Zuma pleased with progress made in peace talks

South African Deputy President Jacob Zuma ended on Wednesday a visit to the Tanzanian commercial capital, Dar es Salaam, where he presided over talks between the transitional government of Burundi and the Conseil national pour la defense de la democratie-Forces pour la defense de la democratie (CNDD-FDD) rebel faction led by Pierre Nkurunziza, his office reported. The office said Zuma, the facilitator of the Burundi peace process, was encouraged by the "spirit of cooperation prevailing between the two parties", and that he was confident that the issues discussed would be finalised "soon" to further advance the implementation process. The discussions on Tuesday and Wednesday were on proposals made by the transitional government and the rebel faction on power-sharing and transformation of the Burundi army. The government delegation was led by the senior presidential adviser, Ambroise Niyonsaba, while that of the CNDD-FDD was led by the group's secretary-general, Hussein Rajabu. The office reported that Zuma had also received a report from a technical team comprising South African, Ugandan and Tanzanian experts on the harmonisation of the proposals from the government and the CNDD-FDD. Under a ceasefire agreement signed in December 2002 between the government and the rebel group, the CNDD-FDD would be integrated into the transitional institutions in Burundi such as the government, the national assembly and the army, Zuma's office said. It reported that Zuma was pleased with the progress made so far, and that he would discuss the proposals with the chairman of the Great Lakes Regional Initiative on Burundi, President Yoweri Museveni of Uganda, in preparation for a regional summit scheduled to convene in mid-August. The Dar es Salaam talks were held days after a CNDD-FDD delegation ended a five-day visit to Burundi. The delegation was the first to the country by CNDD-FDD officials based in Dar es Salaam. Led by Salvator Ntacobamaze, the movement's head of intelligence, the six-member team was in the capital, Bujumbura, to discuss with officials of the African Union mission in Burundi and government officials the security and logistics ahead of the movement participating in the Joint Ceasefire Commission established by the government. At the end of the delegation's visit on Saturday, Ntacobamaze announced that his movement would join the commission soon. "When you see dawn, you expect the sun to rise," he added. By coming to Bujumbura, he said, the CNDD-FDD "wanted to prove its full commitment to the implementation of the ceasefire". For his part, the Burundi government spokesman, Albert Mbonerane, said the visit was a sign that "things were on the right track". The chairman of the civil society forum, Nestor Bikorimana, said the CNDD-FDD visit should be regarded positively as a sign that "something concrete" was on the way. "The negotiations were at a standstill, but belligerents have now adopted a timetable and seem to respect it," he said.