South African soldier shoots colleague dead

A South African soldier was shot dead by his colleague after a disagreement at the South African National Defence Force (SANDF) base in the Burundi capital, Bujumbura, on Wednesday night, a statement by the chief of defence corporate communication, Maj-Gen Chris Pepani, said on Thursday.

Two other officers were wounded, one seriously, the statement added, noting that an investigation had already been launched to determine the circumstances surrounding the "unfortunate incident".

"At this very early stage, it appears that the incident happened at about 2300 hours [2100 GMT] last night [Wednesday] after a difference of opinion between two members of the contingent. One of the members, a corporal, allegedly fired at and seriously wounded an officer," the statement said.

"A third member, who tried to intervene, was also allegedly fired at and wounded by the corporal. He managed to return fire, allegedly killing the corporal," it said, adding that the names of those involved were being withheld until the next of kin had been informed.

Last month, a member of SANDF, a finance clerk, was strangled in Burundi. He was apparently found dead with a rope round his neck and bruises to his cheek and forehead in an abandoned house in one of the poorest parts of Bujumbura.

Some 700 South African soldiers were deployed in Burundi in October to protect Hutu exiles who returned to Bujumbura to take up posts in the transitional government set up on 1 November.

Meanwhile, South Africa has set aside 130 million rand (US $11.5 million), for peacekeeping operations in Burundi, South Africa's Finance Minister Trevor Manuel told parliament on Wednesday as he read the 2002 budget.

He said the money would come from the country's defence budget, which totals 18.4 billion rand (US $1.6 billion), or 1.7 percent of South Africa's Gross Domestic Product for 2002, but some of it might be refunded by international donors, AFP reported.