Large parts of Burkina Faso are "terrorized by armed groups" and rampant insecurity is "beyond alarming," the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, Volker Türk, said this week after a brief visit to the country. During his first trip to the country in his new role, Türk expressed solidarity with the people of Burkina Faso and held high-level talks on the human rights and humanitarian situation in the central Sahel country.
In Burkina Faso, 6.3 million people - nearly a third of the population - are in need of humanitarian assistance and protection. Among those in need are 3.2 million children. More than 2 million people are internally displaced, including 1.1 million children. While 2.3 million people in the country face acute food insecurity, 800,000 children are out of school.
“The suffering of millions of Burkinabe is heartbreaking,” the High Commissioner said on Thursday in the capital Ouagadougou.
“Yet it has slipped off the international agenda and the resources made available are totally insufficient to respond to the scale of people’s needs.”
The UN's 2024 Humanitarian Response Plan for Burkina Faso calls for US$935 million to support some 3.8 million people, but is only 3 percent funded.
The people of Burkina Faso continue to experience a multidimensional humanitarian crisis that has worsened since 2021. While millions are internally displaced, a de facto blockade by armed groups of areas where more than 1 million people live or have sought refuge has deprived people of freedom of movement and essential supplies.
“The security situation is beyond alarming. Large parts of the country are being terrorized by armed groups”, Türk said, noting that his office in 2023 documented 1,335 violations and abuses of human rights and humanitarian law, involving at least 3,800 civilian victims.
According to the High Commissioner, non-state armed groups (NSAGs) were responsible for the vast majority of violations against civilians – in incidents involving more than 86 percent of the victims.
"Protection of civilians is paramount. Such wanton violence must stop and the perpetrators be held accountable," Türk said.
But there were also reports of serious abuses by the security forces and their auxiliaries - the Volontaires pour la défense de la Patrie (VDP) - "which must be thoroughly investigated and acted upon."
“This is essential to foster a climate of law and order, build confidence between civilians and State authorities, and to counter impunity,” Türk added.
According to several sources, numerous civilians, mainly children, women and elderly people, were killed in the village of Zaongo, Namentenga Province, Centre-North Region, between November 5 and 8, 2023, under circumstances that remain unclear.
Authorities have confirmed at least 70 deaths. The killings were reportedly carried out by men in uniform. Some reports suggest that as many as 100 people may have been killed by security forces in the massacre, and a large number injured.
Also in November 2023, fighters from the armed group Jamāʿat nuṣrat al-islām wal-muslimīn (Group for the Support of Islam and Muslims, JNIM) - linked to al-Qaeda and the Islamic State group - attacked a military base, homes, and camps for internally displaced persons (IDPs) in the city of Djibo in Burkina Faso's Sahel region, killing at least 40 civilians and injuring more than 42.
In February 2024, some 170 people, including dozens of women and children, were reportedly killed by armed groups in attacks on the villages of Komsilga, Nodin and Soroe in Yatenga province in northern Burkina Faso.
Security incidents, attacks and abductions are a daily reality for millions of civilians and humanitarian workers in the field. Attacks on civilians and infrastructure, as well as conflicts between the state and non-state armed groups, have led to massive population displacement in Burkina Faso and neighboring countries.
The security situation in Burkina Faso deteriorated following two military coups in January and September 2022. Military operations intensified, tens of thousands of security auxiliaries were deployed, and a state of emergency was declared in several provinces, while security and human rights conditions worsened.
Armed groups are responsible for the majority of serious human rights violations in the country. The UN human rights office has also documented an increase in serious violations committed by the security forces and their auxiliaries. Enforced disappearances and arbitrary detentions of perceived critics of the transitional authorities have increased. There have also been reports of forced conscription.
Earlier Thursday, Türk had met with the most recent coup leader, Ibrahim Traoré, who calls himself “the President of the Transition of Burkina Faso” and stressed the need for human rights to be at the center of all efforts to manage the multifaceted challenges the country is facing.
According to Türk, the two men had an in-depth and wide-ranging discussion on the grave security situation, the socio-economic and humanitarian situation, as well as climate change and environmental degradation.
“In the context of the transition in Burkina Faso, it is key to ensure meaningful participation and inclusivity, including of women, young people and across all communities, notably the most marginalized ones”, Türk said.
“It is also key to create an enabling environment for civil society actors, and to listen to divergent views, enabling everyone to exercise their human rights without fear of reprisals.”
The High Commissioner also met with civil society representatives and members of the diplomatic corps and the UN.
“I call on the international community to not lose sight of the grave situation the people here face,” Türk said.
Escalating militant Islamist violence in Burkina Faso - particularly violence against civilians - has forced more than 1 million Burkinabes to flee their homes since 2021. Violent incidents are primarily associated with Islamist militant groups, particularly the Macina Liberation Front, the Group for the Support of Islam and Muslims (JNIM), and the Islamic State of the Greater Sahara (ISGS).
According to the Armed Conflict Location and Event Data Project (ACLED), more than 20,000 people have been killed since Islamist armed groups began their attacks in the central Sahel in 2015.
According to the international rights group Human Rights Watch (HRW), Burkina Faso's human rights situation deteriorated significantly in 2023 as deadly attacks by Islamist armed groups against civilians increased and security forces and pro-government militias committed human rights abuses during counterinsurgency operations.
Further information
Full text: UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Türk press stakeout, concluding brief official visit to Burkina Faso, statement, delivered March 21, 2024
https://www.ohchr.org/en/statements/2024/03/un-high-commissioner-human-rights-volker-turk-press-stakeout-concluding-brief