Burundi opposition politician arrested

Authorities in Burundi have arrested the head of an opposition party, members of his party have said.

Aloys Baricako, president of National Gathering for Change (RANAC) was apprehended on Monday evening, party spokesman George Nikiza said.

“The intelligence services in Gitega confirmed his arrest to us and said he was detained for inquiry,” Nikiza said on Tuesday.

The small and impoverished Central Africa nation has been rocked by insecurity since 2015, when President Pierre Nkurunziza decided to seek a third term in office that his opponents said was unconstitutional.

Opponents of President Nkurunziza’s third term launched an armed struggle that resulted in violence killing hundreds of people and forcing at least 400,000 into exile.

Some of those who fled were opposition politicians who said they feared for their lives.

Baricako’s party RANAC was a coalition of three political parties during the 2015 elections and registered as a single party in December 2016.