Burkina Faso moves to restore death penalty for Treason, terror offences
Burkina Faso abolished the death penalty in 2018. For the new bill to take effect, it must still be passed by parliament and reviewed by the courts.
Burkina Faso’s military-led government has taken a key step toward reintroducing capital punishment, with the Council of Ministers approving a draft law that would bring back the death penalty for crimes such as treason, terrorism and espionage.
Justice Minister Edasso Rodrigue Bayala, announcing the decision in a Facebook post on Thursday night, said the proposal formed part of wider reforms aimed at creating “a justice that responds to the deep aspirations of our people.”
Burkina Faso abolished the death penalty in 2018. For the new bill to take effect, it must still be passed by parliament and reviewed by the courts.
Human-rights groups have condemned the move. Marceau Sivieude, Amnesty International’s Regional Director for West and Central Africa, described it as a “serious setback for human rights in Burkina Faso” and particularly troubling “in the context of the ongoing crackdown on political opponents, human rights activists and journalists in Burkina Faso.”
The West African country has been under military rule since a coup in 2022. The junta has introduced sweeping changes, including postponing elections that were meant to restore civilian rule and dissolving the independent electoral commission.
Authorities have also tightened control over the media. In recent years, the government has suspended BBC and Voice of America radio services over their reporting on a mass killing of civilians attributed to Burkina Faso’s armed forces, and three prominent journalists were arrested earlier this year.
Burkina Faso is one of several states in the region where militaries have seized power amid public frustration over insecurity. The current rulers have been accused of human-rights abuses and of detaining journalists who criticise their governance.
The landlocked country of about 23 million people is at the heart of the Sahel security crisis and has faced escalating attacks by armed groups linked to al-Qaeda and the Islamic State organisation.
