Burundi: Securing the second democratisation

Extreme care will have to be taken to ensure that Burundi’s forthcoming November election will strengthen and reinforce the progress that has been made thus far in securing peace rather than reversing the gains that have been made, argues a report from the South Africa-based Institute for Security Studies (ISS). "In short, elections should not merely be regarded as a necessary formality in a country that is again trying to democratise. Far more is at stake. Any contestation of the election outcome and the conflict it may precipitate will merely further weaken the fragile belief that the present process can actually deliver durable peace," says the ICG.