After France announced its special forces would leave, thousands of protesters marched in support of the ruling junta in Burkina Faso’s capital, Ouagadougou, on Saturday, according to an AFP journalist there.
With posters reading “Down with Imperialism,” “Down with French Policies in Africa,” and “Forward for Burkina Faso’s Sovereignty,” protestors filled Nation Square in the heart of Ouagadougou.
The Inter-African Revolutionary Movement’s Lazare Yameogo urged the gathering, “We do not want any more foreign military outposts in our country.” We seek mutual respect and beneficial partnerships.
He continued, “Until Burkina Faso is freed from Western imperialism, we will remain vigilant.”
previous colonial power Special soldiers from France are stationed in Ouagadougou, but as anti-French sentiment in the area rises, their presence has come under close scrutiny.
Paris said this week that the troops, who had been sent to confront a terrorist insurgency for years, would be leaving in a month.
Two coups in Burkina Faso last year were sparked by military wrath over the government’s inability to quell the insurgency, which has been raging since 2015.
Thousands of people have been slain and almost 2 million others have been forced to abandon their homes as a result of rebel activity related to both al-Qaida and the Islamic State organisation.
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Alassane Kouanda, the president of an organisation supporting the intended transition to civilian government, claimed that Captain Ibrahim Traore, the commander of the Junta, was acting in the interest of the West African state’s sovereignty and “an army robust enough to battle jihadists.”
According to some observers, the Burkinabe government’s demand that France evacuate its troops is reminiscent of the beliefs of Thomas Sankara, a former president and left-wing anti-colonial hero.
Using the phrase “francafrique,” which refers to French dominance throughout its former colonies in Africa, a coalition of organisations that supported Sankara’s views hailed “the complete emancipation of our country from the yokes of Francofrique, imperialism, and fatal capitalism.”
The head of the Burkinabe-Russia association, Mahamadou Sawadogo, declared during the demonstration on Saturday that there were “additional prospects for cooperation” in the struggle against jihadists, particularly from Moscow.
On Saturday, some demonstrators carried Russian flags and enormous posters of the leaders of Mali and Guinea, two neighbours in West Africa that, like Burkina Faso, are governed by military juntas after coups.
Burkina Faso’s inclination toward Moscow and the Russian paramilitary force Wagner, according to Monique Yeli Kam, a prominent player in the anti-France movement and a past presidential contender, was “also a type of sovereignty.”
Burkina Faso is now autonomous and has the freedom to act “according to our interests,” but the “old authorities tend to treat us like children by claiming we don’t know how to choose,” she remarked.
The decision to side with Russia rather than France in the fight against jihadism has not won over all Burkinabes.
“We called for the French soldiers to leave.” Ibrahim Sanou, a 28-year-old shop worker, declared that now that it has been completed, we must prevent the entry of additional imperialists. We must assume full responsibility because the battle for Burkina Faso’s true independence has just begun.
“We must be prepared to hold out to free the country from these hordes of terrorists,” said civil servant Desire Sanou. Wagner and other forces are not even necessary.
