\n<\/p>\n
Burkina Faso’s junta has announced a ban on all political parties, whose activities have been suspended since the military seized power in 2022.<\/p>\n
Junta leader Captain Ibrahim Traor\u00e9 has been criticised for suppressing dissent and the move will be seen as the latest move to tighten control.<\/p>\n
According to Burkina Faso’s Interior Minister Emile Zerbo, the ban is part of plans to “rebuild the state” after what he said were “numerous abuses” in the country’s multiparty system.<\/p>\n
Zerbo said the system had been “promoting division among citizens and weakening the social fabric”.<\/p>\n
Parties were previously banned from holding public gatherings but the new decree stops them from operating altogether.<\/p>\n
All the assets of the dissolved parties would be transferred to the state, Zerbo said, adding that a draft law would be sent to the Transitional Legislative Assembly “as soon as possible”.<\/p>\n
The country had more than 100 registered political parties before the coup, with 15 represented in parliament after the 2020 general election, reports the Reuters news agency.<\/p>\n
Traor\u00e9’s 2022 coup ousted Paul-Henri Sandaogo Damiba, who had taken power only nine months earlier.<\/p>\n
Traor\u00e9 pledged to restore the civilian government by 1 July 2024 but two months before this deadline, the junta announced it would extend its rule for another five years<\/a>.<\/p>\n Despite his authoritarian reputation, 37-year-old Traor\u00e9 has gained a huge following across the continent<\/a> for his pan-Africanist vision and criticism of Western influence.<\/p>\n Burkina Faso is among a string of West African countries who have experienced coups in recent years, prompting concerns about the region’s stability.<\/p>\nMore about Burkina Faso from the BBC:<\/h2>\n