Burundi massacre survivors begin new life in U.S.
Source: Reuters
NAIROBI, March 18 (Reuters) - A first group of 35 survivors of Burundi's Gatumba massacre left the central African country on Sunday to start new lives in the United States under a resettlement scheme, the U.N. refugee agency UNHCR said. About 160 refugees from Democratic Republic of Congo were hacked, beaten and burnt to death by Hutu rebels who attacked a desolate U.N. transit camp near the border in August 2004. Most of those killed were women and children. Some 500 survivors are being offered relocation to the United States under a U.S. government and U.N. programme. "This resettlement will not only ensure access to specialised medical care ... but will also guarantee the safety of the refugees and give them hope for a better future," UNHCR's Burundi representative, Kaba-Guichard Neyaga, said in a statement. The survivors were given basic English training before heading to U.S. cities, including Denver and San Francisco, where charities will help them settle and find training, the UNHCR said. It said about 100 survivors would fly to the United States each week, with the move expected to be complete in April.
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