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Bujumbura — Burundi’s foreign minister is calling for the international community to respect his country’s sovereignty, amid criticism over the decision to proceed with elections despite rampant violence.

Alain Aime Nyamitwe said that it is “not up to anybody, any country, any leader outside Burundi to dictate on Burundi which direction it should take.”

Burundi’s capital, Bujumbura, has been hit by persistent street protests since the announcement in April that President Pierre Nkurunziza is seeking re-election in a presidential vote set for July 15.

The constitutional court has ruled in the president’s favour, saying he is eligible for a third term because he was chosen by lawmakers — and not popularly elected — for his first term.

Meanwhile, children are suffering as a result of instability and election-related violence in Burundi including three killed in the last five days and dozens forced to flee from school, the UN children’s agency said on Friday.

The Unicef spokesperson Christophe Boulierac said one child died as a result of a grenade explosion in Muyinga province, becoming the first child victim outside the capital Bujumbura.

He said in Geneva that a total of eight children have been killed since the violence erupted including a four-year-old hit by a stray bullet to the stomach. His comments were reported on the UN’s website.

Burundi “is one of the poorest countries in the world, with one of the highest child malnutrition rates,” Boulierac said.

The Unicef calls on all levels of Burundian society, including the government, security forces and families to protect children and ensure they are not exposed to violence, arbitrary arrest or unlawful detention, he said.

The Unicef said a second grenade attack took place on a school ground in Bururi province just before voting that day.

There were no victims, but children fled from the school and when they returned they reportedly found military in the school, Boulierac said. — AFP