Burkina Faso: Traoré admits forcibly conscripting an editor as journalist kidnappings rise
In an astonishing statement, Captain Ibrahim Traoré, the head of Burkina Faso’s government, announced he’d forcibly conscripted a journalist at a time when four media professionals are currently missing. Reporters Without Borders (RSF) urges the authorities to put an end to these brutal tactics, which violate the Burkinabe people's right to information.
Update (16/07/2024): A fourth journalist has been kidnapped in Burkina Faso in less than a month. Alain Traoré, editor-in-chief and host of the Omega Media group's programme Le Défouloir, was abducted by individuals claiming to be from the National Intelligence Agency (ANR) in the early hours of 13 July. His family and colleagues have had no news of him since his abduction.
“There is a journalist who was recently conscripted because, since 2023, he has spent his time lying,” Captain Ibrahim Traoré declared shortly after a speech to the Burkinabe public on 11 July. The junta leader's statement acted as both a warning to media professionals and a confirmation that a journalist – potentially Atiana Serge Oulon, editor of the fortnightly L'Événement who was kidnapped by alleged members of the National Intelligence Agency (ANR) on 24 June – had been conscripted into the army.
The head of state also stated that the journalist in question "has been summoned by the gendarmerie [a division of the armed forces], by the ASCE-LC [Superior State Control and Anti-Corruption Authority] and by all structures to provide proof of what he is saying.” The questioning process described is remarkably similar to the multiple summons sent to Serge Oulon after his report on suspected embezzlement within the militia, published in December 2022. When contacted for further details, a source close to the President's office said that RSF should "stick to what the President says.” A few days earlier, however, this same source had told RSF that "Serge was safe.”
"Listening to the public statements made by Captain Ibrahim Traoré, RSF has every reason to believe that the journalist forcibly conscripted into the army is Atiana Serge Oulon. This crackdown on journalists marks the country’s increasing descent into an authoritarian regime where journalists are less and less safe. RSF urges the authorities to break with this policy of silencing journalists, which ultimately attacks citizens and their right to free, independent and diverse information."
Following Traoré's statement, several journalists in the country, who wish to remain anonymous, told RSF that it was "now clear that Serge is at the battlefront,” and has been "enlisted as a Volunteer for the Defence of the Homeland (VDP).” It is now common practice for critics of the government to be forcibly conscripted and sent to the Kaya military camp for training before being integrated into a unit.
A Pesky Journalist
Oulon’s investigation raised suspicions that a senior army officer had embezzled 400 million CFA francs (around €609,000) intended for VDPs. A few weeks later, Oulon was questioned by military authorities who tried to extract information from him about his source. The journalist was also summoned by the ASCE-LC in 2023.
Two columnists from the private television station BF1, Kalifara Séré and Adama Bayala, have also been missing since 19 and 28 June.
