Charles Baranyanka (1935 – 1 August 2021) was a Burundian diplomat and historian.
Early life
Charles Baranyanka was born in 1935 in Rabiro,
Ngozi Province
Ngozi Province is one of the 18 provinces of Burundi.
The name Ngozi stands for ''blessing''.
Communes
It is divided administratively into the following communes:
* Commune of Busiga
* Commune of Gashikanwa
* Commune of Kiremba
* Commune of ...
,
Ruanda-Urundi
Ruanda-Urundi (), later Rwanda-Burundi, was a colonial territory, once part of German East Africa, which was occupied by troops from the Belgian Congo during the East African campaign in World War I and was administered by Belgium under militar ...
. His father,
Pierre Baranyanka, was a chief who had close connections with the Belgian colonial administration.
[ Ethnically, he was a ]Ganwa
Ganwa is the name for the princely group that traditionally ruled Burundi. They formed a distinct social class that was neither Hutu nor Tutsi
The Tutsi (), or Abatutsi (), are an ethnic group of the African Great Lakes region. They are a Bantu-s ...
of the Tare lineage. He attended the Groupe Scolaire d'Astrida before studying political science at the University of Liège
The University of Liège (french: Université de Liège), or ULiège, is a major public university of the French Community of Belgium based in Liège, Wallonia, Belgium. Its official language is French. As of 2020, ULiège is ranked in the 301 ...
from 1958 to 1961. He married a Belgian woman.
Career
Unlike his brothers, who became leading members of the Christian Democratic Party (''Parti Démocratique Chrétien'', PDC), Baranyanka chose to support the Union for National Progress (''Union pour le Progres National'', UPRONA). After completing his studies in 1961 he became the ''chargé d'affaires
A ''chargé d'affaires'' (), plural ''chargés d'affaires'', often shortened to ''chargé'' (French) and sometimes in colloquial English to ''charge-D'', is a diplomat who serves as an embassy's chief of mission in the absence of the ambassador ...
'' of Burundi's delegation to the European Economic Community
The European Economic Community (EEC) was a regional organization created by the Treaty of Rome of 1957,Today the largely rewritten treaty continues in force as the ''Treaty on the functioning of the European Union'', as renamed by the Lisb ...
(EEC). The following year he was made Burundi's permanent representative to the EEC.
In 1965 Baranyanka was appointed Ambassador to France. He subsequently became Ambassador to Switzerland. In February 1967 the Burundian government recalled him to Bujumbura
Bujumbura (; ), formerly Usumbura, is the economic capital, largest city and main port of Burundi. It ships most of the country's chief export, coffee, as well as cotton and tin ore. Bujumbura was formerly the country's normal capital. In late ...
[ and arrested him for embezzlement and jeopardising state security. He was acquitted on the first charge but incarcerated for the second count until July 1969. He was nominated by Minister of Foreign Affairs Libère Ndabakwaje to become Ambassador to the United States, but the incumbent, Terence Nsanze, garnered support to suppress it. He then became the '' chef de cabinet'' for Ndabakwaje. Ndabakwaje was then made Minister of Economy and Baranyanka moved to that ministry to occupy the same post. In 1971 he was accused by Henri Ntakiyica—who had been incarcerated since 1961 of plotting with Baranyanka's brothers to assassinate Louis Rwagasore—of conspiring with other officials to hire assassins to kill President ]Michel Micombero
Michel Micombero (26 August 194016 July 1983) was a Burundian politician and army officer who ruled the country as ''de facto'' military dictator for the decade between 1966 and 1976. He was the last Prime Minister of the Kingdom of Burundi from ...
. Baranyanka was arrested and detained until 1974. He later became a historian,
References
Works cited
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Baranyanka, Charles
1935 births
2021 deaths
Ganwa people
Ambassadors of Burundi to France
People from Ngozi Province
University of Liège alumni