'Beef-up Somali mandate'

Bujumbura - The African Union mission in Somalia needs a beefed-up mandate, the AU's special representative for the country said on Sunday at the funeral of 12 Burundian troops killed in a suicide attack last week."The time has come to re-examine Amisom's mandate so that we can have the power to act when and as necessary," Nicolas Bwakira, a Burundian, said in a speech at the peacekeepers' burial north of Bujumbura.Twenty-one people, including the peacekeeping force's second in command, were killed in twin suicide attacks on their Mogadishu headquarters on Thursday. It was the deadliest strike against the AU force since its deployment in March 2007."The death of General (Juvenal) Niyonguruza and his comrades will not discourage us," said Vice-President Yves Sahinguvu. "Burundian soldiers are today in Somalia and they will not leave this country until they have completed their mission with the help of the international community, the UN and the African Union."We call today for more equipment, more financial means, reinforcements, and a stronger mandate which gives our troops the right to pursue if necessary," he said.Burundi's opposition parties on Saturday urged the recall of troops from Somalia if their mandate was not changed and they were not given the means to defend themselves.Burundi and Uganda are the sole contributors to the 5 000-strong force, which was intended to have 8 000 soldiers. Twenty-nine Burundian soldiers have been killed in Somalia since 2007.

- AFP