Following a night of intense gunfire and explosions in Burundi’s capital of Bujumbura that left at least one civilian and one police officer dead, voters turned out in low numbers for the country’s controversial presidential election, in which President Pierre Nkurunziza is seeking a third term that critics charge is unconstitutional.
The body of an opposition member was found dead in the commune of Nyakabiga, and residents have accused supporters of the ruling party of planting the body as an act of intimidation. As Red Cross workers removed the body from the neighborhood, anti-Nkurunziza songs, dances, and chants erupted from a crowd of residents, delivering one of the most open displays of defiance against the president that the capital has seen in many weeks.
Videos by VICE
Watch “Rally of the Ruling Party (Dispatch 6)”
Watch previous dispatches from Burundi
Read “Deadly Violence Ahead of Burundi’s Election Foreshadows Struggle Ahead”
