Watching history being made...

Update on the political situation here in Burkina:

Let me start off by saying that I AM NOT IN DANGER. The political situation here has nothing to do with Westerners and they are not targeting us in any way, what is going on is between the Burkinabe and their government. Plus the Peace Corps is working closely with the American Embassy here to ensure all volunteers' safety before all.

So basically whats going on is that the current President, Blaise Compaoré, is trying to pass a referendum to the constitution to be able to lift the term limit on his presidency, which he has already successfully done before. He has been in power since led a coup d'état in 1987, and has been reelected president four times since 1991.

And a lot of people are pissed because they believe it is time for the President to step down, some have been going as far as to say that he has become a dictator. The opposition has called for protests and civil disobedience starting tomorrow (October 28^th). All schools and universities are closed for the entire week and government offices will be closed at least for tomorrow for the start of the protests. Over the weekend, some people here in the capital have begun their rioting and set tires are fire and blockaded roads and police have responded with tear gas, but nobody has been severely hurt.

We will see what happens from now until the elections next year! If the referendum passes then Compaoré will most likely win the election next year as well thus why the opposition is trying to stop this NOW. In any case, history for this country is being made this week and I am happy to be here to witness it. 

Full article with more detail:

http://www.reuters.com/article/2014/10/23/us-burkina-politics-idUSKCN0IC11120141023

President Blaise Compaoré