There was just one more year to go before change could
finally come, through the next presidential election. After 27 years of Blaise
Compaore, the people of Burkina Faso were set to wait patiently until November
2015. But Mr Compaore's attempt to force a constitutional change sparked near
unanimous outrage, BBC repports
"It's as if he was disconnected from reality or not
acknowledging what was going on," Rinaldo Depagne, director of ICG's West
Africa programme, said.
"With nearly a million people in the streets [in a
country of 17 million], any sensible politician would have withdrawn their
proposed bill."
But he didn't.
Country on edge
Frustration and anger had been growing over the past few
years in Burkina Faso and there had been multiple warnings that the society was
on the edge of a social-political crisis.
Violent protests erupted in 2011 throughout the country.
First out were the students, following the death of one of
their number in police custody.
Shopkeepers, traders, magistrates, lawyers, peasants and
finally the rank-and-file soldiers followed.
But they didn't form a mass movement and this is what
"saved Blaise Compaore", according to Mr Depagne, who lived in Burkina
Faso for a number of years.
The opposition parties were not able to build a political
platform to offer an alternative based on the people's discontent at high
prices, low wages and Mr Compaore's undivided rule.
Yet, these upheavals lasted several months in the first half
of 2011.
There hadn't been such major demonstrations since the murder
of the investigative journalist Norbert Zongo at the end of 1998.
Mr Zongo was investigating the killing of the driver of
Francois Compaore, the then-president's younger brother and special adviser.
He had himself warned his readership that he may end up
being killed after he received a series of death threats.
The murder of Norbert Zongo marked a turning point for many
Burkinabes
His murder - which the government initially claimed was an
accident - sparked unprecedented demonstrations.
To many, the Zongo case was a turning point during Mr
Compaore's regime. The opposition was too divided to overthrow the system but
"it created confidence among citizens about their own rights," Mr
Depagne said.
0 Comments