The Batwa

Many of you have asked questions about the people of Bugenyzi. It occurred to me that in my eagerness to tell their story, I am telling you about people you have never met.  So without further ado, it is my incredible honor and privilege to introduce you to the Batwa!

Burundi is a small country in central Africa.  You may have heard of Rwanda because of the genocide.  Burundi is right below that.  It is sandwiched in between the Congo and Tanzania.  It is about the size of Maryland and has a population of around 10.8 million.  It is one of the five poorest countries in the world and certainly the hungriest.  There are 17 provinces which are the equivalent of states.  Bujumbura is the largest city and also the capital.  

 

There are three tribes.  Tutsi, Hutu, and Batwa.  

Burundi has been plagued with war.  There were 2 major genocides.  One in 1972 where the Hutu’s were targeted and one in 1993 where the Tutsi’s were the target.  However, civil war spanned over 30 years ending in 2009, killing about half a million people.

We spend some time in Bujumbura because that is where the organization we work with is based. They are Harvest for Christ  (http://www.harvestforchrist.net/)  But, what we really go for is 4 hours up a mountain in the province of Karusi, the village (town) is Bugenyuzi.  http://www.ezilon.com/maps/africa/burundi-maps.html  There is a community of Batwa there that we serve and have fallen in love with.

The Batwa were the first tribe in the Burundi area.  Traditionally, they were hunters and gathers for the king and were known for moving around.  They would build a temporary hut for shelter until they did what they needed in that area and move on to hunt elsewhere, build a hut then move on again.  

Hutu and Tutsi began to settle in the area.  But unlike the Batwa, they would build with the intention of staying and cultivating the land.  As more people immigrated, forests were destroyed and turned into farmland and pastures.  This made it hard for Batwa to do their jobs.  (90% of the land is now farmland and pastures.)  The need for and dependency upon the Batwa became less and less.  Meanwhile the Tutsi and Hutu were creating self sustaining farmlands and livestock.  

Less people looked to hire the Batwa to hunt for them as the land in which they could hunt was becoming obsolete.  The Batwa became more dependant upon their women to provide through making and selling pottery.   Unfortunately, cheap mass production of products led to plastic replacing pottery.  The pots became unnecessary.  The Batwa were then forced into other jobs that would provide quick money for food such as day laborers or brick makers.   The few that were still able to hunt hit their biggest obstacle as hunting became illegal in an effort to protect what was left of the rainforests.   

As the Batwa became poorer and more desperate, they would eat anything they could find and their clothing became filthy and tattered.  They began to be viewed as unclean, repulsive, and uncivilized.  While the other tribes could afford to build brick homes the Batwa could not afford the upgrade.  This created others to see them as living in the wild like the animals. They became shunned, despised, and worthless.  

Batwa were stagnant while the other tribes progressed.  Hutu and Tutsi families were given birth certificates, identity cards, and medical cards that all associated them with the country.  Without these things the Batwa had no way of owning land, getting medical help,or even being counted in the Census.  They became jungle people without a jungle.

To this day, they are taken advantage of.  They will work all day making bricks (around 200 a day) and be paid 50 cents or a few bananas.  Since they have no way of legal defense, they are an easy target for their land to be stolen and vulnerable to much violence.  Even for those that know education is vital to their future, it is either too far away, too expensive, or the family can not afford to lose one of their workers.  For the lucky few that find education a possibility, often they drop out after a couple years because of hunger.

It’s a hopeless spot to find yourself unable to live as you have traditionally yet modern society is unattainable.  

When we look in the eyes of the Batwa we see something different.  We encounter people who are kind, hospitable, loving, humble, hard working, committed, tender, sweet, and valuable.  We see people who need an advocate.  They have a purpose and were created on purpose by a God who loves them and made them in His image.   People who deserve to meet the God who declares them equal and worthy.  To meet a Jesus who died for them.

So we go.