Burundi: President's third term bid throws country into turmoil

From the onset, the writing had been on the wall that the elections in Burundi could be contentious, with such strong opposition to President Pierre Nkurunziza seeking a third term. At the time his party, CNDD-FDD, nominated him as its flag bearer; I was on an assignment in neighboring DRC but monitoring the situation. So I had to travel as fast as I could to Bujumbura on Friday May 1, 2015.

The day after I arrived, civil society organizations called a "truce" for the weekend, as I tried to grasp an understanding of events on the ground. The first day of the "truce" coincided with the funeral of Jean-Claude Niyonzima, who was killed on the first day of the protests, on April 26, 2015. Family members said that armed men entered his house and shot him.

Two days later I was in a small health center in Musaga neighborhood – a focal point of the protests where a young man I know only as Pascal was losing a lot of blood. He had taken what looked like a gunshot to his back after police charged at protesters. Pascal was unconscious. Later in the evening I learnt of his death. A ministry spokesman claimed police did not use live ammunition.

I'm used to working in environments where security services are a lot more aggressive towards the press, and where mobs can quickly turn nasty. So far, this has largely been absent in the Burundian capital, although many of the 'Imbonerakure,' the youth wing of the ruling party who are opposed to the protesters, are reluctant to speak and have at times taken an aggressive stance against pictures.

I spend much of my time talking to and interacting with police and protesters. To make pictures that accurately portray a situation, I believe you must understand the dynamics behind events. Police regularly ask me: "How do you see the situation here?" and crossing the barricades, protesters ask the same question.

Protestors are exasperated by the fact that Nkurunziza is, as they see it, violating the constitution to run again. There is tremendous frustration at the situation, exacerbated by the bouts of violence meted out by police. Most shops in the city are closed. Therefore, buying food is becoming increasingly difficult. And because of uncertainties, many are spending nights on guard.

The ruling CNDD-FDD party, which nominated Nkurunziza as its candidate, has an eagle as its emblem. Protesters carry placards with a red cross over a bird's image to denigrate the party’s emblem. The most gruesome act was when protesters plucked out the feathers from what looked like a dead crow. They held the dead bird at the frontline of a demonstration, waving it at the police opposite them.

As a way of adornment, more and more protesters had their faces covered in black soot from the barricades. Others began to wear masks, some had simple balaclavas or scarves, others more elaborate coverings, made from branches and leaves. It appeared to me to be more of a question of style than of masking their identity. Theater elements play an important role in activism.

I like moments when you can catch more atmosphere of a place, particularly in soft early light. I was walking through the nearly deserted streets of Musaga when I saw this man sauntering towards me with a wooden rifle. I took out my camera. The man noticed me and struck a pose. The protesters seem to have adopted these pretend weapons to represent the futility of coming up against live rounds.

Phil Moore is a British independent photojournalist and multimedia producer. He contributes to French news agency AFP and is currently based in Nairobi. Moore has reported on different conflict hotspots like the Democratic Republic of Congo, Sudan and Syria.