Life beyond the protests

Life beyond the protests

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Amid rising tensions in a region with a history of ethnic conflict, crowds of cheering, singing people streamed onto the streets of Bujumbura, the capital of Burundi, on a day that may amount to a coup prompted by a bid by President Pierre Nkurunziza to seek a third term in office.

While recent unrest has plunged Burundi into its worst crisis since the end of a conflict a decade ago, Reuters photographer Thomas Mukoya shows the realities of daily life.

. BUGARAMA, Burundi. REUTERS/Thomas Mukoya
Traders carry bags of charcoal.

My mission was to profile the tiny, landlocked nation of Burundi, struggling to cope with the challenges of the 21st century, in all its diversity. I wanted to get to know the nation’s people, agriculture, food and economy.

I first chose to follow cyclists who bring charcoal from the hills on the road to Bugarama. Due to the steep hills and sharp bends, the cyclists hold on to motorbikes, private cars and trucks to pull themselves up to their villages after selling their charcoal.

. BUGARAMA, Burundi. REUTERS/Thomas Mukoya

Fuel is a very rare commodity in Burundi; that surprised me. Drivers of cars and motorbikes tried to find out when a delivery was due and then they would queue for hours. The pump attendants and clients resort to fist fights every now and then in an effort to get the precious liquid for their engines.

. BUJUMBURA, Burundi. REUTERS/Thomas Mukoya
A rider queues for petrol amid fuel shortage.

Accusations of queue jumping were made, the solution being to pick up a motorbike out of the line and move it to the back.

I also captured images of open-air markets where traders sell all sorts of commodities. The root vegetable cassava is a staple food in Burundi and therefore I was attracted to the cassava-flour milling machines in different areas of Bujumbura.

The flour-covered faces of the millers were astonishing sights. If it weren’t for cassava then people would starve in Burundi.

. BUJUMBURA, Burundi. REUTERS/Thomas Mukoya

As for large-scale farming, I visited a tea factory on the Teza plantation in Muramvya province, east of the capital. The wet weather combined with images of the tea plants popularly known as “green gold” was a breathtaking experience.

In the capital, the River Ntahangwa cuts across different neighbourhoods. I saw men manually collecting building sand from the riverbed for sale. It’s a real struggle for people to make a living.

. BUJUMBURA, Burundi. REUTERS/Thomas Mukoya
Vendors sell doughnuts to manual workers at a sand harvesting section of the Ntahangwa river.

I also went to the Ave Marie primary school where the children were sitting examinations. Most of them had never had their pictures taken before and they were all jostling to have an opportunity to pose for a great photo.

. BUJUMBURA, Burundi. REUTERS/Thomas Mukoya

I was in Burundi a week before President Pierre Nkurunziza was given the nod by his ruling CNDD-FDD party to run for a third five-year term in office in elections due to be held at the end of June. People listened intently on their mobile phones to news bulletins every day at lunchtime, keen to know more about what would happen at the Congress meeting.

. BUJUMBURA, Burundi. REUTERS/Thomas Mukoya
A vendor sells a map of Africa.

In the capital, protesters opposed to Nkurunziza told me that they planned to stay no matter what happened in clashes with the police. “If we have to die, we’ll die here,” they told me.

Most of the military were in Bujumbura, from what I saw. When I travelled round the rest of the country they were much less visible.

Wherever I went locals complained that the president hadn’t achieved any development of the economy in Burundi, that the country was stuck in a rut compared with its neighbours in East Africa.

“The president’s mandate is over and we want someone to take us to the next level,” I kept on hearing. “Enough is enough.”

“This guy has to go,” others said.

Time and again, locals told me that the whole world would know what was happening in Burundi. As I left the country people were telling me, “It’s not over.”

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Slideshow

The Masjid Al-Markaz lies in the centre of Bujumbura.
. BUJUMBURA, Burundi. REUTERS/Thomas Mukoya

The Masjid Al-Markaz lies in the centre of Bujumbura.

People travel along a street near the Masjid Al-Markaz.
. BUJUMBURA, Burundi. REUTERS/Thomas Mukoya

People travel along a street near the Masjid Al-Markaz.

A cyclist pushes a bicycle loaded with furniture from a carpenter's workshop.
. BUJUMBURA, Burundi. REUTERS/Thomas Mukoya

A cyclist pushes a bicycle loaded with furniture from a carpenter's workshop.

Wooden coffins are wrapped in purple cloth ready for sale.
. BUJUMBURA, Burundi. REUTERS/Thomas Mukoya

Wooden coffins are wrapped in purple cloth ready for sale.

A carpenter uses some broken glass to carve a piece of wood.
. BUJUMBURA, Burundi. REUTERS/Thomas Mukoya

A carpenter uses some broken glass to carve a piece of wood.

A woman stands at the entrance of the Greek Orthodox Church.
. BUJUMBURA, Burundi. REUTERS/Thomas Mukoya

A woman stands at the entrance of the Greek Orthodox Church.

A woman holds an umbrella as she carries her child outside a primary school.
. BUJUMBURA, Burundi. REUTERS/Thomas Mukoya

A woman holds an umbrella as she carries her child outside a primary school.

A motorist fights with a petrol pump attendant (left) amid fuel shortages.
. BUJUMBURA, Burundi. REUTERS/Thomas Mukoya

A motorist fights with a petrol pump attendant (left) amid fuel shortages.

Motorists queue for petrol.
. BUJUMBURA, Burundi. REUTERS/Thomas Mukoya

Motorists queue for petrol.

Cyclists hold onto a pick-up truck as they ride up hill to Bugarama mountain.
. BUGARAMA, Burundi. REUTERS/Thomas Mukoya

Cyclists hold onto a pick-up truck as they ride up hill to Bugarama mountain.

People walk along a street in Mageyo market in Muramvya province.
. BUJUMBURA, Burundi. REUTERS/Thomas Mukoya

People walk along a street in Mageyo market in Muramvya province.

A man cuts meat at an open air butchery in Mageyo market.
. BUGARAMA, Burundi. REUTERS/Thomas Mukoya

A man cuts meat at an open air butchery in Mageyo market.

A man cuts meat.
. BUJUMBURA, Burundi. REUTERS/Thomas Mukoya

A man cuts meat.

A worker picks tea leaves on a plantation near the Teza tea factory in Bukeye commune.
. BUJUMBURA, Burundi. REUTERS/Thomas Mukoya

A worker picks tea leaves on a plantation near the Teza tea factory in Bukeye commune.

Workers carry fresh tea leaves.
. BUJUMBURA, Burundi. REUTERS/Thomas Mukoya

Workers carry fresh tea leaves.

A worker carries a bag of tea packaged for export.
. BUJUMBURA, Burundi. REUTERS/Thomas Mukoya

A worker carries a bag of tea packaged for export.

Tea packaged for export is stacked at the Teza tea factory.
. BUJUMBURA, Burundi. REUTERS/Thomas Mukoya

Tea packaged for export is stacked at the Teza tea factory.