G-10 threatens to leave government

Burundi's Group of 10 Tutsi parties that signed the Arusha Peace and Reconciliation Agreement to return stability to the country have threatened to pull out of the deal unless their continued marginalisation within the transitional government ends, Bonesha FM radio reported on Monday. Five parties of the group urged former South African President Nelson Mandela - who facilitated the peace process - to intervene, and for regional leaders to restore the rights of the G-10 in the transitional government. The five are the Parti independant des travailleurs, the Alliance nationale pour les droits et le developpement economique, MSP-Inkinzo, Parti de reconciliation du peuple (PRP), and the Ralliement pour la democratie et le developpement economique et social. Their latest protest follows the dismissal from the government of Mines Minister Mathias Hitimana, which MSP-Inkinzo President Alphonce Rugambarara described as the last straw. Hitimana, leader of the RPR, said he did not know why he was sacked. He was replaced by Andre Nkundikije, leader of the Parti vert-intwari, and another member of the G-10. "It is not simply about the Mathias Hitimana affair but it is about all the instances of violations of the Arusha accord," Rugambarara said. If nothing were done, he added, the G-10 would be left with no other option than to pull out of the transitional process. "We are already the victims of marginalisation and an exclusion attempt, especially the parties that did not support President (Pierre) Buyoya during discussions about the issue of transitional leadership." In a related development, the Burundian news agency, Net Press, reported on Monday the last minute cancellation of Buyoya's flight to Nigeria. "It was learnt later that the development was linked to the recent dismissal of Mr. Mathias Hitimana, who is a former arms dealer and a personal friend of Nigerian President Olusegun Obasanjo," Net Press reported. It added that Hitimana had recently negotiated an immediate US $160-million Nigerian aid grant for Burundi, with another $100 million pledged "for the very near future".