Burkina Faso frees journalists and activists forcibly conscripted

The Burkinabè authorities made a significant move in early July 2025 by releasing five journalists and a human rights activist who had been illegally conscripted into the military after criticizing the ruling junta. While this release marks progress, it also highlights the ongoing crisis of enforced disappearances, with others still missing since 2024.

How the forced conscription unfolded

On March 24, 2024, security forces in Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso’s capital, detained three members of the Burkinabè Journalists’ Association (AJB)—Guezouma Sanogo, Boukari Ouoba, and Phil Roland Zongo—along with Luc Pagbelguem, a journalist from the private television channel BF1. Their arrests followed public criticism of the junta’s media restrictions. By April 2, a video surfaced on social media showing Sanogo, Ouoba, and Pagbelguem in military uniforms, raising concerns about their forced enlistment. Phil Roland Zongo’s conscription was only confirmed upon his release months later.

On June 18, 2024, Kalifara Séré, a commentator for BF1 TV, vanished after a meeting with the Conseil supérieur de la communication (CSC), Burkina Faso’s media regulatory body. Authorities had questioned him about a broadcast where he questioned the authenticity of images depicting the head of state. In October 2024, the government admitted Séré had been conscripted, along with two other journalists, Serge Oulon and Adama Bayala. Their whereabouts remain unknown.

On November 29, 2023, plainclothes agents reportedly abducted Lamine Ouattara, a member of the Mouvement burkinabè des droits de l’homme et des peuples (MBDHP), from his home. Relatives later confirmed his illegal conscription.

Forced conscription as a tool of repression

Human Rights Watch has documented how Burkina Faso’s junta has weaponized emergency laws to forcibly conscript critics, journalists, human rights defenders, and even magistrates to silence dissent. While governments can legally conscript civilians for national defense, such measures must adhere to transparency—informing individuals of their service duration and providing avenues for appeal.

The Burkinabè authorities must immediately release all remaining detainees and end the practice of using conscription to suppress free speech and activism.