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300 civil society groups have called for
the demonstrations
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Burundi protest organizers on Saturday called for a two-day halt to
demonstrations against President Pierre Nkurunziza's move to seek a third term,
which they says violates the constitution and endangers the peace deal that
ended a civil war in 2005.
There have been six straight days of
protests in the capital Bujumbura, marking the biggest political crisis in the
small, landlocked nation in the heart of Africa since the ethnically fuelled
civil war came to an end.
But the demonstrations which started
on Sunday have lost momentum in the last few days, with the number of people
taking to the streets dwindling. The presidency has called the protests an
"insurrection".
Reuters reports:
Clashes between demonstrators and
police have also eased. The protests have focused on a handful of suburbs in
the capital, and have not spread to the provincial towns and the countryside,
where Nkurunziza has most of his supporters.
Civil rights groups say at least six
people have been killed during the protests and dozens injured.
"We decided to stop
demonstrations for two days, first to allow those who lost their family members
in the protests to observe mourning and, second, we want the protesters to
regain energy before resuming the fight Monday," said Pacifique
Nininahazwe, head of Focode, one of the 300 civil society groups that have
called for the demonstrations.
Police said two officers and a
civilian were killed late on Friday in two separate grenade attacks in the
capital Bujumbura. More than 10 others were wounded.
Nkurunziza has urged the protesters
to stay off the streets.
On Friday he said those found guilty
of involvement in the demonstrations would face "severe sanctions".
Opponents say that Nkurunziza, by
seeking a third five-year mandate at elections on June 26, is violating the
constitution and the Arusha peace accords that eventually ended Burundi's
12-year civil war.
Pre-vote fears have driven more than
26,000 Burundians to neighbouring Congo and Rwanda, officials say.
The United Nations, which has voiced
concerns that intelligence and security services are using live ammunition at
protests, said there are "credible" reports of detained protesters
being beaten and held in overcrowded conditions.
Nkurunziza's supporters say he can
run again because his first term, when he was picked by lawmakers and not
elected, does not count. The United States disagrees and has said his candidacy
is a violation of the Arusha accords.
The crisis is being closely watched
in a region still scarred by the 1994 genocide that killed more than 800,000
people in neighbouring Rwanda which, like Burundi, is divided between ethnic
Tutsis and Hutus.
Diplomats say the unrest is a political
disagreement but fear violence could lead to bloodshed along ethnic lines.
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