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Int'l community urges Burundians to avoid acts of violence

Xinhua, April 25, 2015 Adjust font size:

Members of the diplomatic community met on Friday to evaluate the situation in Burundi and urged Burundians to abstain from acts of violence before, during and after the June 26 presidential elections.

In a statement released after the meeting held in Bujumbura, the officials who met under the auspices of the United Nations, urged the government, political parties and civil society actors to avoid engaging in acts of violence and intimidation during the different elections.

They hailed the progress made in preparing for the elections, especially the high number of political parties that have presented their candidates for the communal and legislative elections.

They urged the political parties to participate in the ongoing electoral process and to use constitutional means to seek redress for any disputes.

Members of the international community further urged the Burundian population not to put in danger the stability, peace, democracy and development that they have built since the end of the civil war.

The appeal for peace comes at a time when civil society organizations have threatened to organize street protests on Sunday if the ruling party, which is meeting on Saturday for the national congress, endorses the candidature of incumbent President Pierre Nkurunziza.

In particular, the International Conference on the Great Lakes Region (ICGLR) urged Burundians to uphold the Pact on Security, Stability and Development to limit any eventual violence due to the planned protests.

According to the pact, "use of any form of violence to disperse non-violent meetings or protests is prohibited, and in the case of violent protests, use of minimal force could be authorized to maintain law and order," ICGLR said.

Nkurunziza was first elected in 2005 and re-elected in 2010. His supporters have continued to insist that he was elected through direct suffrage only once and he therefore deserves to contest for another term.

The incumbent president's supporters have threatened to protest in the streets if he is not given an opportunity to contest for another term.

However, the president has so far not announced whether he will contest in the forthcoming elections. His party, the National Council for the Defense of Democracy-Forces for the Defense of Democracy, is expected to hold its national congress today in Bujumbura. Endi