Security Council urged to act before it’s too late

Burundi has called on the UN Security Council to act with delay to stop the spread of war in the country and beyond its borders. In a statement issued this week, the country’s permanent representative to the UN, Marc Nteturuye, welcomed the Security Council mission to the Great Lakes region last month, noting that it was able to obtain first-hand information regarding the “transfer of the war in Congo to Burundi”. He accused the two rebel groups - Forces pour la defense de la democratie (FDD) and Forces nationales de liberation (FNL) -, along with “certain neighbouring countries”, of seeking a military solution to the Burundi conflict and adopting an attitude “contrary to the spirit of the [Arusha] peace accord”.

“The Council no longer has the right to procrastinate,” Nteturuye said. “The longer it waits, the more isolated becomes the hope of avoiding full-scale war.” He called for an early resumption of the Libreville process of direct talks between the government and rebels, and said this third meeting should be the “final one in order to take a definitive stand regarding the armed groups and other actors in the Burundi conflict”. He also welcomed the Security Council’s proposal to create a joint Tanzania-Burundi commission to deal with the problem of tens of thousands of Burundi refugees, currently in camps in Tanzania. He reiterated Burundi’s willingness to welcome back the refugees, noting that Tanzanian President Benjamin Mkapa had indicated they may be repatriated. He said such a move would improve border security.

The Security Council mission’s visit was encouraging, he concluded. “All that remains now is action to prevent a new catastrophe in the region.”