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Burundi expects new facilitator from AU summit in South Africa: official

Xinhua, June 13, 2015 Adjust font size:

The African Union (AU) heads of state summit to be held in South Africa on June 14-15 should appoint a new facilitator for the Burundi dialogue, a Burundian government official said on Friday.

"The current situation prevailing in Burundi is on the agenda of the African Union heads of state summit due in South Africa. The summit may designate a new facilitator in replacement of UN Envoy Said Djinnit who resigned this week after the opposition and the civil society rejected his mediation," Daniel Kabuto, spokesman of the Burundian External Relations and International Cooperation Ministry, told Xinhua.

Djinnit stepped down from his role as a facilitator of the Burundi dialogue on Wednesday but "remains engaged with respect to Burundi" as part of his role as UN special envoy to the Great Lakes region, said Vladimir Monteiro, spokesman for the UN Electoral Observation Mission.

The envoy rejected accusations by the opposition and the civil society which alleged that he sided with the Burundian government in talks over the crisis sparked by President Pierre Nkurunziza's third term bid.

The talks, which were started on May 5, have been suspended since the beginning of this week as the opposition and the civil society have demanded a new UN mediator.

Burundi has been in turmoil since April 25 when Nkurunziza, who has been in power since 2005, announced that he will run for a third term in the upcoming elections, despite warnings at home and abroad.

Clashes between protesters and police, mainly in the capital Bujumbura, have left more than 30 people dead, according to Burundi's civil society groups.

The presidential poll, originally scheduled for June, was postponed to July 15 following calls from regional leaders, but the opposition has refused the new date.

Opponents say Nkurunziza's decision violates the constitution that limits the president to two terms in office.

His supporters, however, argue that his first term does not count as he was appointed by parliament, not elected by voters. Endi