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Human rights in Burkina Faso are addressed in its constitution, which was ratified in 1991. The 2009 Human Rights Report by the United States Department of State noted concerns regarding restrictions on the press and the operation of the judiciary system. [1] In its 2021 report, Human Rights Watch described the human rights situation in Burkina Faso as being "precarious" in light of ongoing violence committed by Islamists, government security forces, and pro-government militias. [2]
Approved in 1991, the constitution of Burkina Faso addresses the basic civil liberties of the people. The government has also ratified numerous UN treaties such as ICCPR and CEDAW. [3]
The government has launched investigations into human rights breaches allegedly perpetrated in its name, including the deaths of over 200 men in Djibo which were believed to have been caused by pro-government security forces, although little information has been provided about the outcomes of such investigations. [2] The Military Justice Directorate was established to investigate crimes committed by government forces, but is extremely underfunded.
In response to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic in the country, the Burkinabé government released 1200 detainees to prevent its spread in prisons. [2] They also expanded the provision of learning through radio, television and online platforms in light of school closures to prevent coronavirus spreading. [4] [5] Efforts have also been made to implement more security at the country's schools to protect them from Islamist attacks. [6]
Amnesty International noted concerns over the arbitrary arrest of protesters, and the failure to respect the principle of due process. [7] In March 2020, government security forces were reported to have executed 23 people in Cissa; the following month, a further 31 detainees were killed hours after being arrested during a counterterrorism operation in Djibo. [2] In May 2020, twelve men arrested by gendarmes in Tanwalbougou were subsequently found dead in their cells; it was reported that they had been shot. Security forces have also been reported to have physically abused Malian refugees seeking shelter in Burkina Faso under the guise of searching for Islamist terrorists in the country's refugee camps. [2]
Burkina Faso has long contained within it local militias known as Koglweogo, who are pro-government. Concerns have arisen around the militias, composed largely of the Mossi ethnic group, carrying out atrocities, including the massacre of forty men in Yirgou in 2019. In January 2020, legislation passed by the Burkinabé government subsumed the Koglweogo into the Volunteers for the Defence of the Homeland (VDH), which receives official government support and training. Subsequently, members of the VDH have been accused of the murder of 19 men near Manja Hien in February 2020, and attacks on Peuhle villages in Yatenga, in which 43 people were killed. [2]
Internationally, Burkinabé forces have also been accused of the extrajudicial killings of at least 50 people in cross border skirmishes in Mali in 2020.
An Islamist insurgency has been occurring in the country, with attacks against citizens being justified by insurgents by linking victims to the government, armed militias, the West, and Christianity. [8] Massacres have notably been committed against the Mossi and Foulse ethnic groups, including the murder of 35 people in Arbinda in December 2019; the death of 90 villagers during separate attacks on Rofénèga, Nagraogo and Silgadji in January 2020; and over 40 villagers' deaths in attacks in Lamdamol and Pansi in February 2020. [2] Islamist groups have also used improved explosive devices to target victims. Abduction has also been a common tactic; in July 2020 the village chief of Nassoumbou was abducted and held for two months; while in August 2020 Sonibou Cisse, the Grand Imam of Djibo, was executed days after being abducted. [2]
Islamists have also targeted Burkina Faso's schools. Between January and August 2020, at least forty schools were burned and looted, and teachers have been killed, beaten, abducted, robbed, and threatened. Prior to the government closure of all Burkinabé schools due to the COVID-19 pandemic in March 2020, an estimated 2500 schools had already closed due to Islamist attacks and concerns around student safety, impacting 350, 000 students. [9]
The following chart shows Burkina Faso's ratings since 1972 in the Freedom in the World reports, published annually by US government funded Freedom House. A score of 1 is "most free" and 7 is "least free". [10] 1
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Burkina Faso's stances on international human rights treaties are as follows:
Human rights in Kenya internationally maintain a variety of mixed opinions; specifically, political freedoms are highlighted as being poor and homosexuality remains a crime. In the Freedom in the World index for 2017, Kenya held a rating of '4' for civil liberties and political freedoms, in which a scale of "1" to "7" is practised.
Human rights in Eritrea are viewed, as of the 2020s, by non-governmental organisations (NGOs) such as Human Rights Watch as among the worst in the world, particularly with regards to freedom of the press. Eritrea is a one-party state in which national legislative elections have been repeatedly postponed, the judiciary is weak, and constitutional provisions protecting individual freedom have yet to be fully implemented. Some Western countries, particularly the United States, accuse the government of Eritrea of arbitrary arrest and detentions and of detaining an unknown number of people without charge for their political activism. Additionally, Eritrean citizens, both men and women, are forcibly conscripted into the military with an indefinite length of service and used as forced labour.
According to the U.S. Department of State's annual report on human rights in Mali for 2003, Mali's government generally respects the human rights of its citizens and observes relevant constitutional provisions and prohibitions.
The U.S. Department of State's Country Report on Human Rights Practices for São Tomé and Príncipe states that the government generally respects the human rights of its citizens, despite problems in a few areas.
Human rights in Somalia throughout the late 20th-century and early 21st-century were considered dire, but have gradually improved over the following years. Human rights are guaranteed in the Federal Constitution, which was adopted in August 2012. They fall under the Ministry of Human Rights established in August 2013. The central authorities concurrently inaugurated a National Human Rights Day, endorsed an official Human Rights Roadmap, and completed Somalia's first National Gender Policy.
Human rights in Chad have been described as "poor"; for example, Freedom House has designated the country as "Not Free." Chad received a score of 7 for political rights and 6 for civil liberties.
According to the Republic of Niger's Constitution of 1999, most human rights, as defined by the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, are upheld and protected. Despite these protections, concerns of both domestic and international human rights organizations have been raised over the behavior of the government, military, police forces, and over the continuation of traditional practices which contravene the 1999 constitution. Under French colonial rule (1900–1960) and from independence until 1992, citizens of Niger had few political rights, and lived under arbitrary government power. Although the situation has improved since the return to civilian rule, criticisms remain over the state of human rights in the country.
Historically, Comoros has had a relatively poor human rights record.
Human rights in Rwanda have been violated on a grand scale. The greatest violation is the Rwandan genocide of Tutsi in 1994. The post-genocide government is also responsible for grave violations of human rights.
The Republic of Congo gained independence from French Equatorial Africa in 1960. It was a one-party Marxist–Leninist state from 1969 to 1991. Multi-party elections have been held since 1992, although a democratically elected government was ousted in the 1997 civil war and President Denis Sassou Nguesso has ruled for 26 of the past 36 years. The political stability and development of hydrocarbon production made the Republic of the Congo the fourth largest oil producer in the Gulf of Guinea region, providing the country with relative prosperity despite instability in some areas and unequal distribution of oil revenue nationwide.
The Congolese Human Right Observatory claims a number of unresolved and pending issues in the country.
Discrimination against Pygmies is widespread, the result of cultural biases, especially traditional relationships with the Bantu, as well as more contemporary forms of exploitation.
Human rights in Madagascar are protected under the national constitution. However, the extent to which such rights are reflected in practice is subject to debate. The 2009 Human Rights Report by the United States Department of State noted concerns regarding the suspension of democratic electoral processes as the result of recent political unrest. Furthermore, reports of corruption, arbitrary arrest and child labor highlight the prevalence of human rights issues in the country.
Human rights in Cameroon are addressed in the constitution. However, the 2009 Human Rights Report by the United States Department of State noted concerns in regard to election irregularities, security forces torture and arbitrary arrests.
Human rights in Cape Verde are addressed under the national constitution.
In 2022, Freedom House rated Burundi's human rights at 14 out 100.
Human rights in Liberia became a focus of international attention when the country's president, Ellen Johnson Sirleaf, was named one of the three female co-winners of the 2011 Nobel Peace Prize, all of whom were cited "for their non-violent struggle for the safety of women and for women's rights to full participation in peace-building work".
Human rights are "rights and freedoms to which all humans are entitled". Proponents of the concept usually assert that everyone is endowed with certain entitlements merely by reason of being human.
The issue of human rights in Djibouti, a small country situated within the Horn of Africa, is a matter of concern for several human rights organizations.
Equatorial Guinea is known for human rights abuses. Under the current government it has "limited ability of citizens to change their government; increased reports of unlawful murders of civilians by security forces; government-sanctioned kidnappings; systematic torture of prisoners and detainees by security forces; life threatening conditions in prisons and detention facilities; impunity; arbitrary arrest and detention and incommunicado detention; harassment and deportation of foreign residents with limited due process; judicial corruption and lack of due process; restrictions on the right to privacy; restrictions on freedom of speech and of the press; restrictions on the rights of assembly, association, and movement; government corruption; violence and discrimination against women; suspected trafficking in persons; discrimination against ethnic minorities; and restrictions on labor rights."
Human rights in Lesotho, a nation of 2,067,000 people completely surrounded by South Africa, is a contentious issue. In its 2012 Freedom in the World report, Freedom House declared the country "Partly Free". According to the United States Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights and Labor, which produces annual human rights reports on the country, the most pressing human rights issues are the use of torture, poor prison conditions, and the abuse of women and children.
Human rights in Guinea, a nation of approximately 10,069,000 people in West Africa, are a contentious issue. In its 2012 Freedom in the World report, Freedom House named Guinea "partly free" for the second year in a row, an improvement over its former status as one of the least free countries in Africa.
