AFRICA/BURKINA FASO - Calm situation, demonstrations in favor of the military who took power

Ouagadougou (Agenzia Fides) - “The situation in Ouagadougou is calm. People move freely without any problems. In the aftermath of the coup, several groups of young people took to the streets to show their support for the military and there do not seem to be any demonstrations against them", local sources from Ouagadougou, the capital of Burkina Faso, tell Fides.
In the last few days a military junta has taken power in the African country (see Fides, 24 and 25 January 2022). The President, Roch Marc Christian Kaboré, "is physically healthy", confirms a source in his party, according to whom the Head of State is under house arrest in a presidential villa. The images released by the international media on the demonstrations of the population in support of the coup leaders show some young people waving the flag of the Russian Federation.
Burkina Faso is one of the countries participating in the G5 Sahel initiative, supported by France and the European Union, among others, to create a security framework in the five Sahel countries that have joined this initiative (Mauritania, Mali, Burkina Faso, Niger and Chad). In a statement, the G5 Sahel initiative said it was "deeply concerned by the course of events in Burkina Faso, which threaten to undermine the democratic achievements in that member country of the organization. The G5 Sahel, which upholds the ideals of peace, security and is committed to democracy, strongly condemns this attempt to disrupt the constitutional order. It calls for respect for the physical integrity of the President of Burkina Faso and all detained authorities. The G5 Sahel calls on all parties to promote dialogue and to resolve contradictions calmly and peacefully". Meanwhile, there have been military coups in three of the countries involved in the initiative: starting with Mali in August 2020 and Chad after the assassination of the president in April 2021, risking weakening efforts to fight the jihadist groups raging in the Sahel. In Burkina Faso alone, around 1.5 million people have been forced to flee their homes since 2015 due to the rampant insecurity in several regions of the country. (L.M.) (Agenzia Fides, 26/1/2022)

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