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Burundians protest against UN resolution on deploying police force

Xinhua, July 31, 2016 Adjust font size:

Thousands of Burundian citizens Saturday staged a march to protest against a resolution of the United Nations Security Council on the deployment of a 228-member police force to monitor Burundi's deteriorating security situation.

The march took place in the streets of the Burundian capital Bujumbura and was mainly aimed to show that France "provoked" Burundi by proposing the resolution to the UN Security Council.

"We denounce France for sending a bad proposal (of deploying a police force to Burundi) to the UN Security Council. This is a provocation," said Deo Ruberintwari, Permanent Secretary at the Burundian Home Affairs Ministry in front of the French Embassy in Burundi where they made a stop-over.

At the French Embassy, they were shouting "No foreign troops will come to Burundi if Burundian citizens are still alive" and "France cannot set up a President of Burundi."

In his remarks, Bujumbura Mayor Freddy Mbonimpa also indicated that the march was aimed at showing the local and the international community that Burundi is peaceful and sovereign, adding that it "does not need foreign troops" and urging France to stop "provoking" Burundi.

On Friday, the UN Security Council adopted Resolution 2303 authorizing the deployment of up to 228 police forces to Burundi for an initial period of a year.

However, the Burundian government said it would only accept no more than a 50-member UN police force.

Among the 15 Council members, 11 voted in favor. China, Angola, Egypt and Venezuela abstained.

Burundi plunged into bloody chaos from April 2015 when the east African country's President Pierre Nkurunziza announced his intention to vie for the presidency for a third five-year-term.

More than 500 people in Burundi have been killed and some 270,000 people fled to neighboring countries, mostly Tanzania, Rwanda and the Democratic Republic of Congo since the outbreak of the crisis. Endit