he nicest victory of this referendum on the new Constitution in Burundi lies behind the Nyabagere school in Bujumbura: "During the war this building was destroyed 4 times because it lies at the border between a
majority Hutu (85%) and a minority Tutsi (14%) area. At least 50 people were killed here during clashes in 11 years of civil war. Yesterday, on the other hand, I saw Hutu and Tutsi together as they serenely waited to vote for the new Constitution".
Father Claudio Marano, a robust bearded 54 year old, has seen a lot since he’s been in Burundi; but the image of this poll station – half way between the Kamenge e Cibitoke areas, in a school that was rebuilt four times after as many destructions touched him more than any other image of the day. "That building is a laboratory of coexistence", the Xaverian missionary said to MISNA, who also heads the Kamenge Youth Center located just a few steps away from the ‘Nyabagere’ school.
I did not believe my eyes when I saw the long lines of voters, even when, on the eve of the elections, there seemed to be a climate of fear: the coup of 1993 took place just after the elections. It marked the beginning of the conflict, and people did not forget this.
The first lesson of democracy took place yesterday in the whole country. President Domitien Ndaiyzeye defined it as a "day to be marked in the annals of the history of our Country". He added that the vote opens "the era of democracy".
"I did not believe my eyes when I saw the long lines of voters," he said to MISNA. "even when, on the eve of the elections, there seemed to be a climate of fear: the coup of 1993 took place just after the elections. It marked the beginning of the conflict, and people did not forget this". Yet from one of the most devastated countries of Africa’s Great Lakes region, little Burundi with its population of 7 million and the fresh wounds of a conflict that multiplied the spreading of disease and misery, has come a message of hope, "the hope that this election is only the beginning of a wider democratic process, because now we must look ahead".
Burundians resumed their civic right, suspended for 11 years, in which they substituted weapons for polls. As the people wait for the official results, the congratulatory message from the UN mission suggests the level of participation, which was around 80%. Then, in the afternoon, the National Electoral Commission of Burundi had to extend the polls’ operations by two hours in order to allow everyone to vote.
"From the hills to the villages people started heading to the polls much earlier than the opening hours. Then the news of the high turnout caused even the undecided or the weary to head for the polls”. The Xaverian missionary added: "The importance of this referendum is that many people have finally learned to look beyond ethnicity; Hutus did not find the partition of power of 40% with the Tutsis, who represent only 13-14% of the population".
The success of the ‘yes’ – said Father Marano – "is a given. The new Charter is a basis to build a society that will not be solely qualified on the basis of ethnicity. This division cannot continue to be the main preoccupation of Burundians". Having built the school between Kamenge e Cibitoke four times, now a country is waiting to be rebuilt.
(From MISNA)