Burundi backs reforms that could extend Nkurunziza rule

BUJUMBURA, Burundi: Burundians overwhelmingly backed constitutional reforms that bolster President Pierre Nkurunziza’s power and allow him to seek another two terms in office, results showed Monday.

Election commission chief Pierre-Claver Ndayicariye said 73 per cent of voters had voted ‘Yes’ in a referendum last Thursday, which the opposition and rights groups said took place in a climate of fear and repression.

Only 19 per cent voted ‘No’ in the vote which scored a turnout of 96 per cent. Spoiled ballots made up four per cent of votes cast.

The results – which exclude figures from the diaspora representing 0.27 per cent of the vote – are provisional and must be validated by the constitutional court within nine days.

Observers had widely expected the reforms to pass, partly due to support Nkurunziza still holds in rural areas, but also due to a three-year crackdown on dissent, the media and civil society.

A presidential decree ruled earlier this month that anyone advising voters to boycott the vote risked up to three years in jail.

Nkurunziza, 54, who has been in power since 2005, plunged his tiny east African nation into crisis in 2015 when he circumvented a constitutional two-term limit, arguing his first term came after an election by parliament.

The moves parked angry protests, a government crackdown, coup attempt and widespread abuses which prompted the International Criminal Court to launch a probe into the atrocities.

This angered Burundi which became the first country to withdraw from the ICC.

At least 1,200 people have died and 400,000 been displaced, according to the ICC.

The constitutional reforms, which include measures that hand more power to Nkurunziza and his ruling CNDD-FDD, change term limits to seven years, meaning he could start again from scratch in 2020.

The United States on Monday denounced the “climate of fear and intimidation” and “lack of transparency” it said had marred the referendum and questioned the results.

“The May 17 referendum process in Burundi was marred by a lack of transparency, the suspension of media outlets, and attempts to pressure voters,” the US State Department said in a statement.

The massive turnout bolstered the legitimacy of the vote, however rights groups and the opposition argue it is fear and intimidation which drove Burundians to the polls. — AFP