Mon séjour en Afrique du Sud (Cape Town)

SANDF soldiers have propped up the economy. Now locals fear unemployment

FOR Joselyne Ndizeye, a cleaner at the SANDF Modderfontein base outside Burundi’s capital, Bujumbura, the thought of the more than 1 000 South African soldiers going home is not good.

“I don’t know what I’m going to do. I don’t know how I’m going to support my family,” she said, watching soldiers preparing equipment for next month’s departure.

Since October 2001 South African soldiers have been taking part in peacekeeping missions in Burundi following Arusha peace talks in Tanzania in 1999 after the country’s civil war in 1993.

The 1 070 soldiers who form part of the African Union Special Task Force (AUSTF) are due to go home at the end of August, bringing an end to Operation Curriculum V.

Ndizeye’s sentiments are shared by 50 other Burundians contracted as cleaners, gardeners and mess assistants for the base.

The few dollars they earn are among some of the highest wages in the country, with Ndizeye being able to support her five children and husband every month from the money she makes sweeping and cleaning at the base.

While Ndizeye and her compatriots’ concerns are shared by the South Africans, there is little that can be done for them.

“Our only hope is that the Burundi government will keep them on as cleaning staff,” said AUSTF commander Colonel Charles Buyse, adding that a large percentage of the local population still depended on South Africans for assistance.

Buyse and his contingent have been in Burundi since February and are the last South Africans to be deployed to the country. They are due to return home on September 30, leaving behind a small team of VIP protectors to guard Palipehutu-FNL leaders.

The VIP force of 119 soldiers will remain in the country until December under a new mission which could be extended ahead of next year’s elections.

The FNL were the last to sign the ceasefire agreement and join the peace process following the start of negotiations with the Burundi government in 2006.

After years of broken talks the FNL forces finally stopped fighting in April. Since then 21 000 FNL and FNL associate forces have been disarmed, demobilised and reintegrated back into society, with the majority returning to their homes in the country’s rural areas.

Buyse was quick to point out that while 21 000 former soldiers had been reintegrated there was still a long way to go with another 10 000 FNL associate forces, of which 1 000 are women, still having to be demobilised and reintegrated.

“This entire process is by no means over. We still have a long way to go before we are ‘feet up’,” he said, adding that they demobilised on average 150 former soldiers a day.

Buyse, commenting on the VIP troops remaining behind, said while there was peace now there was still a great deal of concern that the violence could flare again.

“There are definitely concerns and worries especially ahead of next year’s elections and it would be suicidal to close down these troops early,” he said, adding that the VIPs were responsible for guarding eight FNL leaders and their homes, and for escorting them to and from government meetings.

He added that because of resource pressures they had had to reduce the number of FNL leaders under protection from 23 to the current eight.

“This mission is very difficult and has a lot of complexities to it, such as the protection of former rebel leaders.”

Asked if there were plans to deploy a reaction force if violence flared ahead of the elections, Buyse said it would depend on the next mission’s mandate.

“Unfortunately it is too early to say what will happen with the next mission. This one is not even finished yet,” he said.