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Amnesty International Report 2001

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Amnesty International Report 2001 Covering events from January - December 2000 BURKINA FASO Burkina Faso Head of state: Blaise Compaoré Head of government: Ernest Yonli (replaced Kadré Désiré Ouédraogo in November) Capital: Ouagadougou Population: 10.9 million Official language: French Death penalty: abolitionist in practice Pressure from all sectors of society on the government to end impunity for past human rights violations led to the arrest of dozens of people, some of whom were ill-treated. Three presidential security officials were convicted in connection with the death in January 1998 of David Ouédraogo. Charges against the President's brother in connection with the death were dropped. There was no progress in bringing to justice those responsible for the killing in December 1998 of Norbert Zongo and his three companions. Background In September the ruling party of President Blaise Compaoré, the Congrès pour la démocratie et le progrès, Congress for Democracy and Progress, won an overwhelming majority in much delayed local government elections. The elections were boycotted by the more significant opposition parties who felt that political reforms, including the introduction of proportional representation, had not addressed the overriding need to strengthen democracy. In April a three-day general strike was called to protest against the use of force by police which had left 30 demonstrators injured. The strike led to the arrest of several prominent leaders of the Collectif d'organisations démocratiques de masse et de partis politiques (Collectif), a coalition of opposition political parties, human rights organizations, trade unions, and journalists' and students' organizations. The Collectif, which called the strike, had been formed to campaign for those responsible for the death in December 1998 of independent journalist Norbert Zongo to be brought to justice. Other strikes and protests, which largely focused on demands for ending impunity, took place throughout the year. Talks between the government and the Collectif broke down in June. Following the death in December of Flavien Nébié, a 12-year-old student, when the security forces opened fire on a small demonstration in Boussé, all public demonstrations were banned. Events planned to commemorate the death of Norbert Zongo, including the International Festival on Freedom of the Press and Expression in West Africa, were also banned and more than 50 festival participants travelling from Ghana were prevented from entering the country. Those who tried to visit Norbert Zongo's grave were dispersed by the security forces using tear gas. Impunity Civil society, including human rights groups and the political opposition, continued to demand an end to impunity for past human rights violations. Norbert Zongo No one was arrested or charged in connection with the deaths of Norbert Zongo and three others in December 1998, despite the recommendation of an Independent Commission of Inquiry in May 1999 that judicial proceedings be instituted against six named suspects, and the appointment of a judge to investigate the case. The Commission had concluded that Norbert Zongo had been killed for purely political reasons, including his investigation into the death of David Ouédraogo. David Ouédraogo Five people were finally brought to trial in August for the death in custody, as a result of torture, of David Ouédraogo in January 1998. David Ouédraogo, chauffeur of François Compaoré, presidential adviser and brother of the President, had been arrested with two other employees, accused of having stolen a large amount of money from their employer. François Compaoré was charged in January 1999 with the murder of David Ouédraogo and with harbouring the body. In 1999 the Criminal Appeal Court in Ouagadougou had ruled that it was not competent to hear the case against him and referred it to a military court. The charges were subsequently dropped. In August, five members of the Régiment de la sécurité présidentielle, the presidential security force, were tried by the military court in Ouagadougou on charges of assault occasioning death. One of the defendants was reported to have admitted that he had ill-treated David Ouédraogo, but sought to justify this by stating that he was seeking information about an alleged coup plot. François Compaoré testified in court, but his statement was challenged by defence lawyers because dates he gave conflicted with those confirmed by other witnesses. The President's personal chief of staff, Colonel Gilbert Diendéré, sought forgiveness before the court for what happened, but refused to accept responsibility. Three of the defendants were convicted - two were sentenced to 20 years' imprisonment and one received a 10-year sentence - and the other two were acquitted. The three defendants who were convicted and one of those acquitted were among the six suspects in the murder of Norbert Zongo named by the Independent Commission of Inquiry. In May, the magistrate investigating the separate legal case concerning the theft in which David Ouédraogo was implicated alleged that statements presented to the court had been fabricated and named Warrant Officer Abdoulaye Semdé as among those responsible. One month later, Abdoulaye Semdé died, apparently as a result of a sudden illness. The lack of autopsy or other investigation into his death led to suspicion that he may have been killed to prevent him revealing evidence. Other cases The widow of former President Thomas Sankara lodged a complaint against persons unknown before the Criminal Appeal Court concerning her husband's death. Thomas Sankara and at least 12 others were killed during the coup in 1987 which brought President Compaoré to power. In January, the Court rejected the case saying that it was a military matter. The family intended to pursue the case before the Supreme Court. Other deaths in custody or in suspicious circumstances, including those of university teacher Guillaume Sessouma in 1989 and opposition leader Clément Ouédraogo in 1991, remained unresolved. The trial of a gendarme, who was accused of responsibility for the deaths of two school students in Garango in 1995, opened in December. The trial was adjourned because the legal dossier was incomplete; the gendarme, who had never been arrested, remained at liberty. Mamadou Kéré On 10 June, the Naabe Tigré of Tenkodogo, a powerful traditional chief, ordered the punishment by beating of Mamadou Kéré and reportedly did not intervene to prevent his death. Mamadou Kéré had apparently criticized the inactivity of the ruling party. His criticism was perceived as disrespectful because the Naabe Tigré's son was the elected parliamentary representative. The chief was charged with not helping a person in danger, held only briefly, but remained free pending trial. Some 20 people accused of causing the death were imprisoned at the Maison d'arrêt et de correction de Ouagadougou (MACO) awaiting trial. Arrests and ill-treatment of political opponents Six leading members of the Collectif were arrested and ill-treated in April including Halidou Ouédraogo, President of the Collectif and also of the Mouvement burkinabè des droits de l'homme et des peuples, Burkinabè Movement for Human and Peoples' Rights; Tolé Sagnon, Vice-President of the Collectif; Pierre Bidima; and Etienne Traoré. All were held at the Direction de la compagnie d'intervention rapide (DCIR), the police rapid deployment force headquarters, denied visits and had their heads shaved. All six were subsequently released without charge. Following the death of Flavien Nébié on 6 December, 15 local members of the Collectif were arrested. The school student died when the security forces opened fire on a crowd who reportedly began to throw stones when their attempt to present a petition critical of proposed educational reforms to the local government representative was met with a closed door. The authorities accused the Collectif of being responsible for the unrest which resulted in the security forces' intervention, and even claimed that the Collectif was therefore responsible for Flavien Nébié's death. Collectif members were taken to the gendarmerie in Ouagadougou where they were held without charge or trial for up to 21 days; the last four were released on 27 December. The authorities have stated that an investigation has been started to establish responsibility for the death of Flavien Nébié. During December other attacks against the Collectif were carried out by local militia. In Koudougou, Mohamed Sawadogo, the local president of the Collectif, was reportedly briefly detained and interrogated by armed supporters of Hermann Yaméogo, leader of a political party, because he suspected the Collectif of destroying some of his property. In Fada N'Gourma, Etienne Convolbo, a local representative of the teachers' union and member of the Collectif, was detained, beaten and expelled from his home town by armed supporters of the mayor. Some member organizations of the Collectif publicly complained that the security forces had seemed unwilling to intervene to protect their members. Students In response to five months of strikes which also focused on calls for an end to impunity, the authorities closed the university in Ouagadougou on 6 October. The Association nationale des étudiants burkinabè (ANEB), National Association of Burkinabè Students, demanded its reopening and arranged a meeting with school pupils to gather support for their action. As a result, around 50 students, including Souleymane Kologo, ANEB's President, were arrested and held at the DCIR. They were held for four days and had their heads shaved before being released without charge. Some 10 other students were arrested for seeking permission to hold a student meeting in a school and taken to the gendarmerie on 23 October. They were all released without charge during November. AI country statement ● Burkina Faso: Cruel, inhuman and degrading treatment/Prisoners of conscience (AI Index: AFR 60/001/2000).
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