nPostednon August 5, 2015
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nWaynback in 2010, I wrote about Burkina Faso’s Republic Day.
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nAtnthat point, the Republic of Burkina Faso wasn’t as much of a republicnas its name suggested. A republic is a nation in which the power ofngovernance is held by the people and their elected representatives.nHowever, Burkina Faso had at that time a leader who had ousted thenformer president through military force – what is called a coupnd’état.nAnd the new president, Blaise Compaoré ruled non-stop from 1987nuntil 2014 – that’s 27 years of unbroken power! n
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nI’mnnot positive if there were truly free elections during all these 27nyears, but I did read that it was widespread protests, not a peacefulnelection, that finally drove Compaoré out of office. n
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nLessnthan a year ago, in October of 2014, demonstrations and riots brokenout in protest over changing a law about term limits so thatnPresident Compaoré could continue in office. After protestors burnedngovernment buildings, Compaoré decided to dissolve the governmentnand declared a state of emergency. He even fled to a neighboringncountry, Ivory Coast. n
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nButnhe refused to resign the presidency.
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nAtnthe end of the month (10/31/14), Compaoré finally bowed to thenpressure and resigned. Now there is a transition government, andnthere are plans for an election this October – actually, on mynbirthday, October 11, 2015!
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nBynthe way…
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| A scene from the capital |
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- Todaynis considered Burkina Faso’s Independence Day because, on this datenin 1960, the Republic of Upper Volta won its full independence fromnFrance. Almost exactly 24 years later, the nation changed its namenfrom Upper Volta to Burkina Faso.
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- Thenname for the people of this nation is Burkinabé.
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- Thencapital city, Ouagadougou, means literally “You are welcome here atnhome with us.”
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nHerenare some wonderful sights to see in Burkina Faso:
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nThenstone tours of Sindou Peaks
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nBobonDiolasso Grand Mosque
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nHopefullynthis lake / tower / housing / offices complex is being built. It isncalled the Tena Tower Project, and it is a reallynenvironmentally-forward-thinking design by architect ManuellenGautrand.
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nBanforanNatural Waterfall
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nHousesnof the Gourounsi people
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nAlsonon this date:
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nAnniversarynof the banning of “Monster Mash”
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nAssistancenDog Day
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nFoundationnDay in Santo Domingo
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nAnniversarynof a quasar breakthrough
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nPlannahead:
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Checknout my Pinterest boards for:
Checknout my Pinterest boards for:
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nAugustn holidays
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nAugustn birthdays
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nHistoricaln anniversaries in August
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nAndnhere are my Pinterest boards for:
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nSeptembern holidays
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nSeptembern birthdays
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nHistoricaln anniversaries in September
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