UPRONA criticises Arusha peace process

The ruling party UPRONA has expressed concern over the climate in which the ongoing Arusha peace talks are being conducted, the private Netpress news agency reported. In a four page statement, UPRONA noted that rebels continued to kill innocent people and the national economy was stagnant due to a freeze of international cooperation. The statement criticised the talks' facilitators, saying they had been unable to put the process onto the path of peace and accused ex-Tanzanian president Julius Nyerere of "bias". The UPRONA statement comes as the government issued a similar declaration this week, expressing surprise over comments by Nyerere who accused it of obstructing the peace process. A report in the Tanzanian 'Guardian' daily on Friday said Nyerere was expected to hold separate consultations with Burundian leaders, including President Pierre Buyoya, starting next month. It quoted exiled opposition FRODEBU leader, Jean Minani, as saying the talks were aimed at speeding up the Arusha peace process ahead of the next round of negotiations in September, which may culminate in a peace accord by October.