New leadership ushers in peace, stability for Burundi

Pierre Nkurunziza, leader of the predominantly ex-Hutu rebel Forces for the Defense of Democracy (FDD), was on Friday sworn in as the president of Burundi which suffered more than a decade of ethnic civil conflicts.

At the inauguration ceremony held in the National Assembly, Nkurunziza took over power from the outgoing president Domitien Ndayizeye, who assumed power as the second transitional president in 2003.

The new president received in turn from his predecessor the constitution, the national flag, the unity charter, the national unity flag, the national logo and the "intahe" (in Kirundi)-a stick that is the symbol of power and fair judgment. In his inauguration speech, Nkurunziza said the victory of his party is for all Burundians, and it is also the victory for real democracy.

He urged all Burundians to work hard, and engage in all activities that are likely to sustain visual development of the country.

"Let's unite and work hard so as to find solution for our country, to make it prosperous and renew its image in front of the international community," said the charismatic young leader when loud applause broke out in the audience.

Nkurunziza was elected last week with more than 90 percent of the votes in a joint session of the National Assembly and the Senate, both dominated by his Forces for Defense of Democracy (FDD) party, a former Hutu rebel group that joined the transitional government in November 2003 as a legal political party. The FDD has won both the parliamentary and senate elections in July, virtually guaranteeing presidency for its chairman Nkurunziza, who had been chosen as the only candidate for the presidential selection.

The 42-year-old Nkurunziza, who joined the FDD in 1995 as a soldier, has served as minister for good governance since late 2003 in the transitional government.

A number of head of states in the region, including President Thabo Mbeki of South Africa, Paul Kagame of Rwanda, William Mkapa of Tanzania, Mwai Kibaki of Kenya, Armando Guebuza of Mozambique,and Ethiopian Prime Minister Meles Zenawi, together with representatives from international organizations and countries around the world, attended the ceremony.

Ethnic divisions have repeatedly driven Burundi into civil conflicts. The latest round of war broke out in 1993 after the country's first democratically elected leader, a Hutu, was assassinated. Since then fighting between Hutu rebels and the Tutsi military have killed some 250,000 people.

In 2000 a three-year transitional power-sharing deal was signed between Hutus and Tutsis and a transitional government was sworn in the following year.

The swearing-in of the new president together with final district elections in September will end the transitional period and is expected to usher in stability for this tiny central African country.

(Xinhua News Agency August 27, 2005)