![]() ![]() Known in colonial times as Upper Volta, the landlocked country became independent from France in 1960 and its name was changed to Burkina Faso ("the land of upright men") in 1984.This gallery of country coats of arms shows the national coat of arms, an emblem serving a similar purpose, or both (such as greater and lesser coat of arms, national emblem or seal) of each of the countries in the list of sovereign states.įor a symbol to be called a coat of arms, it should follow the rules of heraldry if it doesn't, it is per definition not a heraldic achievement but some other type of symbol. ![]() ![]() "October 30 is Burkina Faso's 'Black Spring', like the Arab Spring," Emile Pargui Pare, an official from opposition party the Movement of People for Progress, told AFP. The death toll from Thursday's violence - the peak of the unrest - was given as "around 30" by two opposition leaders. Many have spent their entire lives under the leadership of one man and are disillusioned by the establishment running the poor former French colony, which is stagnating at 183rd out of 186 countries on the UN human development index. His bid to cling to power angered many, particularly young people in a country where 60 percent of the population of almost 17 million is under 25. He was only 36 when he seized power in a 1987 coup in which his former friend Thomas Sankara was ousted and assassinated. He withdrew plans for a vote on the constitutional changes but vowed to stay in power for another year. The crisis is the worst in Burkina Faso since a wave of mutinies shook the country in 2011.Ĭompaore had initially rejected calls to resign. The EU called for the people of Burkina Faso to have the final say in who rules their country. Many of the tens of thousands massed on the streets of the capital have called for retired general and former defence minister Kouame Lougue to take control, shouting: "Lougue in power!"įrance's President Francois Hollande vowed that Paris would "contribute to calming" the situation in its former colony, while Washington urged "a transfer of power in accordance with the constitution". We will tell them what we think," he said. "We await the army's plans for the transition. One opposition leader, Benewende Sankara, described Traore's move as a "coup".Īnother opposition chief, Zephirin Diabre, told AFP he hoped the two military factions would forge an agreement. ![]() He appeared before large crowds alongside lawyer Guy Herve Kam, leader of the Citizen Broom group that helped lead the demonstrations, in Place de la Nation on Friday. Zida appears to have more legitimacy with civil society. Traore is Blaise Compaore's henchman," said Monou Tapsoaba, an activist with the opposition People's Movement for Progress. The uprising, which has drawn parallels with the Arab Spring, was sparked by plans to change the constitution to allow Compaore to stand once again for elections next year.Ĭompaore is one of several sub-Saharan African leaders who have stayed in power for decades, and the protests are being closely watched across the continent where at least four heads of state are pressing for similar constitutional changes to cling to power.Īrmy chief Traore stated on Friday that he was assuming power as head of state, a day after he ordered the dissolution of the government and a dusk-to-dawn curfew.īut many protesters are deeply opposed to him taking power, seeing him as a close ally of Compaore. The source said he was still in the country and had not asked for refuge in France, the former colonial power. He told journalists that the former president, who was said to have fled the capital Ougadougou, was "in a safe place" and his "safety and well-being are assured".Įarlier, Zida ordered the closure of the country's borders.Ī French diplomatic source told AFP that Compaore was travelling south towards the town of Po near the border with Ghana. "The aspirations for democratic change" of the Burkina youth "will be neither betrayed, nor disappointed," he said. ![]()
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