety.

Just one family was prepared to move to Mwaro province from the camp at Gatumba, where more than 150 Congolese were killed in the August attack.

The availability of schools for their children is one of their concerns.

The school term begins in DR Congo next Monday, and refugees are keen their children should attend.

In hospital

According to the UNHCR, which is organising the transfer, other refugees say they were worried about moving because some of their relatives are still in hospital.

Others want to be able to return to DR Congo as soon as the situation improves.

On Monday a Congolese official visited the Gatumba camp and assured the refugees that they would be safe to go home.

The camp in Mwaro province is 50km from the capital Bujumbura, in the centre of Burundi, and is able to accommodate at least 6,000 refugees. Another camp will be opened in Rutana province near the border with Tanzania.

In the aftermath of the massacre, the Burundi government took the decision to the close the three camps along the border, where some 20,000 Congolese had sought refuge from fighting in DR Congo in June.

The National Liberation Forces (FNL), a Burundian Hutu rebel movement, claimed responsibility for the killings in Gatumba camp.

Some refugees have opted to return to DR Congo, although exact figures are not known, the UNHCR says.