An estimated 300,000 people have been killed since violence erupted in Burundi in the mid-1990s. Upon her election as a Member of Parliament in 1998, Sabine Sabimbona was appointed spokesperson of the National Assembly’s committee on conflict, exclusion, and genocide. She was an active member of Burundi’s delegation to the negotiations that drafted the Arusha Peace and Reconciliation Agreement for Burundi, an important step toward stopping the violence and creating conditions for peace. Appointed to the negotiating team because of her history as a women’s rights activist, Ms. Sabimbona was responsible for the integration of a gender dimension into all laws. She serves on the executive committee of the Collective of Women’s Associations and Non-Governmental Organizations of Burundi, an umbrella organization of 52 women’s groups. (Last updated 02.2004)

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