Revolt Rocks Burkina Faso’s Mines After President Flees
Burkina Faso soldiers patrol near the Tambao mine in Tambao, Burkia Faso on April 5, 2015.
Photographer: Ahmed Ouoba/AFP via Getty ImagesThis article is for subscribers only.
Gold miner Damien Tonde would never have considered taking his boss to court for firing him and 324 others until last year’s overthrow of Blaise Compaore, who ruled Burkina Faso for almost 30 years.
“Under the old regime, mining companies felt very strong,” Tonde, 35, clutching a clear binder with legal documents, said in the capital, Ouagadougou. “We didn’t stand a chance before the judge.”