Stampede as Burkina police fire tear gas into massive crowd. Tens of thousands of protesters gathered in the Burkina Faso capital Ouagadougou on October 28, in opposition to plans by President Blaise Compaore to extend his 27-year rule. Protests have rocked Ouagadougou, the capital city of Burkina Faso, and other cities since mid-October following President Blaise Compaoré‘s proposal to revise the West African countrys presidential term limits. A president can only run for two presidential terms under the current constitution. But that constitution has been amended three times — in 1997, 2000 and 2002 — since it was approved in 1991. These amendments have allowed Compaoré to remain in power for 27 years. The proposed revision, which is set to be voted on through a referendum this coming week, seeks to reduce the current seven-year term to five years. The proposal would reset the clock to zero (so to speak) and allow him to run three more times and, if he wins, to be president for an additional 15 years. On October 28, tens of thousands of people marched through the capital, chanting for change mostly in a peaceful manner. Still, a few protesters toppled the presidents statue located at the center of Bobo Dioulasso and police threw tear gas at the protesters in Ouagadougou. The leader of the opposition, Zephirin Diabre, is one of the leading organizers of the protests. On October 26, he tweeted a call for people to march together.
Posted on: Wed, 29 Oct 2014 18:03:33 +0000
Trending Topics
Recently Viewed Topics
© 2015