With the backing of regional leaders, Deputy President Jacob Zuma went to play hardball in Burundi this week.
Zuma told the country’s transitional President, Domitien Ndayizeye, that there would be no tampering with the interim Constitution before it is tested in a referendum next month.
And he told anyone else who would listen that there could be no direct election of the president this time around: Burundi’s next president will be determined by the Parliament that is popularly elected in March. The government will be free to make any changes it sees fit.
But for now the guarantors of the Arusha Agreement signed in 2000 are sticking to its delicate checks and balances.
Zuma was at pains throughout his 24-hour visit to emphasise that he was talking for the regional peace initiative. He was given the mandate in Entebbe last week by Ugandan President Yoweri Museveni and Tanzania’s President Benjamin Mkapa.
Zuma was equally uncompromising with the National Liberation Forces (FNL) of Agathon Rwasa, which is making overtures about coming in from the cold and joining the peace process.
He said it was too late for the FNL, the last rebel group still fighting, to expect any special treatment. “They cannot stop the process now. They cannot negotiate at this late stage and hope to gain something. They can come in and they would be allowed to participate in the elections. But they would have to abide by the conditions that exist now.”
Zuma said he would be willing to negotiate with the FNL.