Burundi govt won't join crisis talks unless consulted

Burundi’s government on Wednesday refused to participate in stalled talks to end months of political crisis unless it was first consulted on who else was taking part.
As Washington urged the authorities to defuse a year-long crisis, a presidential statement, broadcast on national radio and monitored in Nairobi, issued a set of conditions to the government joining the so-called Burundi “dialogue”.
“The Burundi government must be consulted [as] we must be in agreement on the persons who should be invited, the dates and the place,” said Willy Nyamitwe, communications officer for the presidency.
The authorities also were awaiting “an official invitation”, he added.
He later told AFP the government had just received its invite to fresh crisis talks Monday and was “analysing” it. “It will reply at any moment through the required channels,” he said.
Burundi has been in political strife for a year, with 270 000 people fleeing into exile and more than 500 killed.
A regionally-mediated dialogue between all Burundians is being pushed by the international community as the best way to avoid civil war and former Tanzania president Benjamin Mkapa last weekend announced new talks from May 2 to 6 in Arusha.
The resumption of the dialogue was welcomed by the US state department in a statement late Tuesday “as the best means to restoring peace and stability to Burundi.”
[We] “strongly urge all stakeholders to fully participate without preconditions or red lines,” it said.
“The sooner this crisis is resolved, the sooner we can help Burundi realise greater development and prosperity.”