A canny chameleon

摘要

After overthrowing his close friend in a bloody coup d'etat, Burkina Faso's captain-turned-president, Blaise Com-paore, has held power for more than two decades. He was often accused of ruling with an iron fist and sponsoring rebellions all over west Africa. But nowadays Beau Blaise portrays himself as a respected statesman who can soothe rather than stir things up.rnHe was a key man in the coup that brought Thomas Sankara to power in 1983. Four years later, Mr Sankara was killed, perhaps after he told soldiers loyal to him to eliminate his supposed ally. Mr Com-paore, then 36, took over one of the world's poorest countries.