7/12/99 - BURKINA FASO

URGENT APPEAL

One of the most prominent Sahel-West Africa Ashoka Fellows, Halidou OUEDRAOGO, of the Burkinabé Movement for Peoples' and Human Rights (MBDHP), has been arrested.

He had been doing remarkable work in leading the government of Burkina Faso to implement concrete human rights actions at various levels. During the course of 1999 Halidou and the MBDHP have been joined by other civil society organisations united under the banner of the Collective Body of Burkinabé democratic grass-roots organisations and political parties. More details are included in their Document below and action is demanded, as follows:

Contact without delay, whether by fax, email, telephone or any other means of communication, the political authorities of Burkina Faso, in order to

* Protest against these acts which are violations of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, of the African Charter of Peoples' and Human Rights, of the pact relative to Political And Civil Rights, of the Convention against Torture, and of the provisions of articles 3, 7 and 8 of the Constitution of Burkina Faso.

* Demand: 1) The immediate and unconditional release of Halidou OUEDRAOGO, Tolé SAGNON, André TIBIRI, Bénéwendé SANKARA, Boureima SIGUE and Paulin YAMEOGO.
2) The end of the harassment directed towards democrats and human rights militants concerned with the Norbert ZONGO case.
3) The prosecution and legitimate trial by honest magistrates of those responsible for the assasination of Norbert ZONGO and others.



We would appreciate it if you could send to UIDH a copy of the correspendence you send to the government of Burkina Faso.


----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

URGENT ACTION


TO ALL SECTIONS OF THE U.I.D.H.


On 26th November 1999 the Collective Body of Burkinabé democratic grass-roots organisations and political parties, following the police harassment, arrests and acts of intimidation that have been directed at the popular demonstrations held recently, called for the security forces and the national armed forces of Burkina Faso to 'guarantee the security' and 'defend the people's freedom to demonstrate.'

This appeal, launched the day before the demonstrations planned by the Collective Body to mark the first anniversary of the assassination of Norbert ZONGO and his companions, was addressed to, among others, the Minister for the Defence of Burkina Faso, and was made public through the press.

Following this declaration, those in power resumed their campaign of arrests and acts of intimidation. Thus, on Wednesday 1st December 1999, Halidou OUEDRAOGO, President of the Burkinabé Movement for Peoples' and Human Rights (MBDHP) and of the Collective, Mr Tolé SAGNON the Secretary General of the General Confederation of the Workers of Burkina Faso (CGTB) and Vice-President of the Collective, Mr André TIBIRI the Secretary General of the General Union of Burkinabé Students (UGEB), Mr Bénéwendé SANKARA the President of the Union of Young Lawyers of Burkina (UJAB), the cosignatories of the named document, as well as Mr. Boureima SIGUE the Editor-in-Chief of the newspaper 'Le Pays', and Mr Paulin YAMEOGO the Editor-in-Chief of the weekly 'San Fina', were called in to Ouagadougou's Criminal Investigation Department for questioning. They were released that evening at 6pm.

The 02/12/1999, summoned once again, they were questioned and kept in custody on the premises of the Criminal Investigation Department.

This arrest follows on from the other arrests on the night of 27/11/1999 of professor Kapet de BANA and of Mr Julien TOGBADJIA, respectively Presidents of the Human Rights leagues of Cameroon and Benin, due to their support for a popular meeting against impunity held in Ouagadougou on 27/11/1999. These acts constitute a serious blow to the freedom of expression and the freedom to demonstrate and are designed to throw up an obstacle to the popular demand for the prosecution and punishment of those reponsible for the assasination of the journalist Norbert Zongo and his companions.

Index

Return to menu in English
Menu en Français
Italiano
Maître AREF, political prisoner ?
Internal correspondence : Amnesty
La manifestation du 12 mars
Other organisations
L'ARDHD
FIRM THE PETITION


INDEX

RETURN TO MENU