Conflict and Coffee in Burundi 121The significance of land use in Burundi has a blighted social history. A sys-
tem of social and economic relationships existed between communities in the
countries prior to the advent of colonialism. Thls system's characterisation
as 'feudal' has been the subject of intense dispute between the Hutu and
Tutsi in Burundi. Whereas many Hutus view it as the ultimate historical illus-
tration of Tutsi exploitation, injustice and domination, Tutis and their apolo-
gists see it in the light of a flexible social and economic system.g5
The 'feudal' system, which was abolished by ex-President Bagaza during
the 2nd Republic when he assumed power in 1976, has existed in Burundi for
a long time. Ubugerenua, as it is locally referred to, is closely associated with
the advent of the monarchy and its intricate social and economic relations. In
this system, a person would work for a more fortunate one, usually a Tutsi,
without compensation. The 'serf' was referred to as Umuhutu, and the 'lord'
as Umututsi. The parcel of land that the Umuhutu was living on would never
become his property or the property of his descendant. Umuhutu and his
children always faced the prospect of expulsion from the land on account of
flimsy and unsubstantiated accusations for instance for allegedly plotting
against the 'lord: Injustice thus prevailed during the royal regime, especially
through the capricious and unjust dispossession of the serf's land and cattle.
If Ubugerenva centered on land exploitation relations between the Hutu
and the Tutsi, Ubugabire revolved around the other pillar of traditional eco-
nomic activity, livestock. Ubugabire involved the lending or donation oi a
cow of the owner of a herd to someone who had none. In return, the benefi-
ciary, inordinately a Hutu, would serve the benefactor in all manners of w~a)~s.
Ultimately, the net beneficiary was the benefactor. The relationship was
impregnated with connotations to the effect of 'supplicant' 'requests' 'sub-
mit' 'command' and 'control:s6
The social and economic relationship between the Hutu and the Tutsi has
been variously characterised. However, there is a convergence that notwith-
standing the social group to which either the beneficiary or benefactor
belonged, the beneficiaries from this system were mainly Tutsis, with few
Hutus playing the role of 'lord'. The internal flexibility of the system with
respect to the social group membership is strongly disputed. On the one
hand, Buyoya asserts that the system was flexible and Hutus could rise up
the social ladder with ease. On the other, Ndarubagire, himself a Tutsi, main-
tains that the system was inflexible and coercive, with the classical charac-
teristics of any other feudal societies in history.87
Land use and tenure in Burundi carries a great deal of historical baggage.
The Hutus see a connotation embedded in their Umuhutu as that of histori-
cal servitude. Given the exploitation of the environment as an integral,
indeed the crux of feudal relations, it becomes clear how the use of land and
ownership, as well as exchange laws have shaped the perceptions of the
social groups in the continuing conflict in the country.