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U N I T E D N A T I O N S
Department of Humanitarian Affairs
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subject: Press statement on sanctions in Burundi
The following is a press statement issued by the Office of the Regional Humanitarian Coordinator for the Great Lakes:
P R E S S S T A T E M E N T
March 7, 1997
REGIONAL AID OFFICIAL RENEWS CALL FOR HUMANITARIAN
EXEMPTIONS TO BURUNDI SANCTIONS
The United Nations Regional Humanitarian Coordinator for the Great Lakes Region today renewed a call on behalf of aid agencies to exempt humanitarian assistance from sanctions imposed on Burundi by its neighboring states.
Mr. Martin Griffiths appealed to regional and local sanctions committees to act expediently on requests made by UN organisations for fuel and assistance after the economic measures were announced in response to the July 1996 coup.
"We are asking that the committees respect our petition and the very difficult nature of our work in Burundi," Griffiths said. "These supplies are indispensable simply to continue delivering aid".
Mr. Griffiths made the statement after consultations with the joint UN-OAU Special Representative to the Great Lakes Region, Ambassador Mohamed Sahnoun, in New York.
Despite an initial request made to the Regional Sanctions Coordinating Committee on 18 November for a monthly quota of 445,000 litres, no fuel has yet reached agencies in Burundi. An emergency shipment of 150,000 litres approved on 27 January is expected to arrive by mid-March, while 25,000 litres of kerosene accorded on the same date is not enough to fill a tanker, as required for safety reasons, and has not left Dar-es-Salaam.
Mr. Griffiths pointed out that in addition to delays on approved requirements, not all of the agencies' concerns have been addressed by the RSCC.
"Besides fuel and spare parts we have applied for exemptions for educational material and hand tools. This represents direct assistance to populations affected by the conflict in Burundi and there was no response after the most recent meeting of the RSCC in Lusaka", Griffiths said.
UN agencies and non-governmental organisations are hampered by the shortage of much-needed humanitarian goods while faced with increasing numbers of beneficiaries as a result of the ongoing conflict which is reported to have displaced hundreds of thousands of people.
The delivery of aid has also been slowed by the duplication of administrative procedures and restrictions on the type of transport that may be used to the land- locked country.
For more information please contact:
Tel: 254-2-622893/622166 +212 963 4832/1608
Nairobi, 6 March 1997, 1:00 GMT
[ENDS]
[Via the UN DHA Integrated Regional Information Network. The material contained in this communication may not necessarily reflect the views of the United Nations or its agencies. UN DHA IRIN Tel: +254 2 622123 Fax: +254 2 622129 e-mail: irin@dha.unon.org for more information. If you re-print, copy, archive or re-post this item, please retain this credit and disclaimer.]
Date: Fri, 7 Mar 1997 18:20:09 +0300 From: UN DHA IRIN - Great Lakes <irin@dha.unon.org> Subject: Press statement on sanctions in Burundi. Message-ID: <Pine.LNX.3.91.970307181201.21156A-100000@dha.unon.org>
Editor: Dr. Ali B. Ali-Dinar, Ph.D
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