Ouagadougou/Bamako/Niamey, 3 December 2023 – We, West African civil society organisations members of the People’s' Coalition for the Sahel, have learned with dismay of the abduction on Friday 1 December of our colleague and friend Dr Daouda Diallo, a prominent human rights defender in Burkina Faso and Secretary General of the Collective Against Impunity and Stigmatization of Communities (Collectif contre l'impunité et la stigmatisation des communautés, CISC). 

Dr Daouda Diallo was abducted by at least four unidentified men on Friday 1 December 2023 at around 3pm, outside the passport office in Ouagadougou, where he had gone to renew his travel documents. According to a CISC press release issued a few hours after the kidnapping, his assailants, all dressed in civilian clothes, pushed him into a vehicle after a chase and drove off. At present, his whereabouts remain unknown, as do the reasons for his abduction. 

The People’s Coalition for the Sahel demands the immediate and unconditional release of Dr Daouda Diallo, as well as guarantees of his physical and psychological wellbeing. The abduction of a leading activist in broad daylight outside an official building requires an immediate response from the government. The Burkinabè authorities should take immediate steps to conduct a serious investigation and bring those responsible to justice. 

Dr Diallo, a pharmacist by training, is renowned for his tireless efforts over many years in exposing human rights violations in Burkina Faso committed by armed groups as well as members of the defence and security forces. His commitment, courage and integrity, which we have witnessed first-hand within the People’s Coalition for the Sahel, earned him the Martin Ennals Prize in 2022, often referred to as the "Nobel Prize for human rights defenders". He is also a Knight of the Order of the Stallion, one of Burkina Faso's highest honours. 

At the beginning of November, Daouda Diallo's name appeared on lists of people forcibly mobilised to take part in government security operations throughout the country, as part of the general mobilisation decreed in April 2023. The people targeted are members of civil society, journalists and political figures who have all have expressed reservations about security policy and the shrinking of civic space by the authorities. 

The announcement of these forced conscriptions was denounced by several organisations, including several members of the People’s Coalition for the Sahel: the CISC denounced an attempt "to crush any organisation critical of the government", the Mouvement burkinabé pour les droits de l'Homme et des peuples (MBDHP) a "clear desire to muzzle all dissenting voices", and Human Rights Watch an action by the junta "to silence peaceful dissent and punish its critics".  

The People’s Coalition believes that the decree of general mobilisation should not be used as a pretext to arbitrarily target and silence independent voices. 

The kidnapping of Dr Daouda Diallo comes at a time when the general mobilisation decree of April 2023 has already been used for forced conscription. In September, Dr Arouna Louré, a former member of the National Transitional Council, was taken from his office by the defence and security forces (FDS) and conscripted for a month. His whereabouts are still unknown. In March, Boukary Ouedraogo, president of the "Appel de Kaya", was also arrested by the FDS and forcibly enlisted into the Volontaires pour la Défense de la Patrie (VDP) after criticising the government's security policies.  

Since seizing power in a coup in October 2022, the military junta has increasingly cracked down on the media and peaceful dissent, shrinking civic space in Burkina Faso. National and international journalists and members of civil society face increasing harassment, threats, and arbitrary arrests. 

The People’s Coalition for the Sahel is concerned by the hate campaigns on social media targeting individuals, including activists and members of civil society, in Burkina Faso, but also in Mali and Niger. The People’s Coalition is calling on online platforms, including Meta and X, to redouble their vigilance in order to block violent discourse and hate messages that increase the polarisation in the Sahel. 

The People’s Coalition for the Sahel reminds the Burkina Faso authorities of their responsibility to secure the immediate release of Dr Daouda Diallo. They must immediately conduct an effective, credible and independent investigation into his abduction, identify all those responsible and bring them to justice. We also call on Burkina Faso's National Human Rights Commission to take up the case of Dr Daouda Diallo's abduction. Burkina Faso's international partners should speak up now to press the authorities to answer for what happened to Dr Daouda Diallo.  

In the face of the abuses committed by armed groups across the Sahel, the People’s Coalition for the Sahel calls on the governments of Burkina Faso, Mali and Niger to make the protection of civilians and human security their top priority, by safeguarding fundamental rights, including freedom of expression.