Wayzata World Factbook 1996/The World Factbook - 1996 Edition - Wayzata Technology (3079) (1996).iso/pc/text/humanrts/burkina.txt

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TITLE:  BURKINA FASO HUMAN RIGHTS PRACTICES, 1994
AUTHOR:  U.S. DEPARTMENT OF STATE
DATE:  FEBRUARY 1995

                          BURKINA FASO


President Blaise Compaore continued to dominate the Government
of the Fourth Republic, assisted by members of his party, the
Organization for Popular Democracy/Labor Movement (ODP/MT).  In
spite of the existence of more than 60 political parties, there
is little viable opposition to the President and his
Government, which includes representatives from three small
self-described opposition parties.  The ODP/MT controls the
National Assembly with 79 of the 107 seats.  Several opposition
parties, meanwhile, have modest representation.  Although the
National Assembly approved in 1993 the Government's proposals
for a constitutionally mandated (though purely consultative)
second chamber, such a body has still not yet been appointed.

Burkina Faso's security apparatus consists of the armed forces,
the paramilitary gendarmerie, controlled by the Ministry of
Defense, and the police, controlled by the Ministry of
Territorial Administration.  In 1994 the Government initiated a
military reorganization that is ultimately intended to remove
the gendarmerie from the military chain of command.  Security
forces continued to commit human rights abuses.

Over 80 percent of the population of 9.5 million engage in
subsistence agriculture, which is highly vulnerable to rainfall
variation.  Frequent drought, limited communication and
transportation infrastructures, and a low literacy rate are
longstanding problems.  Per capita income is about $300 per
year.  The January devaluation of the CFA franc by 50 percent
added to the existing economic hardship, in conjunction with a
structural adjustment program directed by the International
Monetary Fund under way since 1991.  That program seeks to
limit government spending, especially on salaries and
transfers, and open the economy to market forces, including
privatization and reduction in the size of many inefficient
state companies.

On balance, 1994 reflected some progress in the movement
towards greater democratization and decentralization, with
preparations for the February 1995 municipal elections, the
first since independence in 1960.  However, serious human
rights abuses persisted, including abuse and extrajudicial
killings by police and penal authorities in a climate of
impunity fostered by failure to prosecute abusers.  The
independent press continued to gain strength following
amendment of the prejudicial provisions on libel in the
Information Code.  Violence against women also persisted, although
several positive measures were taken in the campaign
against female genital mutilation.

RESPECT FOR HUMAN RIGHTS

Section 1  Respect for the Integrity of the Person, Including
           Freedom from:

     a.  Political and Other Extrajudicial Killing

Security forces continued extrajudicial killings of suspected
criminals and convicts.  During December 1993 and January 1994,
security forces launched "Operation Punch," a campaign against
resurgent urban and rural banditry.  They shot and killed
scores in the capital and in several other towns.  Newspapers
carried photos of many of the dead, often lying beside the
weapons they were allegedly carrying while resisting arrest.
Some popular support was expressed in certain city districts
for such ruthless policing action.  In August, however, the
main Burkinabe human rights organization, the Burkinabe
Movement for Human Rights and Peoples (MBDHP), issued a
condemnation of these and several other extrajudicial killings.

In July guards savagely beat two young arrivals at Maco Prison
in Ouagadougou and subjected them to degrading treatment.  One
of the two died the same day of internal hemorrhaging.  A
police investigation of the incident has come to a close
without calling for the punishment of those responsible.

Also in July, the press reported that an influential
businessman implicated in a corruption scandal, Youssouf
Sawadogo, allegedly shot himself when the police arrived to
question him.  Several days later, a suspect in the case, Cisse
Ousseni, died in police custody, allegedly of a heart attack.
An internal investigation cleared the police of any
wrongdoing.  The Attorney General is reportedly conducting a
separate investigation, the results of which had not been
released at year's end.  Human rights monitors claim the
autopsy performed on Ousseni provides evidence he died from
abuse.

Although international and local human rights groups pressured
the official commission investigating the 1991 assassination of
Clement Ouedraogo, a prominent opposition leader, to submit a
report of preliminary findings to the Prime Minister, the
report has not yet been made public.  The case remains open, as
do the 1989 "disappearance" of Professor Guillaume Sessouma,
detained for allegedly participating in a coup plot, and of
medical student Dabo Boukary in 1990, detained following
student demonstrations.  Credible reports indicated that
security forces tortured and killed both.  The Government
continued to make no real effort to investigate the fate of a
Ghanaian detainee, reportedly killed in 1993 while in police
custody.

Another disturbing trend was the increase in reported cases of
vigilante killings by the public.  There were numerous
documented incidents of summary mob justice meted out to
thieves caught by the citizenry, mostly in urban centers.  To
date, the authorities have provided no explanation of the death
of Doin Redan, who was found dead the day after being detained
by police.

     b.  Disappearance

There were no new reports of disappearances.

     c.  Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman, or Degrading
         Treatment or Punishment

While legally prohibited, torture and mistreatment of
detainees, often to extract confessions, have been documented
for a number of years.  There are credible reports that
officials at Maco Prison continue to employ torture and
degrading treatment, including beatings, cold showers, exposure
to hot sun, and forcing persons to eat their own feces, as
occurred in the case of the two internees cited in Section
1.a.  The Government is not known to have taken any
disciplinary action against those responsible.

Prison conditions are harsh, overcrowded, and can be
life-threatening.  The federal government prison in
Bobo-Dioulasso, built in 1947, housed about 1,000 prisoners,
although designed to hold less than half that number.  The
prison diet is poor, and inmates must often rely on
supplemental food from relatives.

In July Police Trainee Commissioner Roger Zango, in an address
at the Police Academy, strongly criticized abuse of detainees.
However, the climate of impunity created by government failure
to prosecute abusers remains the largest obstacle to ending
torture and other abuses.

     d.  Arbitrary Arrest, Detention, or Exile

Although the Constitution provides for the right to expeditious
arraignment and access to legal counsel, and the law limits
detention for investigative purposes without charge to a
maximum of 72 hours, renewable for a single 48-hour period, in
practice, police rarely observe these provisions.  The normal
average time of detention without charge is 1 week.  There were
no known political detainees or prisoners at year's end.

Although some intellectuals, military officers, and former
government officials remain in self-imposed exile abroad,
increasing numbers repatriated themselves.

     e.  Denial of Fair Public Trial

The Constitution provides for the right to public trial, access
to counsel, and has provisions for bail and appeal.  While
these rights are generally respected, the ability of citizens
to obtain a fair trial remains circumscribed by ignorance of
the law (70 percent of the population is illiterate) and by a
serious shortage of magistrates.

The Constitution provides that the Supreme Court is the highest
court in the country.  Beneath it are two courts of appeal and
ten provincial courts ("de grande instance").  The Constitution
also provides for a High Court of Justice, with jurisdiction to
try the President and senior government officials for treason
and other serious crimes, but it has not yet been established.

According to the Constitution, the judiciary is independent of
the executive.  The President has extensive appointment and
other judicial powers.  The National Assembly passed
legislation reforming the military court system, which had been
susceptible to considerable executive manipulation.  At year's
end, this court system had not yet been staffed.

In addition to the formal judiciary, customary or traditional
courts, presided over by village chiefs, handle many
neighborhood and village-level problems, such as divorce and
inheritance disputes.  These decisions are generally respected
by the population, but citizens may also take the case to a
formal court.

     f.  Arbitrary Interference with Privacy, Family, Home, or
         Correspondence

The Constitution provides for these rights, and, in practice,
the authorities generally do not interfere in the daily lives
of ordinary citizens.  In national security cases, however, a
special law permits surveillance, searches and monitoring of
telephones and private correspondence without a warrant.  By
law and under normal circumstances, homes may be searched only
with the authority of a warrant issued by the Minister of
Justice.  Except in certain cases, such as houses of
prostitution and gambling dens, such warrants must be executed
during "legal hours," defined as between 6 a.m. and 9 p.m.

Section 2  Respect for Civil Liberties, Including:

     a.  Freedom of Speech and Press

The 1990 Information Code provides for freedom of speech and
press.  In practice, these freedoms still remain circumscribed
by a certain degree of self-censorship.  The President and his
Government remain sensitive to criticism.  However, provisions
in the Code granting the Government strong legal powers to
intimidate the press through a broad interpretation of
defamation were removed in December 1993.  Journalists now
charged with libel may defend themselves in court by presenting
evidence in support of their allegations.  Perhaps as a result,
the independent press exercised greater freedom of expression.

The independent press now includes four dailies, a dozen weekly
newspapers, and a weekly newsmagazine.  Although the official
media, including the daily newspaper Sidwaya and the national
radio, display progovernment bias, the presence of independent
competition led it to give more coverage to the political
opposition.

Academic freedom is recognized.

     b.  Freedom of Peaceful Assembly and Association

The Constitution provides for freedom of assembly and
association.  Permits must, however, be obtained from municipal
authorities for political marches.  Applicants must indicate
date, time, duration, and itinerary of the march or rally, and
authorities may alter or deny requests on grounds of public
safety.  However, denials or modifications may be appealed
before the courts.

Labor unions and others held several large and peaceful
marches.  Since early 1990, political parties have been
permitted to organize and hold meetings and rallies without
seeking government permission.  The authorities sent security
forces to control disorders at Ouagadougou University on
February 8 during a demonstration by some students protesting
nonreceipt of their stipends.  They arrested several students
for pelting passing city buses on the highway near campus.
Police later released them and did not press charges.

     c.  Freedom of Religion

Burkina Faso is a secular state.  Islam, Christianity, and
traditional religions operate freely without government
interference.  Neither social mobility nor access to modern
sector jobs are linked to, or restricted by, religious
affiliation.

     d.  Freedom of Movement Within the Country, Foreign
         Travel, Emigration, and Repatriation

Gendarmes routinely stopped travelers within the country for
identity and customs checks and the levying of road taxes at
police and military checkpoints.  There is no restriction on
foreign travel for business or tourism.  Refugees are accepted
freely in Burkina Faso.  Due to civil unrest in neighboring
countries, there are nearly 50,000 refugees and displaced
persons, mostly Tuaregs from Mali and Niger.

Section 3  Respect for Political Rights:  The Right of Citizens
           to Change Their Government

Burkinabe citizens have the constitutional right to change
their government through multiparty elections.  In practice,
however, they have been unable to exercise that right.  Power
remained in the hands of President Compaore and the ODP/MT,
most of whose members also played prominent roles in the ruling
National Revolutionary Council (1983-87) and Popular Front
(1987-91).  The Government includes a strong Presidency, a
Prime Minister, a Council of Ministers presided over by the
President, a two-chamber National Assembly, and the judiciary.
The Compaore Government faces new legislative elections in 1997
and presidential elections in 1998.  The first round of
municipal elections is scheduled for February 1995.

The Supreme Court ruled in 1994 that an elected deputy in the
National Assembly is not bound to the political party under
which that person was elected and may change party affiliations
as a representative in the legislature.  This practice has been
labelled "political nomadism" and is responsible for much of
the factionalism in opposition parties.

There are no restrictions in law or practice on the
participation of women or minority group members in politics.
However, there are few women in positions of responsibility; 3
of the 25 ministers and 6 of the 107 National Assembly deputies
are women.

Section 4  Governmental Attitude Regarding International and
           Nongovernmental Investigation of Alleged Violations
           of Human Rights

The Government's attitude toward local human rights groups has
been mixed.  It continued to tolerate the activities of the
MBDHP, an independent group with representation in all 30
provinces.

The Government is responsive to investigations by international
nongovernmental organizations.  At year's end, there were no
known outstanding investigations by outside organizations.

Section 5  Discrimination Based on Race, Sex, Religion,
           Disability, Language, or Social Status

The Constitution prohibits discrimination on the basis of race,
religion, or ethnic origin.  Minority ethnic groups, like the
Majority Mossi, are represented in the inner circles of the
Government, and government decisions do not favor one group
over another.

     Women

There are no constitutional or other legal protections for
women, who face extensive discrimination.  In general, women
continue to occupy a subordinate position and experience
discrimination in such areas as education, jobs, property, and
family rights.  In the modern sector, however, women make up
one-fourth of the government work force, although usually in
lower paying positions.  Women still do much of the subsistence
farming work.

Violence against women, especially wife beating, occurs fairly
often.  Cases of wife beating are usually handled through
customary law and practice.  A "popular conciliation tribunal"
composed of community representatives usually mediates such
cases.  The Government is attempting, using education through
the media, to change attitudes toward women.

     Children

The Constitution nominally protects children's rights.  The
Government announced its commitment to improving the condition
of children by adopting a national policy to revitalize primary
health care and improve access to primary education.

Females constitute approximately one-third of the total student
population in the primary, secondary, and higher educational
systems--although the percentage decreases dramatically beyond
the primary level.  Schools in rural areas have
disproportionately fewer female students than schools in urban
areas.

Female genital mutilation (FGM), which has been condemned by
health experts as damaging to physical and psychological
health, is still widely practiced, especially in many rural
areas, and is usually performed at an early age.  According to
an independent expert in the field, the percentage of Burkinabe
females who have undergone this procedure may be as high as 70
percent.  The Government has made a strong commitment to
eradicate FGM through educational efforts, and a newly formed
national committee launched a campaign against the practice
with United States Government assistance.  Nevertheless, FGM is
still widely practiced.  At year's end, it was evident that the
Government had taken an important first step via its
sensitization campaign regarding the deleterious effects of
this practice.  Another form of mutilation, scarification of
the faces of both boys and girls of certain ethnic groups, is
gradually disappearing.

     People with Disabilities

While there is a modest program of government subsidies for
workshops for the disabled, there is no government mandate or
legislation concerning accessibility for the disabled.

Section 6  Worker Rights

     a.  The Right of Association

A new labor code is currently before the National Assembly for
review.  Notwithstanding this pending legislation, workers,
including civil servants, traditionally have enjoyed a legal
right to association which is recognized under the
Constitution.  There are 6 major labor confederations and 12
autonomous trade unions linked together by a National
Confederal Committee.  They represent a wide ideological
spectrum, of which the largest and most vocal member espouses a
Socialist doctrine.  Essential workers--police, fire, and
health workers--may not join unions.

The Constitution provides for the right to strike, and workers
use strike actions to achieve labor goals.  The union movement
made a call for a national strike on April 6-8 to protest
further austerity measures in the wake of devaluation of the
CFA franc.  Strikers demanded a 50 percent increase in wages
and price freezes.  About half the union movement responded.

Labor unions freely affiliate with international
trade union bodies.

     b.  The Right to Organize and Bargain Collectively

Unions have the right to bargain for wages and other benefits,
both directly with employers and with industry associations.
These negotiations are governed by minimums on wages and other
benefits contained in the Interprofessional Collective
Convention and the Commercial Sector Collective Convention,
which are established with government participation.  If no
agreement is reached, employees may exercise their right to
strike.  Either labor or management also may refer an impasse
in negotiations to labor tribunals.  Appeals may be pursued
through the Court of Appeal to the Supreme Court, whose
decision is binding on both parties.  Collective bargaining is
extensive in the modern wage sector but encompasses only a
small percentage of workers.

The Labor Code prohibits antiunion discrimination.  The Labor
Ministry handles complaints about such discrimination, which
the plaintiff may appeal to a labor tribunal.  If the tribunal
sustains the appeal, the employer must reinstate the worker.
Union officials believe that this system functions adequately.

There are no export processing zones.

     c.  Prohibition of Forced or Compulsory Labor

The law prohibits forced labor and it is not practiced.

     d.  Minimum Age for Employment of Children

The Labor Code now in effect sets the minimum age for
employment at 14, the average age for completion of basic
secondary school.  However, the Ministry of Employment, Labor,
and Social Security, which oversees labor standards, lacks the
means to enforce this provision adequately, even in the small
wage sector.  Most children actually begin work at an earlier
age on small, family subsistence farms, in the traditional
apprenticeship system, and in the informal sector.

     e.  Acceptable Conditions of Work

The Labor Code mandates a minimum monthly wage, a standard
workweek of 40 hours with at least one 24-hour rest period, and
establishes safety and health provisions.  The current minimum
monthly wage in the formal sector, about $48 (25,000 CFA), does
not apply to subsistence agriculture, employing about 85
percent of the population.  The Government last set the minimum
wage in April.  It is not adequate for an urban worker to
support a family.  Wage earners usually supplement their income
through reliance on the extended family and subsistence
agriculture.

A system of government inspections under the Ministry of Labor
and the Labor Tribunals is responsible for overseeing health
and safety standards in the small industrial and commercial
sectors, but these standards do not apply in the subsistence
agricultural sector.  In December 1993, the Center for Worker
Education in Ouagadougou reported that since 1991 there were
2,399 recorded workplace accidents (1,476 in the manufacturing
sector, 215 in construction, and 192 in transport and
communications sectors).  Every company is required to have a
work safety committee.  If a workplace has been declared unsafe
by the government labor inspection office for any reason,
workers have the right to remove themselves from dangerous work
without jeopardy to continued employment.  In practice there
are indications that this right is respected, but such
declarations are relatively rare.