2. Prohibition
Article 65
In cases determined by law, following prohibitions can be
pronounced:
(….)
6. Prohibition of going outside the country.
89. Having laid down the above provisions applicable to this matter, we
now turn to the first bone of contention, that is, the alleged
unprocedural manner in which Mr. Rufyikiri was prosecuted before the
Anti Corruption Court.
90. From the outset, it is our understanding that our task as regards this
matter is not to determine whether or not acts of corruption were
committed by Mr. Rufyikiri as the President of the Burundi Centre for
Arbitration and Conciliation, but that it is rather to assess whether the
act of initiating his prosecution by the Prosecutor General was in
conformity with the relevant laws of Burundi. The same test will be
carried out later in this judgment when it comes to determine whether
the travel ban was issued in accordance with Burundian Laws.
91. In this regard, we find that the pre-cited Law No.1/12 whose aim is to
prevent and combat corruption and related offences applies to both
public and private institutions (Article 1) and it also creates the AntiCorruption Court and the Special Anti-Corruption Brigade as the
institutional entities competent to handle offences of corruption and
related offences (Article. 3). In addition, Articles 5 and 6 of Law
No.1/12 and Articles 50 and 65 of Law No.1/10 clearly spell out the
power invested in the Public Prosecutor to initiate the criminal
prosecution of any person, being public or private, suspected of
committing an act of corruption.
REFERENCE NO.1 OF 2014
Page 29