Gov'ts seek membership in East African Community

Burundi and its neighbour Rwanda, which applied to be admitted to the East African Community (EAC), are waiting for a response on the matter, The New Vision Ugandan government-owned newspaper reported on Thursday. It quoted EAC Secretary-General Amanya Mushega as saying on Wednesday at the Great Lakes Regional Symposium in Kampala, Uganda, that the community's council of ministers had considered the applications. He said he would report the Council's decision to the EAC heads of State on Friday, and thereafter notify Burundi and Rwanda. The EAC presently consists of Kenya, Tanzania and Uganda. Burundi President Pierre Buyoya, who addressed the three-day symposium, said countries in the region have no choice but to be together in order to have meaningful development and stability, the paper said. He also called for the establishment of a permanent regional security body to address conflicts before they "get out of hand". He said the region lacks the necessary structures of addressing and following problems of peace and stability, adding that it was important that the war-torn region establishes structures to deal with conflicts, which have become a major concern, the paper said. Rwandan Foreign Minister Andre Bumaya said the admission of his country and Burundi to the community will benefit not only the two countries but also the old members, the paper said. He said it was not a question of begging for acceptance as a member, but the whole region stood to reap dividends. The symposium, jointly organised by the Mwalimu Nyerere Foundation and the Ugandan government, and supported by the Tanzanian government, was dedicated to the former president of Tanzania, the late Julius Nyerere, for his contribution towards eliminating colonialism in southern Africa and neo-colonialists like the former Ugandan president, Idi Amin. Its theme is reinforcing the region's solidarity by setting a regional agenda for a culture of peace, unity and people-centred development. It brought together Burundi, Rwanda, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Kenya, Uganda and Tanzania. The New Vision reported that Eritrea, Ethiopia, Sudan, Botswana and South Africa would also be represented.