Fresh Burundi meeting next month

MARC NKWAME in Arusha

Facilitator for the Burundi Dialogue, Mr Benjamin William Mkapa

THE Facilitator for the Burundi Dialogue, Mr Benjamin William Mkapa, has completed the first round of the peace talks, saying he will convene the meeting next month, allowing consultation chance to parties that failed to attend the Arusha sessions.

Mr Mkapa, who was the president of Tanzania during the initial Burundi Peace accord, said he was taking these early negotiations to the chief mediator for Burundi Conflicts, the Ugandan President Yoweri Kaguta Museveni and seek the latter’s advice regarding the way forward.
“War is not a problem but rather a crisis,” said the former President of Tanzania, urging that all groups that did not come for the four-day dialogue in Arusha to ensure they attend the next gathering because they are not only delaying the process, but also happen to have positive contribution to the negotiations.
He said the high turnout to the Inter-Burundi Dialogue has been very impressive and felt encouraged, but also particularly touched by the presence of the international partners who have expressed support to the process.
Mr Mkapa invited a wide range of participants from the Government of the Republic of Burundi, political parties allied with the Government, political parties that participated in the elections last year, political parties that did not participate in the elections, other political actors, the National Commission for Internal Dialogue, civil society organisations, women, youth, religious groups and the Federal Chamber of Commerce. There were also about 80 Burundians in the diaspora who took part.
Still there were a few of those who received the invitations but declined to come. During these four days, according to the facilitator, there were no acrimonious interventions as all parties showed a high degree of civility, patriotism and a great desire to own the dialogue. “It is evident that you are yearning for peace and a stop to killings and assassinations.
I note that there is tremendous aversion to violence, targeted killings and the realisation that war is not a solution to the crisis. Some of you have expressed concerns about the economic decline obtaining in the country because of the crisis,” he said.
“In the next two weeks, I will continue and complete the consultations with those who did not come during this session, but whom I feel might have positive contributions to make to the process. I will also consult with the Mediator in order to determine the way forward. Thereafter, I expect to convene a dialogue session possibly during the third week of June,” concluded Mr Mkapa.