Burkina Faso: nothing new on the African front

(To Giampiero Venturi)
21/09/15

Only a few months ago, authoritative geopolitical analysts indicated Burkina Faso, formerly the Alto Volta, as the African exception.

At the end of the 2014 the attempted constitutional amendment of President Compaoré to relaunch the almost 30 years of uninterrupted power, had activated street protests with which after the interim of Colonel Zida (ex loyal of the president) he had arrived to the establishment of Michel Kafando, highly esteemed civilian and diplomat. Estimated by the crowd but also by the international political schedule, eager to find in Africa the beginning of new institutional paths.

That the transfer of powers based on popular initiative and not on a military putsch happened to Burkina Faso was not a case. On the Sahel belt, Burkina has for years been an oasis of novelty, where "oasis" is not a joke and "novelty" indicates a general climate conducive to institutional experiments.

Until recently it was enough to get to Ouagadougu to get an idea. Between the Cathedral and the Stadium one breathes more than anything else a vague smell of sub-Saharan peace and a certain pride for the Stallions (so called ...) of the national football team, which in a few years has become the new promise of sports Africa.

The Burkinabé nation even went beyond the balloon god: every two years Burkina hosted the Festival Panafricain du Cinéma de Ouagadougou. A way to talk about Africa not only with regard to migrations and wars, but also in terms of creativity, much appreciated among other things by the intellectuals of the First World, often anorexic of cultural patriotism.

A tour of Ouagadougou, Ouagà for the intimate, and it was clear that Burkina Faso was different from the rebellious neighbors. Burkinabé hospitality, renowned for the connoisseurs of Africa, has always mixed with an exemplary capacity for coexistence, especially in light of the perpetually unstable status of the neighboring countries of Mali, Niger, Ivory Coast and the not very distant Nigeria.

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No coincidence that in the heart of the capital twenty years ago the headquarters of the UEMOA (West African-Economic and Monetary Union) was established, a political-economic organization vital to the geopolitical assets of West Africa. The political stability of the former Upper Volta with time has become an example for the neighbors and the ability to oppose a coup aimed at consolidating an oligarchy seemed to confirm this.

Behind the dust of the Ouagà scooters, however, the deception has been hidden.

Compaoré's men are back and the 17 September Kafando has been ousted with the most classic military blitz. The soldiers of the RSP (Régiment de Sécurité Presidentielle) commanded by General Dienderé and bulwark of the Presidentissimo's thirty-year management, they took back the power tied to the old guard, staging a textbook coup. The Burkina armed forces, relatively estimated on a regional level, remained in the middle. Based on the positions taken by the senior officers, in particular those of the 25 Commando Paratrooper Regiment with greater operational capacity, it will be decided whether Ouagadougou will remain trapped in a civil war or return to the tried and tested unconstitutional African transition model.

On a practical level, in front of a country without resources and particular strategic interests, the world is watching.

The classical Dante cause of Burkina, France, but also the African Union and the United States have moved in positions of pro forma sentencing, pending developments. There is talk of negotiations with the mediation of neighboring political leaders (president of Benin and Senegal) and of possible last-minute agreements. The elections scheduled for October could slip in November passing through a pragmatic solution: formal reinstatement of Kafando and informal reintegration of the old levers of power of Compaoré's men. In essence, what will happen is a compromise that will save the face of "constitutional power" and supporters of the "African exception" (especially third world journalism of our house) but at the same time guarantee areas of power reserved for the old guard.

Old system linked to the Presidential Guard or constitutional power, changes little. Beyond the façade positions, what happens around the Palais Kossyam (the presidential palace of Ouagadougou) actually interests few. The most logical reflection returns to being only one: since the end of colonialism Africa has not been able to independently create credible or in some way stable institutional models. Hope analysts have to wait.

"Yel Kayé!" the inhabitants of Ouagà said, to say "All right!". As often happens in Africa, it's always good, whatever happens.

(PHOTO: author / MDNAC)