Burundi: May 20 Election Observers Must Undergo 14-day Quarantine

The Burundian government has welcomed external election observers for this year’s general elections but insisted they must undergo the mandatory 14-day quarantine as a measure against the spread of Coronavirus.

The May 20 vote, which will bring to an end President Pierre Nkurunziza’s 15-year rule, has been marred by violence between the ruling party and opposition supporters.

The East African Community (EAC) on May 6 wrote to Burundi regarding the bloc’s plans to deploy election observers.

In response, Burundi’s Minister of the Office of the President in charge of EAC Affairs, Isabelle Ndahayo, wrote to EAC Secretary General Liberat Mfumukeko, saying, “It is mandatory for all persons, whether Burundians, residents in Burundi or EAC citizens, entering Burundi, to respect the 14-day quarantine period.”

Ndahayo insisted that EAC’s technical observation mission “has to abide to the measures aimed at stopping the spread of the Coronavirus pandemic, COVID-19.”

“At this juncture, it is advisable that the EAC secretariat should delegate among the stakeholders who might be already present in Burundi and to whom the 14 days quarantine does not apply, to serve as the EAC technical observation mission.”

Contacted on Sunday morning, Mfumukeko said the secretariat was in talks with Gitega to find a way forward.

“Coronavirus is the issue. We are discussing with Burundi and will have an answer very shortly,” he observed.

However, Gitega’s conditions for election observers means the polls are likely to take place without the oversight of the international community.

Ndahayo advised that the EAC should “delegate among the stakeholders who be already present in Burundi and to whom the 14-day quarantine does not apply, to serve as the EAC Technical Observation Mission.”

Burundi has so far recorded 15 cases of COVID-19 including one death but has continued with mass political rallies.