Regional summit to choose new mediator

Meanwhile, a summit of regional leaders is due to convene in Arusha, Tanzania, on 29 November to appoint a new mediator, Burundi radio reported on Friday. It cited EU special envoy to the Great Lakes Aldo Ajello as saying there were “several possibilities” for the new mediator. Ajello, speaking at the end of a four-day visit to Burundi, said the new incumbent should have “great political and moral prestige”. “He should be in a position to firmly steer the process into its final phase, which is the most delicate and crucial phase,” he said. The private Burundi news agency Azania quoted diplomatic sources in Bujumbura as saying Kampala was keen to play a major role in the selection of a mediator. Observers told IRIN the presidents of Uganda and Burundi differed on the appointee, with Ugandan President Yoweri Museveni favouring someone from the sub-region, and Burundian President Pierre Buyoya supporting South African mediation.