Pierre Claver Mbonimpa

A former policeman in Burundi until he spent two years in prison because of false accusations, Pierre Claver Mbonimpa founded the Burundian Association for the Protection of Human Rights and Detained Persons (APRODH). He has campaigned against torture, addressed the plight of the 9,000 detainees waiting years for trial in the country's overcrowded jails, and organized events where police and military representatives have had to face questions from human rights activists and victims.

Hailed as one of the few who stands up for the rights of Hutu, Tutsi and Batwa, he is regularly threatened by the government. Mbonimpa recently exposed the mistreatment of detainees in holding cells in rural Burundi: "At the provincial capitals, where human rights organizations and the United Nations conduct monitoring visits regularly, there are fewer cases, but in the lock-ups in the interior of the country, further from these areas, there are many more cases."

Standing up for the principles of the Universal Declaration
The Universal Declaration of Human Rights emphasizes the fundamental importance of personal liberty and security. Article 4 bans slavery in all forms. Article 5 bans torture, without exception, by affirming, "No one shall be subjected to torture or to cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment." Articles 6-11 of the Declaration affirm the rights to privacy, to equal protection under the law, to the legal presumption of innocence, and to fair trials.

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