The author, a veteran of the struggle for national liberation of Guinea-Bissau and Cabo Verde, writes on African developments for Avante, the weekly newspaper of the Portuguese Communist Party, which published this article on May 15, 2025. Translation: John Catalinotto
Map shows Africa’s Sahel and the countries of the Sahel States Alliance (AES) — Mali, Niger and Burkina Faso.
In the middle of April, the provisional government of Burkina Faso, led by Captain Ibrahim Traoré, announced that it had uncovered and dismantled a plot to “sow total chaos” in Burkina, in yet another “attempt to destabilize republican institutions.” The masterminds of the plot are said to have benefited from the help of neighboring Côte d’Ivoire, a veritable French neo-colony.
In Burkina Faso, thousands of people demonstrated on April 30 in Ouagadougou and other cities in support of the government, which previously revealed that it had foiled a “great conspiracy” hatched in Ivory Coast and rejected interference by the United States of America.
According to African media, demonstrators in the capital, in Bobo-Dioulasso — the second largest city — and in Boromo held up placards saying “Full support for President Ibrahim Traoré and the people of Burkina Faso!” “Down with imperialism and its local lackeys!” “Long live the anti-imperialist resistance!” “No to the imperialist powers’ maneuvers to undermine our revolution!” and “No to U.S. interference!”
Former Burkinabé President Blaise Compaoré, who was convicted of treason and who orchestrated the 1987 assassination of revolutionary leader Thomas Sankara, resides there under French protection. Neither the old colonial power nor the U.S. are satisfied with the sovereign course embarked upon by the Alliance of Sahel States, made up of Burkina Faso, Mali and Niger. But the Alliance has the militant and massive support of the African people and progressive forces.
The demonstrations were called by the National Coordination of Citizen Vigilance Associations to denounce “the hypocrisy of the former colonial powers, which criminalize resistance while plundering the African continent” and to warn against “media disinformation that seeks to demonize pan-Africanist leaders.” For the movement’s secretary-general, Ghislain Somé, the popular mobilization is proof that the people are committed to their leaders and guarantees that the enemies of Burkina will never succeed in destabilizing the country.
Burkinabé Prime Minister Rimtalba Ouédraogo reiterated that “the youth are standing, the patriotic people are standing, the freedom fighters of the world are standing,” and that the Burkinabé people must remain standing, more than ever, because “when the people rise, the imperialists tremble.”
Another objective of the demonstrations was to reject the latest pressure and interference by the U.S. in Burkina Faso, which is part of the Alliance of Sahel States together with Niger and Mali. These countries have expelled French and U.S. troops from their territories, withdrawn from the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS), canceled agreements that benefited foreign powers, and decided to pursue a path of development free from the shackles of neocolonialism.
The government in Ouagadougou strongly repudiated statements made by the new head of the U.S. military command for Africa (USAFRICOM), General Michael Langley, before the Senate in Washington. Langley claimed — after a visit to Côte d’Ivoire — that Burkinabé leaders are using their country’s gold reserves for their own benefit.
The response to Langley came from various progressive forces in West Africa, who pointed out that Niger, Mali and Burkina Faso “are no longer vassal states” and that today they are an example for all African peoples fighting against imperialist domination.