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Bujumbura-Burundi.
 
BURUNDI - UNEMPLOYMENT.
 
BURUNDI BREWERY FIRES 116  EMPLOYEES.
 
BUJUMBURA, JULY 31, 2000 (NET PRESS). THE BRARUDI, SOLE BEER AND SOFT DRINKS MANUFACTURING PLANT IN BURUNDI HAS RECENTLY FIRED 116 EMPLOYEES. ACCORDING TO MR. LEONARD NDUWAYO, HUMAN RESOURCES DIRECTOR, THE MEASURE IS INVOLVING BOTH BUJUMBURA AND GITEGA WORKERS.  THE GITEGA-BASED WAREHOUSE OF THE BREWERY (THE BRAGITA)   HAS BEEN TRANSFERRED TO BUJUMBURA FOLLOWING INSISTING REQUESTS OF CUSTOMERS THAT THE TRANSFER BE CARRIED OUT, FOR SUPPLIES FROM THE PROVINCE OF GITEGA HAD PROVED TO BE TOO COSTLY. ACCORDING TO MR. NDUWAYO, BRARUDI OUTPUT HAS DROPPED TO OVER 35% SINCE 1995 AND IT HAS BECOMES NOT EASY TO KEEP IN PEOPLE WHO HAVE NOTHING TO DO.
 
THE ABOVE-MENTIONNED DIRECTOR POINTED OUT THAT THE DISMISSAL OF THE WORKERS WAS NOT THE ONLY IMPORTANT UNDERTAKINGS, FOR SOME ACCOMPANYING MEASURES HAVE  BEEN TAKEN AS WELL. IN ADDITION TO LEGAL ALLOWANCES, THE DISMISSED AGENTS WILL ALSO BE PAID A TWO-MONTH SALARY FOR EACH YEAR OF SERVICE RENDERED.
 
HOWEVER, ACCORDING TO UNANIMOUS SOURCES FROM WORKERS' CIRCLES, THERE MIGHT RATHER BE MISMANAGEMENT ON BEHALF OF BRARUDI LEADERSHIP. FOR EXAMPLE, BARUNDI NATIONALS WHO ARE MEMBERS OF THE BOARD OF DIRECTORS ARE GRANTED IN THE END OF THE YEAR BONUSES TOTALING BIF 7 MILLIONS FOR ITS CHAIRMAN AND 3.5 MILLION FOR EACH MEMBER OF THAT BOARD IN ADDITION TO BIF 100,000 REPRESENTING ATTENDANCE FEES FOR EACH SESSION OF THE BOARD OF DIRECTORS AND ANOTHER MONTHLY BIF 50,000 REPRESENTING A A WOULD BE ALLOWANCE. BRARUDI WORKERS WONDER IF THE ABOVE-MENTIONNED PRIVILEGES ARE ACCOUNTED FOR AS CORRUPTION OR INCENTIVE MEASURES.
 
BURUNDI -  SECURITY.
 
REBELLION LEADERS ARE CRISSCROSSING BURUNDI REFUGEE CAMPS THROUGHOUT TANZANIA.
 
MTABILA, JULY 31, 2000 (NET PRESS). BURUNDIAN FROLINA, FDD AND PALIPEHUTU TERRORISTS-GENOCIDERS HAVE RECENTLY TOURED MTABILA, TANZANIA WHERE A REFUGEE CAMP HAS IN FACT FROM VERY RECENTLY TURNED OUT TO BE A PRACTICALLY MILITARY BARRACKS. THOSE 'REBELLION'LEADERS EXPLAINED TO THOSE REFUGEES  THAT THEIR POSITION VIS-À-VIS  THE ARUSHA PROCESS. THEY HAVE POINTED OUT TO THEM THAT WAR MUST BE CONTINUED AND THAT THERE WAS NO SIGNING OF THE ACCORDS AS LONG AS THEY WERE NOT INTEGRATED YET IN THE RANKS OF THE NATIONAL ARMY. THEY ARE PLANNING TO SEND ENVOYS ALL OVER THE COUNTRY TO STIR CIVIL DISOBEDIENCE. THEY ARE ALSO RELYING ON THE ASSISTANCE FROM FORMER RWANDA AND ZAIRE ARMIES AND THE RWANDESE INTERAHAMWE MILITIAMEN TO RECOVER THE REGION OF UVIRA (RD CONGO) IN ORDER TO ATTACK NORTH-WESTERN PROVINCES OF BURUNDI. IT SHOULD BE NOTED THAT IN THE TANZANIAN OPPOSITION-DOMINATED KIGOMA, PEOPLE HAVE BEEN ASKING  THAT BARUNDI AND CONGOLESE NATIONALS BE EXPELLED TO PREVENT THEM FROM VOTING FOR BENJAMIN MKAPA AT THE PRESIDENTIAL ELECTIONS TO BE HELD IN  OCTOBER 2000.
 
BURUNDI - POLITICAL PARTY.
 
THE RUKINGAMA WING OF UPRONA PARTY IS CLARIFYING ITS POSITION OVER THE DRAFT PEACE ACCORD.
 
BUJUMBURA, JULY 31, 2000 (NET PRESS). FOLLOWING "NET PRESS" RELEASE DATED JULY 28, 2000 "RUKINGAMA-OBEDIENT UPRONA PARTY IS REJECTING THE ARUSHA DRAFT ACCORD", NEW CLARIFICATIONS WERE GIVEN THIS MORNING BY MR. PIERRE BARAMPANZE, UPRONA PERMANENT SECRETARY GENERAL : "AFTER A THOUROUGH ANALYSIS OF THE DRAFT PEACE ACCORD, THE UPRONA PARTY HAS NOTED THAT THE DOCUMENT IS INCLUDING MANY IMPORTANT UNBALANCED AND DESTABILIZING ARRANGEMENTS  WHICH MAY LEAD TO A CONFUSING ,  CONTRADICTIONS, AND NOT COMING UP WITH  ANSWERS TO THE QUESTIONS RAISED BY THE POPULATION. HENCE, THE DRAFT MUST BE DISCUSSED ANEW AND IMPROVED". THUS, RUKINGAMA UPRONA'S WING IS NOT TOTALLY REJECTING THE ACCORD, IT IS DEMANDING THE ACCORD'S "TO BE DISCUSSED AGAIN AND IMPROVED".
 
BURUNDI - NEGOTIATIONS.
 
"THE CEASE-FIRE MUST PRECEDE THE SIGNING OF THE ACCORD", SAYS NZOJIBWAMI FRODEBU BREAK AWAY  WING.
 
BUJUMBURA, JULY 31, 2000 (NET PRESS). AT THE END OF A MEETING HELD ON SATURDAY JULY 29, 2000 BY FRODEBU NATIONAL DIRECTORATE COMMITTEE, NZOJIBWAMI-OBEDIENT FRODEBU ISSUED A STATEMENT IN WHICH IT "EXPRESSES ITS CONCERN OVER THE HASTE WITH WHICH THE FACILITATION TEAM WANTS TO COMPLETE THE ARUSHA NEGOTIATIONS". IT ALSO POINTS OUT THAT VITAL ISSUES SUCH AS THE CEASE-FIRE, THE RULE OF LAW, THE TRANSITION PERIOD, THE ELECTORAL SYSTEM AND GENOCIDE ARE YET TO BE SUBJECT TO NEGOTIATIONS AND  ADDED THAT "ANY ACCORD WHICH WOULD NOT RESULT IN CEASING THE HOSTILITIES WOULD BE A SENSELELSS ONE". TO THAT END, FRODEBU NATIONAL COMMITTEE REQUESTS THE MEDIATOR THAT SENSITIVE ISSUES LIKE THE CEASE-FIRE BE OPENLY DISCUSSED BEFORE  AGREEMENT IS SIGNED ON 28 AUGUST 2000. THAT IS THE ONLY WAY TO MAKE IT POSSIBLE FOR THE ACCORD TO MEET BARUNDI PEOPLE'S EXPECTATIONS SUCH AS THE IMMEDIATE CEASING OF WAR, PEACEFUL COEXISTENCE OF ALL ETHNIC COMPONENTS AND NATIONAL RECONCILIATION.
 
FINALLY, THE NATIONAL EXTENDED DIRECTING COMMITTEE RECOMMENDS TO BARUNDI POLITICIANS TO HAVE A NATIONALISTIC VISION AND RAPIDLY REACH A COMPROMISE OVER ISSUES RELATING TO CEASE-FIRE,  ESTABLISHMENT OF THE RULE OF LAW, TRANSITION AND DEMOCRACY  "AND TO GIVE UP THEIR EGOISTIC AND SECTARIAN INTERESTS AND  ETHNIC VISION OF POLITICAL FUTURE " (SEE "NET PRESS" SITE RUGAMBA, RUBRIC "AGORA").
 
BURUNDI - GAMBLING.
 
"LONA AUTHORITIES WILL SAVE NO EFFORTS TO LAUNCH THE PMU (MUTUAL HORSE GAMBLING -PARI MUTUEL URBAIN) IN IN THE BEST CONDITIONS ", LONA (NATIONAL LOTTERY) MANAGING DIRECTOR DECLARES.
 
BUJUMBURA, JULY 31, 2000 (NET PRESS). IN ONE OF "NET PRESS" RELEASE DATED JULY 24, 2000  IT QUOTED MR. DANIEL BOURGOIN, PMU AFRICA REPRESENTATIVE'S CIRCLES AS SAYING THAT PMU ACTIVITIES WERE  TO BE LAUNCHED LATER THIS MONTH. BUT UP TO NOW, ONE MUST REALIZES  THAT "PMU" KIOSKS ARE NOWHERE TO BE SEEN IN BUJUMBURA. TO FIND OUT MORE , "NET PRESS" GOT IN  TOUCH WITH MR. JOSEPH NZEYIMANA, LONA MANAGING DIRECTOR AND PMU RANKING NUMBER ONE IN BURUNDI.
 
IMMEDIATELY,  THE LONA MANAGING DIRECTOR STATED THAT HE STILL CONTINUES TO QUESTION THE REASONS THAT LEAD MR. DANIEL BOURGOIN TO DECLARE THAT "THE GAME SHOULD HAVE BEGAN LONG TIME AGO" AND THAT HE WAS NOT "PLEASED WITH THE BURUNDIAN ADMINISTRATIVE SLOWDOWN". IN FACT, ACCORDING TO MR. JOSEPH NZEYIMANA "UP TO NOW DESPITE  THE CRISIS, BURUNDI ADMINISTRATION IS RATED AMONG THE BEST ALL OVER AFRICA" AND IN HIS OPINION , IF PMU BURUNDI ACTIVITIES DID NOT START AS INITIALLY PLANNED IN 1993, BURUNDI ADMINISTRATION IS NOT TO BE BLAMED. LONA MANAGING DIRECTOR OBSERVED THAT "THE ONLY STAFF TRAINING PROGRAMME BEING HANDLED BY MR. BOURGOIN HAS BEEN UNDER WAY SINCE 5 MONTHS" AND IT SEEMS QUITE "NORMAL AND REASONABLE,  GIVEN THE FACT THAT THIS TRAINING ASPECT IS QUITE NEW FOR BARUNDI WRONGLY BLAMED FOR BEING SLOW".  HE ALSO DENIED  ALLEGATIONS OF MR. DANIEL BOURGOIN CLAIMING THAT  PREPARATIONS HAVE TAKEN TIME MUCH LESSER TIME IN OTHER AFRICAN COUNTRIES  THAN IN BURUNDI  : "ELSEWHERE SUCH AS IN TOGO, PREPARATIONS HAVE LASTED OVER 9 MONTHS". HE ADDED  THAT LONA AUTHORITIES HAVE ALWAYS BEEN TAKING CARE OF NUMEROUS SOLICITATIONS FROM PMU EXPERT IN TRAINING, M. DANIEL BOURGOIN, AND WILL CONTINUE TO DO SO AND ALLOW PMU ACTIVITIES TO BE LAUNCHED "UNDER THE BEST SUCCESSFUL  AND LASTING  CONDITIONS ".  LONA MANAGING DIRECTOR FINALLY SAID THAT THEY WERE STILL ESTABLISHING PMU COMMERCIAL NETWORK AND THAT THE NEXT STEP WAS THE "MEDIA LEVEL", I.E. ADVERTISING, AND EXPLAINING TO THE URBAN GAMBLING POPULATION BEFORE  IT  PROPERLY STARTS.
 
BURUNDI - ASSOCIATION.
 
SELF-DEFENSE  ORGANIZATION PA-POWER-AMASEKANYA IS THREATENING TO RESORT TO POPULAR JUSTICE IN CASE THE ARUSHA ACCORDS ARE SIGNED.
 
BUJUMBURA, JULY 31, 2000 (NET PRESS). IN A 4-PAGE LETTER  SENT TO BURUNDI MINISTER FOR JUSTICE DATED THIS JULY 31, 2000 THE ORGANIZATION PA-AMASEKANYA IS WARNING JUSTICE MINISTER THAT IN CASE THE ARUSHA ACCORDS ARE SIGNED BEFORE  CLARIFICATION OF HIS POSITION WITH REGARD TO THE ISSUE OF GENOCIDE, "WE SHALL  THINK THAT BURUNDI JUSTICE WILL HAVE ABDICATED TO THE GENOCIDERS AND WE SHALL BE RIGHT TO CALL UPON ALL THE LIVING FORCES OF THIS NATION, BOTH CIVIL AND MILITARY, INCLUDING ALL ETHNIC GROUPS, TO START RESISTANCE  AGAINST GENOCIDE OF TUTSI WITH ALL AVAILABLE  MEANS, SINCE STATE JUSTICE WILL HAVE FAILED TO DO SO. THEN THERE WILL BE ONLY ROOM FOR POPULAR JUSTICE, JUSTICE OF OUR  OWN" SEE SITE "RUGAMBA", RUBRIC "AGORA").

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