The AU summit’s decision not to send troops to Burundi has met with international criticism given the deteriorating situation in the country.
The body decided instead to send a delegation of presidents to discuss the deployment of a force with Burundian President Pierre Nkurunziza and to focus on the Burundian dialogue.
The most vocal countries on the AU Peace and Security Council which argued against sending troops to Burundi were Tanzania, Gambia and South Africa.
The argument put forward was that troops should not be deployed without the Government of Burundi’s consent.
Burundi’s Foreign Minister, Alain Nyamitwe, made it clear to the regional summit that it would not accept troops on its soil as it would consider it a violation of its sovereignty.
The Maprobu force had been mooted by the AU on December 18, 2015. Proponents of deploying the force have pointed to the fact that the AU Charter stipulates that forces can be deployed against the will of the member state if there is a risk of serious human rights violations, such as genocide.
The UN and human rights organisations have consistently pointed over the past weeks to the serious nature of human rights violations in the country.
“There is rampant impunity for all the human rights violations being committed by the security forces and the Imbonerakure (youth militia), despite ample evidence that they are responsible for more and more serious crimes,” UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Zeid Ra’ad Al Hussein said recently.
“This is an indication that a complete breakdown of law and order is just around the corner, and with armed opposition groups also becoming more active, this will inevitably end in disaster if the current rapidly deteriorating trajectory continues.”
UN secretary-general Ban Ki-moon warned at the AU summit that African leaders could not wait any longer to address violence in Burundi, noting that as more time passed, more people would be killed.
The government of Burundi has seen the AU decision as a triumph.
The adviser to the Burundian president on communication, Willy Nyamitwe, tweeted after the decision was announced that he had chosen Beluga caviar and Moutai to celebrate his stop-Maprobu campaign.
Nyamitwe is considered one of the most influential figures advising the government of Burundi, his brother Alain Nyamitwe being the foreign minister.
With a virtual absence of local and foreign media in the country, there is a withering of eyes and ears to report on the violence.
Independent Foreign Service