Human rights in Burkina Faso

Human rights in Burkina Faso are addressed in the constitution. 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]

Constitution and legislative response

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^[2]

Issues

Amnesty International noted concerns over the arbitrary arrest of protesters, and the failure to respect the principle of due process.^[3]

Historical situation

The following chart shows Burkina Faso's ratings since 1972 in the Freedom in the World reports, published annually by Freedom House. A score of 1 is "most free" and 7 is "least free".^[4]1

Historical ratings

Year Political Rights Civil Liberties Status President^2 1972 3 4  Partly Free  Sangoulé Lamizana 1973 3 4 Partly Free  Sangoulé Lamizana  1974 6 4 Partly Free Sangoulé Lamizana 1975 6 4 Partly Free Sangoulé Lamizana 1976 5 5 Partly Free Sangoulé Lamizana 1977 5 4 Partly Free Sangoulé Lamizana 1978 2 3 Free Sangoulé Lamizana 1979 2 3 Free Sangoulé Lamizana 1980 6 5 Partly Free Sangoulé Lamizana 1981 6 5 Partly Free Saye Zerbo 1982^3 6 5 Partly Free Saye Zerbo 1983 6 5 Partly Free  Jean-Baptiste Ouédraogo  1984 7 5 Not Free Thomas Sankara 1985 7 6 Not Free Thomas Sankara 1986 7 6 Not Free Thomas Sankara 1987 7 6 Not Free Thomas Sankara 1988 7 6 Not Free Blaise Compaoré 1989 6 5 Not Free Blaise Compaoré 1990 6 5 Not Free Blaise Compaoré 1991 6 5 Not Free Blaise Compaoré 1992 5 5 Partly Free Blaise Compaoré 1993 5 4 Partly Free Blaise Compaoré 1994 5 4 Partly Free Blaise Compaoré 1995 5 4 Partly Free Blaise Compaoré 1996 5 4 Partly Free Blaise Compaoré 1997 5 4 Partly Free Blaise Compaoré 1998 5 4 Partly Free Blaise Compaoré 1999 4 4 Partly Free Blaise Compaoré 2000 4 4 Partly Free Blaise Compaoré 2001 4 4 Partly Free Blaise Compaoré 2002 4 4 Partly Free Blaise Compaoré 2003 4 4 Partly Free Blaise Compaoré 2004 5 4 Partly Free Blaise Compaoré 2005 5 3 Partly Free Blaise Compaoré 2006 5 3 Partly Free Blaise Compaoré 2007 5 3 Partly Free Blaise Compaoré 2008 5 3 Partly Free Blaise Compaoré 2009 5 3 Partly Free Blaise Compaoré 2010 5 3 Partly Free Blaise Compaoré 2011 5 3 Partly Free Blaise Compaoré 2012 5 3 Partly Free Blaise Compaoré 2013 5 3 Partly Free Blaise Compaoré 2014[5] 6 3 Partly Free Blaise Campaoré

International treaties

Burkina Faso's stances on international human rights treaties are as follows:

International treaties

Treaty Organization Introduced Signed Ratified Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide[6] United Nations 1948 - 1965 International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination[7] United Nations 1966 - 1974 International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights[8] United Nations 1966 - 1999 International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights[9] United Nations 1966 - 1999 First Optional Protocol to the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights[10] United Nations 1966 - 1999 Convention on the Non-Applicability of Statutory Limitations to War Crimes and Crimes Against Humanity[11] United Nations 1968 - - International Convention on the Suppression and Punishment of the Crime of Apartheid[12] United Nations 1973 1976 1978 Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women[13] United Nations 1979 - 1987 Convention against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment[14] United Nations 1984 - 1999 Convention on the Rights of the Child[15] United Nations 1989 1990 1990 Second Optional Protocol to the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, aiming at the abolition of the death penalty[16] United Nations 1989 - - International Convention on the Protection of the Rights of All Migrant Workers and Members of Their Families[17] United Nations 1990 2001 2003 Optional Protocol to the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women[18] United Nations 1999 2001 2005 Optional Protocol to the Convention on the Rights of the Child on the Involvement of Children in Armed Conflict[19] United Nations 2000 2001 2007 Optional Protocol to the Convention on the Rights of the Child on the Sale of Children, Child Prostitution and Child Pornography[20] United Nations 2000 2001 2006 Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities[21] United Nations 2006 2007 2009 Optional Protocol to the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities[22] United Nations 2006 2009 -2009 International Convention for the Protection of All Persons from Enforced Disappearance[23] United Nations 2006 2007 2009 Optional Protocol to the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights[24] United Nations 2008 - - Optional Protocol to the Convention on the Rights of the Child on a Communications Procedure[25] United Nations 2011 - -

See also

• Freedom of religion in Burkina Faso
• Human trafficking in Burkina Faso
• Internet censorship and surveillance in Burkina Faso
• LGBT rights in Burkina Faso
• Politics of Burkina Faso

Notes

1.^ Note that the "Year" signifies the "Year covered". Therefore the information for the year marked 2008 is from the report published in 2009, and so on.

2.^ As of January 1.

3.^ The 1982 report covers the year 1981 and the first half of 1982, and the following 1984 report covers the second half of 1982 and the whole of 1983. In the interest of simplicity, these two aberrant "year and a half" reports have been split into three year-long reports through interpolation.

References

1. , 2009 U.S Dept of State Human Rights Report: Burkina Faso
2. http://www.unhchr.ch/tbs/doc.nsf/NewhvVAllSPRByCountry?OpenView&Start=1&Count=250&Expand=27#27
3. , 2009 Amnesty International Report: Burkina Faso
4. "Country ratings and status 1973-2014" (XLS). Freedom in the World. Freedom House. 2014. Retrieved 11 February 2014.
5. Freedom House (2015). "Freedom in the World 2015" (PDF).
6. United Nations. "United Nations Treaty Collection: Chapter IV: Human Rights: 1. Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide. Paris, 9 December 1948". Retrieved 2012-08-29.
7. United Nations. "United Nations Treaty Collection: Chapter IV: Human Rights: 2. International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination. New York, 7 March 1966". Retrieved 2012-08-29.
8. United Nations. "United Nations Treaty Collection: Chapter IV: Human Rights: 3. International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights. New York, 16 December 1966". Retrieved 2012-08-29.
9. United Nations. "United Nations Treaty Collection: Chapter IV: Human Rights: 4. International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights. New York, 16 December 1966". Retrieved 2012-08-29.
10. United Nations. "United Nations Treaty Collection: Chapter IV: Human Rights: 5. Optional Protocol to the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights. New York, 16 December 1966". Retrieved 2012-08-29.
11. United Nations. "United Nations Treaty Collection: Chapter IV: Human Rights: 6. Convention on the non-applicability of statutory limitations to war crimes and crimes against humanity. New York, 26 November 1968". Retrieved 2012-08-29.
12. United Nations. "United Nations Treaty Collection: Chapter IV: Human Rights: 7. International Convention on the Suppression and Punishment of the Crime of Apartheid. New York, 30 November 1973". Retrieved 2012-08-29.
13. United Nations. "United Nations Treaty Collection: Chapter IV: Human Rights: 8. Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women. New York, 18 December 1979". Retrieved 2012-08-29.
14. United Nations. "United Nations Treaty Collection: Chapter IV: Human Rights: 9. Convention against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment. New York, 10 December 1984". Retrieved 2012-08-29.
15. United Nations. "United Nations Treaty Collection: Chapter IV: Human Rights: 11. Convention on the Rights of the Child. New York, 20 November 1989". Retrieved 2012-08-29.
16. United Nations. "United Nations Treaty Collection: Chapter IV: Human Rights: 12. Second Optional Protocol to the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, aiming at the abolition of the death penalty. New York, 15 December 1989". Retrieved 2012-08-29.
17. United Nations. "United Nations Treaty Collection: Chapter IV: Human Rights: 13. International Convention on the Protection of the Rights of All Migrant Workers and Members of their Families. New York, 18 December 1990". Retrieved 2012-08-29.
18. United Nations. "United Nations Treaty Collection: Chapter IV: Human Rights: 8b. Optional Protocol to the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women. New York, 6 October 1999". Retrieved 2012-08-29.
19. United Nations. "United Nations Treaty Collection: Chapter IV: Human Rights: 11b. Optional Protocol to the Convention on the Rights of the Child on the involvement of children in armed conflict. New York, 25 May 2000". Retrieved 2012-08-29.
20. United Nations. "United Nations Treaty Collection: Chapter IV: Human Rights: 11c. Optional Protocol to the Convention on the Rights of the Child on the sale of children, child prostitution and child pornography. New York, 25 May 2000". Retrieved 2012-08-29.
21. United Nations. "United Nations Treaty Collection: Chapter IV: Human Rights: 15. Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities. New York, 13 December 2006". Retrieved 2012-08-29.
22. United Nations. "United Nations Treaty Collection: Chapter IV: Human Rights: 15a. Optional Protocol to the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities. New York, 13 December 2006". Retrieved 2012-08-29.
23. United Nations. "United Nations Treaty Collection: Chapter IV: Human Rights: 16. International Convention for the Protection of All Persons from Enforced Disappearance. New York, 20 December 2006". Retrieved 2012-08-29.
24. United Nations. "United Nations Treaty Collection: Chapter IV: Human Rights: 3a. Optional Protocol to the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights. New York, 10 December 2008". Retrieved 2012-08-29.
25. United Nations. "United Nations Treaty Collection: Chapter IV: Human Rights: 11d. Optional Protocol to the Convention on the Rights of the Child on a communications procedure . New York, 19 December 2011. New York, 10 December 2008". Retrieved 2012-08-29.

External links

• 2012 Annual Report, by Amnesty International
• Freedom in the World 2012 Report, by Freedom House