Walking Out of Prison After 9 Years

While courts focus on delivering judgements, Restobu promotes reconciliation

Emmanueline stands with her daughter as she walks out of the prison

After spending 9 years in prison, Emmanueline, aged 67, is finally free. She had been sentenced to 1year in prison and additional 47 years due to an unpaid amount to repair damages.

In 2016, shortly after Emmanueline—a widow and mother of four—left Isale in rural Bujumbura to settle in town, her brother-in-law involved her in a fraudulent land sale. As someone new to the city and unable to read due to her lack of formal education, Emmanueline fell into the trap.

“My brother-in-law came with his wife. He told me he wanted to sell a plot of land given to him by his father-in-law. I couldn’t believe there was a trick against me. I believed him. He trapped me. We went, and I signed as a witness—blindly. I didn’t even go to see the land. I couldn’t think he would do things to harm me. I was with others who were witnesses like me,” she bitterly recalled.

The land was sold for 22 million BIF in total. The first installment consisted of 18 million BIF, with the remaining 4 million BIF to be paid shortly thereafter, once construction was to begin. However, Emmanueline’s brother-in-law had intentionally misled the buyer by showing him a land plot that was not his. He then gathered witnesses including Emmanueline to wrongfully support the sale. Emmanueline as a close person of the family was supposed to know really about the land. She did not know whether the other witnesses were also or were complicit.

On the day the buyer came to pay the remaining 4 million BIF, he arrived with a truck full of stones, ready to lay the foundation. To his shock, the site had been turned into a sand depot—indicating that someone else was about to start building on it. Realizing he had been scammed, he tried to find the seller but discovered he had vanished. The buyer had Emmanueline and the other witnesses arrested.

The legal process proceeded under criminal law. Emmanueline and her co-accused were convicted on three charges: Fraudulent sale, Swindling and  Use of forged documents. They were each sentenced to one year in prison and fined based on their level of responsibility.

Emmanueline was fined 9,500,000 BIF to repair damages. The sentence included imprisonment for non-payment.

Loi n°1/09 du 11 mai 2018 portant modification du Code de procédure pénale

According to the criminal code, failure to pay can result in additional imprisonment meant to force reparations. One hundred thousand francs equal six months of imprisonment. This meant that 9,500,000 BIF translated into 47.5 years in prison.

Had she completed the sentence, Emmanueline—who was 58 at the time—would have been released at the age of 105 years and 6 months.

Emmanueline was incarcerated. As a widow with no one to help pay the fine, her future looked bleak.

“I heard the punishment and said to myself, ‘This is my end.’ I couldn’t find the money. I was imprisoned while I was the only one left to take care of myself. The family I married into abandoned me … I had no husband to help. I just had to accept whatever came. It was hell,” she said.

After spending 9 years in prison, Emmanueline was fortunate to be identified among the most vulnerable prisoners in urgent need of support. Restoration Burundi (Restobu) stepped in to facilitate her release.

While courts focus on delivering judgments, Restobu promotes reconciliation. In that spirit, they initiated a dialogue between both parties to find a mutual agreement. Restoration Burundi paid a small portion of the fine and helped the parties reach a reconciliation agreement, which was submitted to the court and approved. The agreement included a commitment from Emmanueline’s birth family to gradually repay the remaining amount.

Thanks to this approach, Emmanueline was released after 9 years—instead of 47.5.

She was reunited with her family in a moving moment. However, everything seemed unfamiliar to her.She was taken in by her elderly older sister, who used to be her neighbor before the arrest.

“I don’t even remember the streets we took to reach this home. The town feels like a different place. Everything I see now is new. I went to prison strong and came out weak. I have to start life all over again. It’s a new life … but a hard one. I have nothing. No home. My children? Two of them are now wanderers. I don’t even know where they are. You understand the meaning of 9 years in prison and the damage it causes.”

Host family welcomes Emmanueline

Despite the hardships ahead, Emmanueline was deeply thankful to be released before reaching 105 years old.

“I am thankful. I am cheerful. I clap first of all for my God. I thank the organization that followed up my case until this day. I cannot find better words than saying, ‘God bless you very much."

Though elderly, Emmanueline now faces the challenge of rebuilding her life. She is currently housed by someone else and needs to find a way to rent her own place. Additionally, she still has to contribute toward repaying the fine.

Restoration Burundi continues to advocate for vulnerable prisoners, and Emmanueline is just one of hundreds who have been released thanks to their intervention. This initiative aligns with the Government of Burundi's ongoing efforts to decongest prisons highlighted by the president’s recent clemency that granted freedom to over 5,000 inmates