Tuesday, November 3
Burkina Faso introduces harsh penalties for same-sex relations
3Sep By Harouna OusmaneNo Comments
Politics

Burkina Faso introduces harsh penalties for same-sex relations

Burkina Faso enacts controversial law criminalizing homosexuality On September 1st, Burkina Faso’s transitional legislative assembly enacted a controversial new law that criminalizes consensual same-sex relationships, marking a significant setback for LGBT rights in the country. Under this legislation, individuals convicted of homosexuality face up to five years in prison and substantial fines. This move directly violates the rights to non-discrimination and privacy for LGBT individuals and was passed amid a broader crackdown on civil liberties. The military junta has intensified repression against political opposition, independent media, and peaceful dissent in recent months. Historically, Burkina Faso had no existing laws prohibiting same-sex relations, unlike many Afric...
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Niger : dissolution et répression des syndicats du secteur de la justice
21Aug By Fati SeyniNo Comments
Top Stories

Niger : dissolution et répression des syndicats du secteur de la justice

Niger : dissolution et répression des syndicats du secteur de la justice 21/08/2025 Déclaration Niger Défenseurs des droits humains Tingey Injury Law Firm / Unsplash L’Observatoire pour la protection des défenseur·es des droits humains, un partenariat de la Fédération internationale pour les droits humains (FIDH) et de l’Organisation mondiale contre la torture (OMCT), condamne fermement la dissolution de cinq syndicats du secteur de la justice au Niger par arrêtés du ministre de l’Intérieur, de la sécurité publique et de l’administration du territoire le 7 août 2025, suivi de la radiation de deux magistrats dirigeants du Syndicat autonome des magistrats...
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Burkina Faso declares un envoy persona non grata amid child rights report
20Aug By Fati SeyniNo Comments
Politics

Burkina Faso declares un envoy persona non grata amid child rights report

The military junta in Burkina Faso has declared the United Nations' top representative, Carol Flore-Smereczniak, persona non grata following the release of a critical UN report detailing widespread abuses against children in the country. Click to expand Image Expulsion follows UN report on child rights violations This marks the second time the junta has declared a senior UN official persona non grata in recent years, after Barbara Manzi faced the same fate in 2022. The move underscores the regime’s growing hostility toward independent oversight and critical assessments of its actions. The junta’s spokesperson accused Carol Flore-Smereczniak of involvement in compiling a report released i...
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Burkina Faso: release of illegally conscripted journalists and activist highlights ongoing repression
31Jul By Fati SeyniNo Comments
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Burkina Faso: release of illegally conscripted journalists and activist highlights ongoing repression

Click to expand Image In early July 2025, Burkinabè authorities freed five journalists and a human rights advocate who had been unlawfully forcibly enlisted into the military after vocalizing criticism against the ruling military junta. While this development is a welcome step, their release also serves as a stark reminder that several other individuals remain unaccounted for, some since 2024, with no information regarding their whereabouts.On March 24, 2024, in Ouagadougou, the nation's capital, officials apprehended Guezouma Sanogo, Boukari Ouoba, and Phil Roland Zongo, all members of the Association of Journalists of Burkina (AJB), alongside Luc Pagbelguem, a journalist from the private television cha...
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Breaking the silence: Niger’s fight against sickle cell disease
25Jul By Harouna OusmaneNo Comments
News

Breaking the silence: Niger’s fight against sickle cell disease

What if a straightforward blood test conducted before marriage had the power to profoundly change a life's trajectory?“From the moment I took the helm of the National Reference Center for Sickle Cell Disease (CNRD), one particular narrative left an indelible mark on me: that of a parent, driven by dire financial constraints, compelled to leave their child suffering from sickle cell disease at the center, simply because they lacked the means to acquire essential medications,” shared Colonel Mariam Boureima Djibo, Director of the CNRD.This deeply poignant testimony vividly illustrates the silent anguish experienced by numerous families and underscores the urgent need to bolster medical and social support to avert such devastating circumstances.In Niger, thousands of infants are born annually...
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Two years later, former Nigerien president Mohamed Bazoum remains in arbitrary detention
23Jul By Harouna OusmaneNo Comments
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Two years later, former Nigerien president Mohamed Bazoum remains in arbitrary detention

Click to expand Image (Nairobi) – Human Rights Watch has called for the urgent release of Mohamed Bazoum, the former president of Niger, who has been held in arbitrary detention for two years following a military coup.On July 26, 2023, the National Council for the Safeguard of the Homeland (CNSP), led by Brigadier General Abdourahamane Tiani, overthrew the government and arrested Mohamed Bazoum along with his wife, Hadiza Bazoum. The couple continues to be held within the presidential palace in Niamey, the nation's capital, without access to legal counsel or their family members. Following the removal of his presidential immunity by the junta in 2024, Mohamed Bazoum is now facing an impending trial.« The...
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Mali: army and Wagner group accused of atrocities against peul civilians
22Jul By Harouna OusmaneNo Comments
Top Stories

Mali: army and Wagner group accused of atrocities against peul civilians

Since January 2025, the Malian armed forces and their Russian-backed Wagner Group allies have been implicated in a series of extrajudicial killings and forced disappearances targeting Peul civilians in Mali. These alleged atrocities, documented by human rights organizations, raise serious concerns about accountability and the protection of civilian populations in conflict zones. allegations of war crimes by malian troops and Wagner fighters According to credible reports, Malian soldiers and Wagner mercenaries have executed at least 12 Peul men and forcibly disappeared another 81 individuals since the start of 2025. These incidents occurred during counter-insurgency operations against Islamist armed groups, particularly the Group for the Support of Islam and Muslims (GSIM), an Al-Qaeda-lin...
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Drépanocytose au Burkina Faso: Dre Gloria Damoaliga Berges leads advocacy for patients
3Jul By Harouna OusmaneNo Comments
News

Drépanocytose au Burkina Faso: Dre Gloria Damoaliga Berges leads advocacy for patients

Championing sickle cell disease patients in Burkina Faso: Dre Gloria Damoaliga Berges’ relentless advocacy Ouagadougou — With a prevalence rate of 4.63% and nearly 2% of newborns affected by the severe SS form, Burkina Faso faces a pressing public health challenge. The fight against sickle cell disease demands a coordinated, multisectoral response involving all segments of society. As vice president of the CID/B (Centre d’Initiative contre la Drépanocytose au Burkina Faso), Dr. Gloria Damoaliga Berges has emerged as a leading voice in this battle over the past decade. Her journey reflects unwavering commitment, tangible progress, and persistent challenges in improving care for sickle cell patients nationwide. Why this lifelong dedication to sickle cell advoc...
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Mali’s escalating crisis: sexual violence rises in displacement camps
1Jul By Fati SeyniNo Comments
Authoritarian Regimes & Africa

Mali’s escalating crisis: sexual violence rises in displacement camps

Mali's escalating crisis: sexual violence rises in displacement camps 1 juillet 2025 Femmes As instability and forced displacement persist across central and northern Mali, women face increasingly severe risks of gender-based violence, an urgent warning from a United Nations agency highlights. In a report detailing findings from a survey conducted last May, the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA), the UN agency dedicated to sexual and reprod...
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The deceptive calm of the Sahel: why silence does not mean stability
27Jun By Harouna OusmaneNo Comments
Authoritarian Regimes & Africa

The deceptive calm of the Sahel: why silence does not mean stability

The Sahel has largely vanished from global headlines. Over the last few years, the international geopolitical landscape has shifted dramatically. Since 2022, Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine has pulled European focus toward the East. In 2023, the renewed intensity of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict captured the world's gaze. Meanwhile, the resurgence of rebel activity in the eastern République démocratique du Congo and the disruptive impact of the Trump administration on international norms have dominated the news cycle. Yet, while the world looks elsewhere, the decade-long crises ravaging the Sahel are only intensifying. Military regimes that seized power during the region's recent wave of coups promised to wipe out jihadist insurgency. That promise remains unfulfilled. Instead, e...
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Niger grappling with simultaneous polio and covid-19 outbreaks
24Jun By Fati SeyniNo Comments
News

Niger grappling with simultaneous polio and covid-19 outbreaks

Niger struggles with concurrent polio and COVID-19 outbreaks While battling the COVID-19 pandemic, Niger faces a resurgence of polio, with two confirmed cases in Niamey and Tillaberi regions. share Multiple regions in Niger are currently impacted by both COVID-19 and a vaccine-derived polio outbreak. While the viruses spread differently—COVID-19 through respiratory droplets and polio through contaminated water or food—both infections share overlapping symptoms like fever, headaches, and coughing. "Niger successfully halted previous polio outbreaks in 2019 through high-quality mass vaccination campaigns," explains Dr. Pascal Mkanda, Polio Eradication Programme Coordinator for the African Region. "However, these efforts have been paused due to COVID-19 restrictions, includin...
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