Fears as Burundi starts census to register foreigners

The Burundian government has launched a census to register all foreigners, sparking fears among overseas nationals that the scheme could be a pretext for state surveillance. All non-Burundians in the country will be required to report to border police offices within the next two months, a public security ministry spokesman said on Tuesday. Several foreigners told the AFP new agency they feared it was a pretext to track them. Many Rwandans said the process could lead to their community being victimised. Last month, Alain-Guillaume Bunyoni, Burundi’s public security minister, said the move was aimed at granting foreigners a biometric ID card. Foreign nationals will be required to attend police .