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4h ago

Burkina Faso’s Cabinet Backs Bill to Restore Death Penalty for Treason, Terrorism and Espionage

The draft now faces parliamentary approval followed by judicial review.

FILE - Aerial view of Djibo town, Burkina Faso, Feb. 18, 2021. (AP Photo/Sam Mednick, File)
Image
A demonstrator holds up a placard to protest against death penalty in Morocco. Placard reads 'Against Death Penalty'.

Overview

  • Justice Minister Edasso Rodrigue Bayala announced the cabinet decision as part of broader justice reforms.
  • The Council of Ministers approved a wider penal code overhaul that includes reinstating capital punishment.
  • Burkina Faso abolished the death penalty in 2018, and the last recorded execution took place in 1988.
  • Amnesty International urged legislators to reject the bill, calling the death penalty cruel and ineffective.
  • The move comes under military rule since the 2022 coup, alongside postponed elections, a dissolved electoral commission, curbs on media including BBC and Voice of America suspensions, and a 2024 law criminalizing homosexuality.