VZCZCXYZ0001
PP RUEHWEB

DE RUEHJB #0267 0951612
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
P 051612Z APR 07
FM AMEMBASSY BUJUMBURA
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC PRIORITY 0208
INFO RUEHXR/RWANDA COLLECTIVE

UNCLAS BUJUMBURA 000267 
 
SIPDIS 
 
SIPDIS 
 
SENSITIVE 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: PREL PGOV MARR PINR BY SF
SUBJECT: THREE CONTENTIOUS ISSUES STALL BURUNDIAN CEASE FIRE TALKS 
 
REF: BUJUMBURA 237 
 
¶1. (U) SUMMARY: South African Special Envoy Kingsley Mamabolo outlined 
the three most contentious issues facing the Joint Verification 
Monitoring Mechanism (JVMM) and briefed the diplomatic corps on the 
status of implementation after a meeting with the National Liberation 
Front (FNL) on April 2.  The three points of disagreement concern the 
demobilization of FNL soldiers and subsequent reintegration into the 
Burundian Army, the placement of FNL officials in substantial 
government positions, and the difficulty of conducting negotiations 
when FNL leadership remains in Dar Es Salaam.  Mr. Mamabolo also 
stressed that the mandate of the facilitator of the JVMM is not to 
renegotiate the terms of the ceasefire agreement, but to implement 
them. END SUMMARY 
 
¶2. (U) The implementation of the September 7 ceasefire agreement 
between the FNL and the Government of Burundi (GOB) stalled for the 
third time during the week of March 26.  In a bid to support the JVMM, 
South African Special Envoy Kingsley Mamabolo traveled to Bujumbura on 
April 3 to consult with the two parties.  There are three issues 
causing friction, according to Mamabolo.  The first is a FNL request 
that when the FNL army gathers in assembly areas for demobilization, 
the Burundian National Army (FDN) stands down in their respective 
barracks.  During this time, an international military organization 
such as the AU or UN will oversee the security in Burundi and ensure 
that neither FNL nor FDN soldiers are subjected to arbitrary arrest or 
mistreatment.  After the troops are sequestered, the FNL then requests 
that the two armies become one unified force in incremental steps.  The 
GOB sees this plan as untenable. 
 
¶3. (U) The second FNL demand is for high level government positions for 
some of its members.  The GOB responded that per the Constitution, 
high-level government positions cannot be awarded to unelected 
officials.  Mr. Mamambolo told the diplomatic corps that he asked 
President Nkurunziza to prepare a structure that would permit FNL 
officials to participate at some level in government activities. 
President Nkurunziza responded by asking for FNL officials' Curricula 
Vitae to determine where in administrative or diplomatic positions the 
officials might work. 
 
¶4. (U) In a widely published account in the government-owned newspaper 
Le Renouveau, President Nkurunziza recently asked why FNL party head 
Agathon Rwasa will not return to Burundi to facilitate the 
implementation of the cease fire agreement.  President Nkurunziza 
stated publicly that the return of Rwasa would expedite the successful 
resolution of the numerous implementation impasses.  Mr. Mamabolo 
indicated to the diplomatic corps that the FNL worries about the 
physical security and potential incarceration of Rwasa if he were to 
come to Burundi, even though FNL members have been granted blanket 
immunity. 
 
¶5. (U) The FNL is attempting to renegotiate terms of the ceasefire 
agreement, asserted Mr. Mamabolo.  He stressed that the mandate of the 
facilitator in the JVMM is not to renegotiate terms, but rather to 
implement the terms of the agreement as they are written.  Mr. Mamabolo 
said the facilitators would continue to work behind the scenes to find 
a compromise in advance of the next scheduled meeting of the JVMM at 
the end of April. 
 
¶6. (U) Mr. Mamabolo also made a point of saying the facilitator has not 
"promised anything to anyone" despite reports circulating in Bujumbura. 
 Specifically, he wanted to ensure the diplomatic community received 
information about the negotiations directly from the facilitator, 
saying that purported "FNL spokespersons" recently provided misleading 
information about the negotiating process. 
 
¶7. (SBU) COMMENT: Although Mamabolo was careful not to name names, it 
was clear that the "FNL spokesperson" to whom the facilitator referred 
is South Africa's Institute for Strategic Studies analyst Jan van Eck 
(reftel).  Mr. van Eck arrived in Bujumbura on March 25 and has met 
with both government officials and FNL representatives.  Van Eck 
traveled to Dar Es Salaam over the weekend of March 31 to meet with FNL 
leaders there and then returned to Burundi, where he will remain until 
April 8.  END COMMENT 
 
BREITER