Government dismisses Tutsi support for Bayaganakandi

Burundi’s Peace Process Minister Ambroise Niyonsaba has dismissed the pro-Tutsi parties that proposed Colonel Epitace Bayaganakandi as transitional president as “too small”, the Internews press service reported on Thursday. He described the proposal by eight members of the G-10 group during talks in Arusha, Tanzania, this week as “ineffective and insufficient”, stressing that the bigger parties must have say in the transitional institutions. He said the fact that two other parties had gone along with the G-6 group of Tutsi parties opposed to President Pierre Buyoya “did not mean much to the government”. Niyonsaba reiterated that the government’s priority was to achieve a ceasefire agreement with the rebels, in keeping with the provisions of the Arusha accord signed last year. “The rebels must first stop the killings,” he said. The Burundi government maintains there must be a ceasefire before the transition can be implemented. During the talks in Arusha on Tuesday, the smaller Tutsi parties agreed on Bayaganakandi’s candidature and six of the G-7 Hutu parties supported Domitien Ndayizeye.
The mediator Nelson Mandela has proposed a rotating three-year transitional presidency: 18 months with a Tutsi president and Hutu vice-president, then vice versa for the next 18 months.

A senior member of the mediation team, Mark Bomani, told news organisations in Dar es Salaam that a regional summit would be held in Arusha next month to finalise details of the transitional leadership. He said the leaders would discuss the presidential aspirants before making a decision.