ONLY BURUNDI'S LEADERS CAN STOP THE LOOMING CIVIL WAR

[mchambawima1]

BY MATTHEW RYCROFT ON 2/3/16 AT 3:30 PM

Soldiers guard a voting station in Burundi's capital Bujumbura during presidential elections, July 21, 2015. Violence has been ongoing since President Pierre Nkurunziza decided to run for a third term.MIKE HUTCHINGS/REUTERS


It is not often that you find 15 ambassadors driving three hours along windy roads to a presidential palace amid banana groves. But that is the sight that would have greeted you in January as representatives of all 15 members of the U.N. Security Council traveled to meet the President of Burundi, Pierre Nkurunziza. It was Nkurunziza’s decision in April 2015 to run for a third term as president that sparked yet another downward spiral of violence in Burundi, a country that only in 2005 emerged from a 12-year civil war in which 300,000 people were killed.

We were doing preventive diplomacy. Ambassadors talk a lot about preventive diplomacy in the abstract. About the importance of stopping wars before they get started. About ensuring genocide does not happen. About putting out the sparks of conflict before they ignite. About being a smoke detector, not a fire extinguisher.

In Burundi, we sought to put our words into practice. Burundi is a small, beautiful, very poor country in the Great Lakes region of Central Africa. And over the years—due to the civil war and the present violence—Burundi has been much higher up the U.N. agenda than you might expect. This was our second visit to the country within 12 months.

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On our long drive to meet President Nkurunziza, we passed many demonstrators. Strangely for a country with such limited resources and so little English spoken (French is the primary language in Burundi), they held up signs in English, many laminated and all clearly mass produced. They said things like, “Burundi is a peaceful country.” The demonstrators were apparently paid a dollar each to turn up. And their message—that Burundi is peaceful—was the one that the authorities wanted us to hear, see and take away.

Sadly, it is a lie. We heard from many activists, brave journalists, opposition leaders and others that the reality is very different. The country is beset with problems. We heard horrific stories of summary executions, mass graves, sexual violence and more. Every dawn brings sight of the bodies of those killed overnight. The country’s ministers are sending their children away for their own safety.

The U.N. Security Council has three demands: de-escalation, dialogue, and deployment. It is up to President Nkurunziza to de-escalate the tensions. It is up to President Nkurunziza to reach out and begin a dialogue, not just with his friends but with his enemies too—if there is to be meaningful peace in Burundi, it will need to include the vast majority of Burundians. And it is up to President Nkurunziza to agree some form of deployment of an international force. The African Union (AU) had proposed a 5,000-strong peacekeeping contingent, which Burundi rejected and the AU decided over the weekend not to send in without consent. But it is clear Burundi cannot solve this problem alone.

The Security Council is not always known for its unity—just look at the discussions on Syria. But on our trip to Burundi, we were united. And that is important. The pressure we were seeking to put on the authorities was not some Western or colonial mindset. It was representatives of the whole world calling for genuine dialogue before the first shots of a full civil war are fired.

The world is watching Burundi. Through modest steps like our visit and the deployment of human rights and military observers, the U.N. can do some preventive diplomacy—not in theory but in practice.

Matthew Rycroft CBE is the British ambassador and permanent representative to the United Nations. He was part of a U.N. Security Council delegation that traveled to Burundi in January to address the crisis there. He tweets at @MatthewRycroft1.

 

[mchambawima1]

The country’s ministers are sending their children away for their own safety.

haya jamani, kwa mujibu ya baadhi ya wadau hapa ni kwamba eti mchawi ni Rwanda na Burundi is peaceful, right? Maziku Masunga Jr. jMali Bukyanagandi

 

[Bukyanagandi]

Mkuu Mchambawima, usifikiri hatujui ukaribu wa Viongozi wenu na Her Majesty's Govt (HMG) bila kumsahau Clinton na kundi lake la k.... , sababu za shotgun marriage kati yenu na watu/kundi tajwa hapo juu zinajulikana, kwa hiyo mkuu Mchamba a.k.a Koba tunapokutana na propaganda kama za Reuters, BBC na MSM nyingine za huko Merikani hatushangai, tunajua wapo kazini na wewe ni mmoja wa spoke kwenye HUB inayo pigia debe Administration ya Kigari na kujaribu ku-demonise Nkuruzinza na Serikali yake -hupo hapo Mchamba?

 

[mchambawima1]

Mkuu Mchambawima, usifikiri hatujui ukaribu wa Viongozi wenu na Her Majesty's Govt (HMG) bila kumsahau Clinton na kundi lake la k.... , sababu za shotgun marriage kati yenu na watu/kundi tajwa hapo juu zinajulikana, kwa hiyo mkuu Mchamba a.k.a Koba tunapokutana na propaganda kama za Reuters, BBC na MSM nyingine za huko Merikani hatushangai, tunajua wapo kazini na wewe ni mmoja wa spoke kwenye HUB inayo pigia debe Administration ya Kigari - hupo hapo Mchamba?

harakaharaka hadi unashindwa kuniita, ngoja nikusaidie kukuitia Koba mkuu, hilo ndio tatizo lako! unaendeshwa na machale badala ya facts! kila ukiambiwa kitu unajifanya eti machale yamekucheza, yani sijuwi ukoje... soma kwanza uelewe! ninachotaka kuelewa ni kwanini ulituambia hali ni shwari Burundi wakati mawaziri wa nchi husika wamekiri kutuma watoto wao nje ya nchi kwa sababu ya usalama wao? acha kurukaruka bwana Maziku Masunga Jr.

 

[Bukyanagandi]

harakaharaka hadi unashindwa kuniita, ngoja nikusaidie kukuitia Koba mkuu, hilo ndio tatizo lako! unaendeshwa na machale badala ya facts! kila ukiambiwa kitu unajifanya eti machale yamekucheza, yani sijuwi ukoje... soma kwanza uelewe! ninachotaka kuelewa ni kwanini ulituambia hali ni shwari Burundi wakati mawaziri wa nchi husika wamekiri kutuma watoto wao nje ya nchi kwa sababu ya usalama wao? acha kurukaruka bwana Maziku Masunga Jr.

Wakati mwingine nakuwa na shaka kama kweli unaelewa historia ya Taifa lenu hasa baada ya PK kushika madaraka!!!! Niliyo sema yana mshiko kweli kweli ingawa sikwenda in details - labda nikuhulize swali dogo: Hivi Reuters ni kampuni ya nchi gani -we una kithibitisho gani kwamba Viongozi wa Serikali ya Burundi wanaweza kuropoka tu kwa mwandishi wa habari kuhusu usalama wa familia zao - hii inaingia akilini kweli?

Ukosefu wa amani kwenye kihunga kimoja cha mji wa Bujumbura ndiyo kifanye Dunia iamini kwamba Burundi nzima inawaka moto - wakati Nkuruzinza amekwisha fanikiwa ku contain uhasi wa KUCHONGA -instigated from without.

 

[mchambawima1]

Wakati mwingine nakuwa na shaka kama kweli unaelewa historia ya Taifa lenu hasa baada ya PK kushika madaraka!!!! Niliyo sema yana mshiko kweli kweli ingawa sikwenda in details - labda nikuhulize swali dogo: Hivi Reuters ni kampuni ya nchi gani -we una kithibitisho gani kwamba Viongozi wa Serikali ya Burundi wanaweza kuropoka tu kwa mwandishi wa habari kuhusu usalama wa familia zao - hii inaingia akilini kweli?

Ukosefu wa amani kwenye kihunga kimoja cha mji wa Bujumbura ndiyo kifanye Dunia iamini kwamba Burundi nzima inawaka moto - wakati Nkuruzinza amekwisha fanikiwa ku contain uhasi wa KUCHONGA -instigated from without.

aisee! siunafanya kazi UN wewe? nimemaliza siku najiuliza kuachana na JF lakini comments zenu zinanizuga na kunifanya nirudi... mnachemsha SANA! nani kakusomea hii habari? mi nilikuwa nafikiri kwenye ili jamvi ntakutana na watu wenye akili timamu lakini naona ndio wale wale akina Konda wa bodaboda na mwingine JustDoItNow aliyejikimbiza mwenyewe kutokana na upumbavu wake, hata wewe kama unaona maji ni ya shingo basi timua! hii habari haijaandikwa na REUTERS my friend, imeandikwa na balozi wa Uingeleza UN! sio mwandishi wa habari kama ndoto zako zinavyokuambia... baada ya kwenda Burundi walikaribishwa hadi majumbani, kilichowashangaza nasikia walikuta wanyakazi wa ndani tu lakini familia, hola! nasikia hata wake zao wameshawasafirisha... tena ndugu zako walivyo wanafiki sintashangaa kusikia ya kwamba hizo familia zao tuko nazo hapa KIGALI

 

[KILLERS KISS GUY]

W

BY MATTHEW RYCROFT ON 2/3/16 AT 3:30 PM

Soldiers guard a voting station in Burundi's capital Bujumbura during presidential elections, July 21, 2015. Violence has been ongoing since President Pierre Nkurunziza decided to run for a third term.MIKE HUTCHINGS/REUTERS


It is not often that you find 15 ambassadors driving three hours along windy roads to a presidential palace amid banana groves. But that is the sight that would have greeted you in January as representatives of all 15 members of the U.N. Security Council traveled to meet the President of Burundi, Pierre Nkurunziza. It was Nkurunziza’s decision in April 2015 to run for a third term as president that sparked yet another downward spiral of violence in Burundi, a country that only in 2005 emerged from a 12-year civil war in which 300,000 people were killed.

We were doing preventive diplomacy. Ambassadors talk a lot about preventive diplomacy in the abstract. About the importance of stopping wars before they get started. About ensuring genocide does not happen. About putting out the sparks of conflict before they ignite. About being a smoke detector, not a fire extinguisher.

In Burundi, we sought to put our words into practice. Burundi is a small, beautiful, very poor country in the Great Lakes region of Central Africa. And over the years—due to the civil war and the present violence—Burundi has been much higher up the U.N. agenda than you might expect. This was our second visit to the country within 12 months.

Subscribe now - Free phone/tablet charger worth over $60
On our long drive to meet President Nkurunziza, we passed many demonstrators. Strangely for a country with such limited resources and so little English spoken (French is the primary language in Burundi), they held up signs in English, many laminated and all clearly mass produced. They said things like, “Burundi is a peaceful country.” The demonstrators were apparently paid a dollar each to turn up. And their message—that Burundi is peaceful—was the one that the authorities wanted us to hear, see and take away.

Sadly, it is a lie. We heard from many activists, brave journalists, opposition leaders and others that the reality is very different. The country is beset with problems. We heard horrific stories of summary executions, mass graves, sexual violence and more. Every dawn brings sight of the bodies of those killed overnight. The country’s ministers are sending their children away for their own safety.

The U.N. Security Council has three demands: de-escalation, dialogue, and deployment. It is up to President Nkurunziza to de-escalate the tensions. It is up to President Nkurunziza to reach out and begin a dialogue, not just with his friends but with his enemies too—if there is to be meaningful peace in Burundi, it will need to include the vast majority of Burundians. And it is up to President Nkurunziza to agree some form of deployment of an international force. The African Union (AU) had proposed a 5,000-strong peacekeeping contingent, which Burundi rejected and the AU decided over the weekend not to send in without consent. But it is clear Burundi cannot solve this problem alone.

The Security Council is not always known for its unity—just look at the discussions on Syria. But on our trip to Burundi, we were united. And that is important. The pressure we were seeking to put on the authorities was not some Western or colonial mindset. It was representatives of the whole world calling for genuine dialogue before the first shots of a full civil war are fired.

The world is watching Burundi. Through modest steps like our visit and the deployment of human rights and military observers, the U.N. can do some preventive diplomacy—not in theory but in practice.

Matthew Rycroft CBE is the British ambassador and permanent representative to the United Nations. He was part of a U.N. Security Council delegation that traveled to Burundi in January to address the crisis there. He tweets at @MatthewRycroft1.

wahutu wanapaswa waache woga siyo wakiguswa kidogo tu wanakimbilia Tanzania wakumbuke hii ya Burundi ni yao, inashangaza sana kuona tawala za wahutu hazikai madarakani kwa mda mrefu ukilinganisha na zile za watusi zilizo pita, mfano Buyoya alikaa madarakani kwa mda na kwa wahutu ni Nkrunzinza pekee aliyekaa walau mda kidogo, niwashauri wahutu wao ni wengi wnachotakiwa kukifanya ni kuungana kwa pamoja na kuilinda nchi yao, inashangaza sana kuona wanayumbishwa na watusi wachache

 

[jMali]

aisee! siunafanya kazi UN wewe? nimemaliza siku najiuliza kuachana na JF lakini comments zenu zinanizuga na kunifanya nirudi... mnachemsha SANA! nani kakusomea hii habari? mi nilikuwa nafikiri kwenye ili jamvi ntakutana na watu wenye akili timamu lakini naona ndio wale wale akina Konda wa bodaboda na mwingine JustDoItNow aliyejikimbiza mwenyewe kutokana na upumbavu wake, hata wewe kama unaona maji ni ya shingo basi timua! hii habari haijaandikwa na REUTERS my friend, imeandikwa na balozi wa Uingeleza UN! sio mwandishi wa habari kama ndoto zako zinavyokuambia... baada ya kwenda Burundi walikaribishwa hadi majumbani, kilichowashangaza nasikia walikuta wanyakazi wa ndani tu lakini familia, hola! nasikia hata wake zao wameshawasafirisha... tena ndugu zako walivyo wanafiki sintashangaa kusikia ya kwamba hizo familia zao tuko nazo hapa KIGALI

Viongozi wa Burundi wamehamisha familia zao kwa sababu 'sindumuja' wanawa target wao na familia zao specifically, na sio kwamba kuna vurugu za jumla.
Lakini kwa wewe mnyarwanda nikuulize, mbona Kagame katumia fedha za serikali kuwasomesha wanae marekani, ambako kawanunulia apartments kabisa na wanaishi huko kwa kisingizio cha "their security"? Nyie si mnadai nchi yenu ni secure since 1994? Kwa nini nyie msomee Kigali, lakini kina Ange wasomee marekani?

 

[jMali]

W



wahutu wanapaswa waache woga siyo wakiguswa kidogo tu wanakimbilia Tanzania wakumbuke hii ya Burundi ni yao, inashangaza sana kuona tawala za wahutu hazikai madarakani kwa mda mrefu ukilinganisha na zile za watusi zilizo pita, mfano Buyoya alikaa madarakani kwa mda na kwa wahutu ni Nkrunzinza pekee aliyekaa walau mda kidogo, niwashauri wahutu wao ni wengi wnachotakiwa kukifanya ni kuungana kwa pamoja na kuilinda nchi yao, inashangaza sana kuona wanayumbishwa na watusi wachache

Hawawezi kufanya mapinduzi wakiwa ndani kwa sababu watutsi wametawala jeshi na sasa wanapata misaada kutoka kwa watutsi wenzao wa Rwanda na DRC. Hivyo inabidi waingie misituni ili kujipanga kama alivyofanya Nkurunziza.