Human Rights Watch (HRW) has accused Burkina Faso’s military junta, led by Captain Ibrahim Traore, of escalating attacks on government critics by using “increasingly brutal methods” including kidnappings and forced conscription.
Since seizing power in a September 2022 coup, the junta has reportedly targeted several individuals deemed hostile to the regime. HRW’s Sahel researcher, Ilaria Allegrozzi, condemned these actions, stating that the authorities are “punishing and silencing perceived critics and opponents.”
The organization documented six cases of abductions by unidentified individuals since November, including prominent lawyer and activist Guy Herve Kam. Kam’s disappearance sparked protests and court closures across Burkina Faso, with members of his movement, “Balai Citoyen” (Citizen Broom), expressing fear and a stifling of basic rights.
Further contributing to concerns, the junta declared a “general mobilization” decree in April 2023, granting them the power to conscript individuals “18 years and older” to fight jihadists. HRW reports that under this emergency law, at least a dozen journalists, activists, and opposition members were notified of potential conscription in November.
Traore’s coup marked the second in Burkina Faso within eight months, both fueled by frustration over the government’s inability to contain the ongoing jihadist insurgency that began in 2015. This violence has claimed nearly 20,000 lives and displaced over two million people.
