Burkina Faso military government dissolves political parties

Burkina Faso's military-led government has dissolved all political parties and scrapped the legal framework ‌governing their operations, according to a decree approved by the West African nation's council of ministers on Thursday. The ⁠decision by the military rulers who seized power in September 2022 is the latest move to tighten control following the suspension of political activities after ​the coup.

Burkina Faso's Interior Minister Emile Zerbo said the decision was ‍part of a broader effort to "rebuild the state" after what he said was widespread abuses and dysfunction in the country's multiparty system. He said a government review found ⁠that the ‌multiplication of political ⁠parties had fuelled divisions and weakened social cohesion.

Before the coup, the country had over ‍100 registered political parties, with 15 represented in parliament after the 2020 general election. The ​decree disbands all political parties and political formations. A law repealing the ⁠statutes and regulating party financing, and the status of the opposition leader, will be ⁠sent to the current transitional council, according to minutes of the cabinet meeting.

All the assets of the dissolved parties will be transferred to ⁠the state. The Sahel nation, like neighbours Mali and Niger, has been struggling to ⁠contain Islamist ‌insurgencies linked to al Qaeda and Islamic State that have killed thousands and displaced millions over the past decade.