Information service of the Pontifical Mission Societies since 1927
Bujumbura (Agenzia Fides) - "According to the Red Cross, at least three people were killed and several others injured yesterday as a result of shots fired by the police on the crowd" say local sources from Bujumbura, capital of Burundi to Agenzia Fides where even today protests are being held against the candidacy for a third term, in violation of the Constitution which provides only two presidential terms (see Fides 27/04/2015) of incumbent President Pierre Nkurunziza.
"The crowd recognized one of the police officers who fired on the demonstrators and burned the house. We are experiencing a very dangerous situation because weapons are seen in the hands of the youth of the President's party, which constituted a real militia, but also in the hands of some opposition protesters" say Fides sources, anonymous for security reasons.
"The center of the capital has now become a dead zone because the police and army prevent non-residents from entering. Schools, offices and shops are closed, since students and workers cannot enter the center", say Fides sources. "Demonstrations continue in the suburbs. Protests have now spread to the rest of Burundi, and this is why the authorities have blocked the broadcast of three independent radios".
At an institutional level, the Constitutional Court approved today, May 5, Nkurunziza's candidature for a third presidential term. The Vice President of the Court, Sylvère Nimpagaritse said most of the court’s seven judges believed it would be unconstitutional for Nkurunziza to stand again, but had faced enormous pressure and even death threats to force them to change their mind. Nimpagaritse has taken refuge in Rwanda. (L.M.) (Agenzia Fides 05/05/2015)
