22 February 2000
Fact Sheet: Background to the Burundi Peace Process
(White House details Arusha Peace Process and U.S. Interests) (590) The White House released the following fact sheet February 22 as background to the Burundi peace process. Following is the White House Fact Sheet: (begin Fact Sheet) THE WHITE HOUSE Office of the Press Secretary February 22, 2000 FACT SHEET Background to the Burundi Peace Process Burundi's recent history has been marked by a destructive struggle between the Tutsi minority and the disenfranchised Hutu majority that has been excluded from political and economic opportunities. -- Burundi's first democratically elected president, Melchior Ndadye, a Hutu, was assassinated in 1993. Since then, over 200,000 Burundians have been killed in clashes between Tutsi-dominated governments and Hutu rebels. Hundreds of thousands have been internally displaced or become refugees in neighboring countries, and the Burundi economy has continued to crumble. President Pierre Buyoya, a moderate Tutsi, came to power in a bloodless coup d'etat in July 1996. -- In September 1999, the humanitarian situation deteriorated rapidly when the Government of Burundi forcibly displaced the Hutu population of the Bujumbura Rural province into about 54 regroupment camps, ostensibly to protect them from rebel attacks. These camps, which contain over 350,000 Hutus, lack food, water, shelter, and basic sanitation. -- In response to U.S. and international pressure, the Burundi government announced in January it would begin to dismantle 11 camps holding approximately 55,000 Hutus as soon as the security situation permitted, and has now begun to do so. The Arusha Peace Process -- The ongoing Arusha peace negotiations, initiated under the leadership of former Tanzanian President Julius Nyerere in 1996, includes 18 parties. Despite the complexity of the peace process, Dr. Nyerere and the parties had made considerable progress by the end of last year. The talks were given new impetus in December, when former South African President Nelson Mandela was appointed as facilitator to replace Nyerere, who died last October. -- President Mandela organized a February 21-22 plenary session in Arusha, Tanzania, to be attended by all 18 parties. Several regional leaders will join him at the February 21 opening session, and--at the request of President Mandela --President Clinton will address the closing session live via video conference February 22 to urge the parties to work towards peace. -- Peace in Burundi is critical to help bring about an end to the war in the Democratic Republic of the Congo and implementing the Lusaka Ceasefire Agreement, signed by the parties to that conflict. U.S. Interests Given the importance of preventing future mass violence, supporting democracy and human rights, and promoting stability in the Great Lakes region, the U.S. supports the Burundi peace process both diplomatically and financially. -- Former Member of Congress Howard Wolpe serves as President Clinton's Special Envoy to the Great Lakes, and has been actively engaged in support of the mediation effort. -- The United States has provided $40 million in humanitarian assistance to the people of Burundi since 1998, with an additional $9 million allocated already this year. -- Burundi is included in the President's Great Lakes Justice Initiative, a program which aims to help build the institutions required to break the cycle of violence in central Africa. -- The U.S. has strongly condemned the forced regroupment program, and continues to press the Government of Burundi to dismantle the regroupment camps immediately. (end Fact Sheet) (Distributed by the Office of International Information Programs, U.S. Department of State. Web site: usinfo.state.gov)
|
NEWSLETTER
|
| Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list |
|
|
|
