Colour revolution in Burkina Faso failed
Plot to depose Ibrahim Traore thwarted
by Dr Peter F. Mayer*
(23 May 2025) More and more former colonies are throwing out their former colonial rulers. In doing so, they are ending more than a century of exploitation. Natural resources such as gold and uranium benefited only the colonialists, while the inhabitants were kept in poverty. That has changed, and the political West is not happy about it.
(Picture www.tkp.at)
According to AP reports, thousands of people gathered yesterday, Wednesday, in Burkina Faso’s capital Ouagadougou to support the government after repeated coup attempts and statements by a general of the US Africa Command who had criticised the head of government, Ibrahim Traore.1 Last week, the government of the West African country announced that it had thwarted a plot to depose Ibrahim Traore. The army said the conspirators were based in neighbouring Ivory Coast, where the population has not yet succeeded in shaking off French colonial rule. The US has set up a new command there.
Earlier this month, General Michael Langley, head of the US military in Africa, accused Traore during a hearing before a US Senate committee of using Burkina Faso’s gold reserves “to the advantage of the junta and to the detriment of the population.”
Traore. (Picture Wikipedia)
The fact is exactly the opposite. It no longer serves the French, but the people of Burkina Faso. The Traore government has implemented several improvements for the people:
Two years of Ibrahim Traore, President of Burkina Faso:
1. Burkina Faso’s GDP rose from around 18.8 billion US dollars to 22.1 billion US dollars.
2. He rejected loans from the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and the World Bank. He said: “Africa needs neither the World Bank nor the IMF, nor Europe or America.”
3. He cut the salaries of ministers and members of parliament by 30 per cent and increased the salaries of civil servants by 50 per cent.
4. He paid off Burkina Faso’s local debts.
5. He established two tomato processing factories, the first in Burkina Faso.
6. In 2023, he opened a state-of-the-art gold mine to improve local processing capabilities.
7. He stopped the export of raw gold from Burkina Faso to Europe.
8. He built a second cotton processing factory in Burkina Faso. Previously, the country had only one.
9. He opened the first National Artisanal Cotton Processing Support Centre to help local cotton farmers.
10. He banned the wearing of British lawyers’ wigs and robes in local courts and introduced traditional Burkinabe clothing.
population: 23 million.(Bild Wikipedia)
11. He prioritised agriculture by distributing over 400 tractors, 239 rotary hoes, 710 motor pumps and 714 motorcycles to boost production and support rural actors.
12. He facilitated access to improved seeds and other agricultural resources to increase agricultural production.
13. Tomato production in Burkina Faso rose from 315,000 tonnes in 2022 to 360,000 tonnes in 2024.
14. Millet production rose from 907,000 tonnes in 2022 to 1.1 million tonnes in 2024.
15. Rice production rose from 280,000 tonnes in 2022 to 326,000 tonnes in 2024.
16. He banned French military operations in Burkina Faso.
17. He banned French media in Burkina Faso.
18. He expelled French troops from Burkina Faso.
19. His government is building new roads, widening existing ones and upgrading unpaved roads to paved roads.
20. He is building a new airport, the Ouagadougou-Donsin Airport, which is expected to be completed in 2025 and will have a capacity of 1 million passengers per year.
In the eyes of the colonialists and US imperialists, all of this is highly undesirable, as it puts a strong barrier in place against the exploitation of the country.
Statement by the head of government on “X”:2
Capitaine Ibrahim TRAORÉ (@CapitaineIb226) April 30, 2025
“I would like to express my gratitude to all the peace-loving, freedom-loving patriots and pan-Africanists who rallied around the world on Wednesday April 30, 2025 to support our commitment and our vision for a new Burkina Faso and a new Africa, free from imperialism and neo-colonialism.
Your active solidarity and this demonstration of sympathy strengthens our conviction that the fight we are waging for a fairer and more equitable world is justified.
We will never bend our backs in the face of adversity; we will stand firm until our peoples are truly emancipated.
With you, we are certain that victory over the forces of evil is at hand. Together, in solidarity, we will defeat imperialism and neo-colonialism for a free, dignified and sovereign Africa.”
On 30 April 2025, crowds gathered at the Place de la Revolution in Ouagadougou and chanted “Long live Captain Traore!” Some held banners with a photo of General Langley with the word “slave” written on his head in red marker. Others waved flags of Burkina Faso and Russia, a close ally of the West African country.
Ocibi Johann, a musician who had come to the demonstration, said he was not surprised by Langley’s accusations. “Because Colin Powell lied, Iraq was destroyed. Barack Obama lied, Gaddafi was killed. But this time, their lies will not influence us. That is why we are telling them: we are not against them, but we are against exploitation and economic slavery,” he explained.
Until last year, the US maintained military bases in neighbouring Niger as part of its alleged fight against terrorism in the Sahel, a dry region south of the Sahara, but withdrew after the West African country terminated the military agreement between the two countries. The French exploited uranium in Niger, with the country receiving 32 cents per kilogram – the world market price is between 100 and 200 dollars.
Burkina Faso has been fighting for over a decade alongside its neighbours Niger and Mali against jihadist terrorist groups that are being exploited and financed by the political West, as has already been the case in Afghanistan, Syria and other countries.
After the liberation from French colonial rule in Burkina Faso, Niger and Mali in recent years, the new governments broke off military relations with the long-standing exploiters, the United States and France, and turned to Russia for military support.
Burkina Faso, Mali and Niger formed their own security partnership in 2023, known as the Alliance of Sahel States.
Alex Krainer provides a very good insight into the events in Burkina Faso and developments over the past two years in an interview with Professor Glenn Diesen.3
| * Peter F. Mayer is a physicist, journalist and editor at the editorial network “tpk – Der Blog für Science & Politik” (https://tkp.at/ueber-den-blog/) |
Source: https://tkp.at/2025/05/01/versuchte-farbrevolution-gegen-regierung-ibrahim-traore-in-burkina-faso-gescheitert/, 1 May 2025
(Translation “Swiss-Standpoint”)
1 https://www.newsday.com/news/nation/burkina-faso-protest-ibrahim-traore-coup-attempt-langley-h54032