Burundians want power-sharing

2005-03-01 09:16

Bujumbura - A referendum on whether to adopt a power-sharing constitution for Burundi has been given the go-ahead by a massive 90.78%, partial results showed on Tuesday with 60.07% of the votes counted.

This meant the constitution had been given the go-ahead, with the "no" votes unable to catch up with the "yes".

The independent national electoral commission (CENI) said the "yes" camp was ahead with 90.78% against 9.22% for the "no" supporters.

Vote counting started off slowly due to logistical problems after Monday's nationwide referendum on a constitution aimed at bringing a final end to an 11-year civil war that has claimed 300 000 lives.

Turnout was over 87%, CENI chief Paul Ngarambe said. "It's a tally that pleases us because it means that the Burundians have understood what is at stake in the referendum," he added.

The referendum is the first election to be held in this tiny central African nation since it plunged into chaos in 1993.

The constitution envisages a balanced power arrangement between majority Hutus and minority Tutsis who have dominated politics in the country of 7.1 million since independence from Belgium in 1962.

- AFP