Burundians Approve New Constitution
by Aloys Niyoyita in the March 1st, 2005 Washington Post

In a referendum held on February 28 in which ninety percent of all registered voters participated, 91% of Burundians participating voted to approve a new constitution that aims to ease ethnic tensions between the majority Hutu and minority Tutsi by reserving 60% of the seats in Parliament for Hutus and 40% of the seats for Tutsis. This action is a step towards redistributive justice in a country where the minority Tutsis (14% of the population) have ruled over the majority Hutus (85% of the population) since Burundi gained independence in 1962. As can be expected, many Tutsis were not pleased with the results of the referendum. Charles Mukasi, leader of a “hard-liner” Tutsi organization referred to the referendum as being a “big lie” and “full of irregularities”. However, Interior Minister Simon Nywandi praised the vote and stated that “Burundians have voted yes to their constitution, that is a big step for the future of the country and opens the door to democracy.” Parliamentary and presidential elections are scheduled for later this year.