Former Burundi leader says solution to crisis lies in 2005 peace accord

Former Burundi President Domitien Ndayizeye says the solution to the current crisis in the east African country lay in the Arusha Peace Accords that ended the 1993-2005 civil war.

Ndayizeye who served as Burundi president from 2003 to 2005, told Xinhua in a recent interview that the gruesome 1993-2005 civil war birthed the Arusha Accords which spelt out the future of Burundi.

"The future of Burundi is constructed in that agreement. We wrote the Constitution according to the spirit and content of the accord," he said shortly after the launch of the resumption of peace talks aimed at ending the current spate of fighting.

Ndayizeye said during the negotiations to end the 2005 civil war, every clause of the agreement was explained to the Burundians, and that explains as to why they keep referring to it to determine the future of the country.

The agreement traces the root causes of the crises Burundi has faced right from the precolonial, colonial and post-colonial period.

Ndayizeye said while the current crisis was sparked off by Nkurunziza running for a third term in office contrary to the country's Constitution, there are other underlying causes.

He named ethnic, economic exclusion and violation of the Arusha Accord regarding power sharing with the opposition parties as some of the causes.

"The problem is not only political, it is also economic management. There is a lot of corruption," he said.

According to Ndayizeye, many Burundians had hoped that when Nkurunziza's second term of office ends, a new leader would come in and propel the country's economy to greater heights to the benefit of all.

He argued that as the government and the opposition reconvene in Arusha, Tanzania early next year to negotiate, they should look at the Arusha Accord as their guiding principle.

According to the agreement, a president shall be elected into power for two five-year terms. He would be elected by one man one vote. In this case there was a decision that the first leader would be elected by the national assembly for the first term.

It was on this basis that Nkurunziza decided to run for another term, arguing that in his first term, he was elected by the national assembly and not the general public.

Ndayizeye and sections of some Burundians argue that this means Nkurunziza had been given the mandate and therefore served his first term.

"To move forward, there is need to respect the Arusha agreement, there is no other choice," Ndayizeye said.

While negotiations continue, Ndayizeye argued that there is need to help stop the killings in the country. He said the international community needs to intervene to stop the deadly clashes between the opposition and the military. Endit