Mandela to remain as mediator

Former South African president Nelson Mandela is not about to quit as facilitator of the Burundi peace process, contrary to media reports over the weekend. “He just mentioned that he was an old man who needed to rest at one stage, not that he was stepping down as mediator in the Burundi negotiations,” Hashim Mbita, the spokesman of the mediation team told IRIN on Monday. Mandela’s spokeswoman Zelda la Grange told the South African news agency (SAPA) that Mandela had been “a bit misquoted” and what he actually said was that the time will come when he has to pass on his responsibilities to a younger person. “He did not say he was sick or resigning tomorrow, but that when the time arrives he was confident the continent had many competent young people who could complete that work,” she said. Mandela was reported to have said, during a visit to Nigeria, that “sooner or later circumstances far beyond our control may prevent me from continuing with my work in general and with my facilitation in Burundi in particular”.

Meanwhile, the current round of Burundi peace negotiations ended on Saturday with the formation of fifth committee to oversee the implementation of all decisions taken at the talks. It will be chaired by Mandela, assisted by the chairmen and assistant chairmen of the other four committees. No date was fixed for another round of talks.