The operational phase of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission, which covers 1962 to 2008, was launched in March and began collecting testimonies in September. It does not have judicial authority and the special tribunal that was initially envisaged was not established. REFUGEES AND INTERNALLY DISPLACED PEOPLE Approximately 100,000 people fled Burundi in 2016, bringing the total number of Burundian refugees who had fled the ongoing crisis to over 327,000. The Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) estimated that 139,000 people were internally displaced due to the crisis and natural disasters. People trying to flee were abused and robbed. Members of the Imbonerakure were largely responsible, although refugees also accused people in police and military uniforms. WOMEN’S RIGHTS The Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women expressed concern about: the high secondary school drop-out rate for girls; women’s limited access to basic health care and sexual and reproductive health services; the continued criminalization of abortion; and the fact that 45% of incarcerated women were serving sentences for abortion and infanticide. The Committee highlighted the concentration of women working in the informal sector in unskilled and low-paid jobs without social protection. It also noted the lack of protection of domestic workers from exploitation and sexual abuse, and the failure to ban child labour. INTERNATIONAL SCRUTINY The situation in Burundi came under intense scrutiny by international and regional bodies, and the government became increasingly hostile in its responses to such initiatives. In February, the government agreed to an increase in the number of AU human rights observers and military experts to 200. By the Amnesty International Report 2016/17 end of the year, only a third of these had been deployed and a memorandum of understanding was yet to be signed. In April, the African Commission on Human and Peoples’ Rights presented to the AU’s Peace and Security Council the report of its December 2015 fact-finding mission to Burundi. Its recommendations included the establishment of a joint regional and international investigative mechanism. The UN Committee against Torture requested a special report from Burundi, which was reviewed in July. The government delegation only attended half of the review and did not respond to questions. However, it did submit further feedback in October. The UNIIB presented its report to the Human Rights Council (HRC) in September.4 It found that gross, systematic and patterned human rights violations were taking place and that impunity was pervasive. To follow up, the HRC established a commission of inquiry on Burundi. Burundi rejected this move and, in October, banned the three UNIIB experts from Burundi and suspended co-operation with the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights pending renegotiation. In April, the Office of the Prosecutor of the International Criminal Court (ICC) opened a preliminary examination into the situation in Burundi. On 8 October, both the National Assembly and the Senate voted to leave the ICC.5 The UN Secretary-General received official notification of Burundi’s withdrawal from the Rome Statute of the ICC on 27 October, which will come into effect after a year. 1. Burundi: Suspected mass graves of victims of 11 December violence (AFR 16/3337/2016) 2. Burundi: Whereabouts of Burundian journalist unknown − Jean Bigirimana (AFR 16/4832/2016) 3. Burundi: Submission to the United Nations Committee against Torture, 25 July-12 August 2016 (AFR 16/4377/2016) 4. Burundi: Written Statement to the 33rd session of the UN Human Rights Council (AFR 16/4737/2016) 5. Burundi: ICC withdrawal must not block justice for crisis abuses (News story, 12 October) 103