Kenya monitoring Burundi mayhem before sending troops, says Interior PS
Interior PS Monica Juma, Chinese ambassador to Kenya Dr.Xianfa Liu (2nd left) and Mombasa DC Mahmoud Salim arrive in Shimanzi on December 22, 2015 to inspect some of the tents donated by the Chinese government help Somali refugees. Dr Juma said Kenya was monitoring the situation in Burundi before it can commit itself to sending troops. PHOTO | LABAN WALLOGA | NATION MEDIA GROUP
What you need to know:
- Dr Juma indicated that only after the discussion on the Africa Union peace-keepers mission end that the country would make its decision known.
- Dr Liu, on the other side, said The People’s Republic of China has committed US $200 million for Burundi’s peace and security efforts.
- The 54-member AU said on Friday it would send a 5,000-strong force to end violence that has sparked fears that Burundi is sliding back to civil war.
- Dr Juma chided the developed world for its ‘lukewarm’ approach on the issue of refugees’ repatriation from Kenya.
Kenya is waiting for the ongoing talks on Burundi before it can commit itself to sending troops to the troubled country.
Responding to questions during the handover of tents by the Chinese Ambassador Xianfa Liu in Mombasa Tuesday, Interior Principal Secretary Monica Juma indicated that only after the discussion on the Africa Union peace-keepers mission end that the country would make its decision known.
“The discussion is ongoing in Burundi. There is a team meeting the president and so we are waiting before we react,” she said.
Already, the AU Peace and Security Council has indicated the intention of the union to send 5,000 troops to restore peace.
Dr Liu, on the other side, said The People’s Republic of China has committed US $200 million for Burundi’s peace and security efforts.
“Peace and security is the cornerstone of development and without which fear sets in and instability crops up, destabilising human order,” he said, adding that his country was closely monitoring the situation.
The 54-member AU said on Friday it would send a 5,000-strong force to end violence that has sparked fears that Burundi is sliding back to civil war.
Dr Juma welcomed the Chinese gesture of donating 5,800 tents that would be used to settle refugees in Somalia and elsewhere in the region.
Earlier, Dr Juma chided the developed world for its ‘lukewarm’ approach on the issue of refugees’ repatriation from Kenya.
She noted that the country has only managed to repatriate 6,000 refugees while another 15,000 have spontaneously gone back to Somalia.
“One of the reasons why the numbers repatriated is low is because of the absences of basic infrastructure like shelter, water, schooling and health facilities back in Somalia,” she said.
