Military Seizes Power In Burkina Faso

campaore
Campaore/CBS Picture

The military in the West African nation of Burkina Faso seized control of the government on Thursday and set a dusk-to-dawn curfew in what one general described as an effort to protect lives and restore order.

Unrest has gripped Burkina Faso — a key ally for the West in the fight against al Qaeda — as protests against President Blaise Compaore’s government turned violent, culminating Thursday with demonstrators storming the Parliament and setting fire to the building.

Saying it was in the best interest of the country’s citizens and supported by “national and international opinion,” Gen. Honore Nabere Traore told reporters in the capital city of Ouagadougou that the “government is dissolved.”

“An interim authority will be set up in order to prepare the conditions for the return to normal constitutional order within a period of 12 months at the latest,” Traore said.

The whereabouts of Compaore were not immediately known, and it was not immediately clear whether he had surrendered control of the country.

Earlier in the day, Compaore took emergency measures, asking in a government communique read on national radio for an end to the violence. He also withdrew a proposed constitutional amendment that included a provision that would allow him to seek another term in office, according to the communique.

Compaore, who has been in office since he took power following a bloody coup in 1987, also made an appeal via Twitter, urging for a return to calm.

Flights in and out of Ouagadougou have been suspended, according to the Burkina Faso Embassy in Washington. Embassy personnel told CNN that it was still issuing visas but that there were no flights at the moment.

U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon called on all groups to end the violence, asking that they “exercise calm and restraint.”

The West, particularly France, considers Burkina Faso a key ally in the fight against al Qaeda. The country was formerly known as the Republic of Upper Volta, when it was established in 1958 as a self-governing colony under France.

France urged restraint in the current situation. The French Foreign Ministry condemned the violence.

The African Union announced it would deploy troops alongside United Nations forces as part of a joint mission to address the unrest.

Courtesy of www.cnn.com

Ends

6 Comments

  1. I’m not a fan of this guy and hate military interfering in politics, but not many tears will be shed for him…One could even say that this was inevitable. .

    Notice how the international community did not condemn the coup…? A possible sign that such actions may be tolerated against never ending dictatorial regimes, especially when assurances for a quick return to “normalcy” are given.. ..I guess everyone “knows” who might be next..?

    We might see our guy at his best again…Framing some soldiers just to dampen the spirits of any would be coupists….However, such an action seems to be an inevitability in The Gambia. ..It’s only a matter of time and this Burkina episode would send ripples of fear down the spines of many in Banjul..

  2. Luntango Suun Gann Gi

    Compaore was no more and no less than that other criminal looter Mobutu Sese Seko – whom the West used to kill Lumumba in order for IMF, World Bank and the West to loot Congo/Zaire. The same gangsters backed Campaore to kill Thomas Sankara, and supported a 27-year dictatorship so that they can continue to loot the country. Obama shook this guy’s BLOODY hands in Washington just a couple of months ago. Why?

    ” The West, particularly France, considers Burkina Faso a key ally in the fight against al Qaeda.” … And because of the GOLD the country produces in quantity.

    SO THE THIEVES ARE SCRAMBLING TO SAVE THEIR BANDIT CAMPAORE:-
    France urged restraint in the current situation.
    The French Foreign Ministry condemned the violence.
    U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon called on all groups to end the violence, asking that they “exercise calm and restraint.”
    The African Union announced it would deploy troops alongside United Nations forces as part of a joint mission to address the unrest.

    BE PEOPLE HAVE RISEN TO FREE THEMSELVES – BRAVERY FACING GUNS AND TANKS. GOD BLESS AFRICA.

  3. minus 1,, many to go,,,Greetings from southern Sudan.

  4. I wonder when African will start taking responsibility and stop blaming the West. If someone asks you to set your house on fire so that his house stand out in the neighborhood and you do it whose fault is that.
    It is African who are responsible for the plight of Africa period, enough with blaming the West.

  5. BTW if the opposition in Burkina doesn’t watch out another self serving dictator will be born.

  6. Janjanbureh

    The wind is blowing towards the west. Next is Yaya Jammeh. Gambians must get up and chase him out of power. He will always have sham elections like Compaore and called it democracy. The West need to stop their hypocrisy and support the people to free themselves from bondage.

    Burkina Faso people should not allow the military to be comfortable in power. If not they will never leave. Let the transition be led by a civilian until elections in one year or be in charge of the day to day administration of the country. The African military are quick to impose themselves and never what to hand over power back to the people. Don’t trust them please.

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