Security Council commends Mandela's commitment to reconciliation in Burundi

The United Nations Security Council today commended former South African President Nelson Mandela for his "tenacity and unwavering commitment" towards political reconciliation in Burundi, but at the same time voiced concern about the recent violence in the country and reiterated its calls for an immediate cessation of hostilities.

In a statement read out in an open meeting by Keith D. Knight, the Minister for Foreign Affairs and Foreign Trade of Jamaica, the current president of the Council, the 15-member body urged all Burundians to reject violence and to pursue their objectives through the institutions and mechanisms of the transition process. The Council appealed to all Burundians and Member States to build on the momentum created through the efforts of Mr. Mandela as the Facilitator of the Arusha peace process, and to support the regional peace initiative and the Transitional Government.

The Council expressed its deep gratitude to Mr. Mandela for his dedicated services to the people of Burundi and the cause of peace in Central Africa. Building on the work of his predecessor, the late Mwalimu Julius Nyerere of Tanzania, Mr. Mandela had helped to give Burundi a chance for lasting peace, democracy, economic development and national reconciliation, the Council said.

In particular, it expressed appreciation to Mr. Mandela and the South African Government for initiating the deployment of the first elements of the multinational security presence tasked with the protection of returning political leaders, without which the conditions would not have been conducive for the inauguration of the Burundi Transitional Government.