Regional leaders urge indefinite postponement of Burundi vote

Bujumbura: Regional leaders have called for the indefinite postponement of elections in Burundi in the wake of a failed coup attempt, South African President Jacob Zuma said Tuesday.

Zuma said a summit of the International Conference on the Great Lakes Region (ICGLR) in the Angolan capital Luanda also decided to send a delegation of heads of state to Bujumbura as soon as possible in an attempt to help restore stability.

In a statement on his return from the summit, Zuma said leaders "strongly condemned the attempted coup d`etat". 

"The summit further agreed that the postponement of elections should not have a timeframe as there was unrest in the country and the elections should be postponed indefinitely until there`s stability," he said in a statement.

South Africa has observer status in the ICGLR.

Last week, the heads of state of the East African Community summit in Tanzania also called for a postponement of the elections -- but not beyond the mandate of the current government.

Parliamentary elections were due to be held in Burundi on May 26, ahead of the presidential vote a month later.

President Pierre Nkurunziza`s bid for a third consecutive term in office has been at the centre of country`s political crisis, with activists and the opposition arguing it goes against the constitution and the peace deal that brought an end to a 13-year civil war in 2006.

At least 20 people died in over two weeks of street battles with security forces before generals launched a failed coup attempt last week.