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ABIDJAN —Burkina Faso’s deposed president Blaise Compaore arrived in
Ivory Coast on Friday on the latest stage of an odyssey which has
taken him to several countries since he was toppled.
Should he seek to stay, his presence could complicate relations
between the two West African neighbors and prove politically awkward
for the Ivorian government as President Alassane Ouattara seeks
re-election next year.
A senior official in the president’s office said Compaore, who sought
refuge in Ivory Coast immediately after fleeing mass protests in
October, had arrived in the capital Yamoussoukro after spending time
in Morocco, Gabon and elsewhere.
“He came back here. He’s free to go wherever he wants,” the official
said, adding that it was unclear how long Compaore planned to remain
in the country. “The president has already said that he is free to
stay as long as he likes. It’s up to him.”
Ivory Coast’s government spokesman Bruno Kone said he could not
confirm Compaore’s presence in the country.
“I don’t know why the question keeps coming up. He is a free
individual. He’s free to come and go. It’s not a question for us,” he
told Reuters. “He is a friend of Ivory Coast.”
Compaore has a close relationship with Ouattara, and was lodged in a
state villa when he first arrived after his fall from power.
The Ivorian opposition accuses him of backing pro-Ouattara forces that
fought against and defeated former president Laurent Gbagbo in 2011
after he failed to recognize his defeat to Ouattara in an election.
With polls due again next year, Compaore’s continued presence could
therefore prove sensitive.
The possibility that Burkina Faso may seek Compaore’s extradition to
face trial could also create complications.
“If it happens, I think the authorities will study the situation, but
we’re not there for the moment,” the Ivorian presidency source said.
Burkina Faso’s interim Prime Minister Isaac Zida has promised to open
enquiries into the suspected involvement of Compaore’s government in
several high-profile killings, a key demand of the protesters who
ended his 27 years in power.
Compaore took power in a 1987 coup in which then-President Thomas
Sankara was killed in unexplained circumstances. The interim
authorities have said they will exhume a grave thought to contain the
remains of Sankara, a revolutionary folk hero in the West African
nation.
Credit: Reuters
