Africa-Press – Rwanda. <\/strong> <\/span>Thomas Sankara, an African leader and anti-imperialist, was born in December 1949. He first attended the military academy in Antananarivo (Madagascar) and then the military academy in Morocco. Sankara is considered the “father of the Burkina Faso revolution” and an African icon. He was a socialist opposed to imperialism, and some referred to him as Africa’s Che Guevara.<\/p>\nCaptain Sankara assumed the presidency of “Upper Volta” following a coup he led in 1983, changing the name imposed by French colonizers to “Burkina Faso,” meaning “the land of upright men.” He remained in power until 1987 when he was assassinated.<\/p>\n
Everyone who knew him agrees that he was characterized by great charisma and exceptional intelligence, with a broad vision and eloquence. Sankara enjoyed immense popularity and was considered a national hero even before he became president, first due to his bravery during the border conflict with Mali in 1974, and then because of his resignation in 1982 from his position as Minister of Information in the military government of Colonel Say Zerb, in protest against the excessive repression of the Burkinabe people.<\/p>\n
Political and Economic Achievements<\/b><\/p>\n
Supported by popular enthusiasm, Thomas Sankara’s regime achieved remarkable successes compared to his four-year rule. Starting in 1984, during his presidency of the National Revolutionary Council (CNR), he initiated extensive reforms across various sectors: administration, trade, education, agriculture, housing, and foreign relations. He fought corruption, reduced government officials’ salaries, sold luxury government cars and replaced them with simple vehicles, and sought to improve women’s status and elevate their position. He fought against female genital mutilation and child marriage, and appointed women to government positions. He also aimed to make his country self-sufficient, encouraging local production over imports and reforming the agricultural sector, as he stated: “He who feeds you controls you.”<\/p>\n
It can be said that Sankara sought, through his reforms, to place Burkina Faso on the path of a democratic and popular revolution, aimed at transferring power from the bourgeoisie to the people, which increased his support among the general populace.<\/p>\n
He aimed to achieve true political and economic independence for his country, rejecting economic dependency on colonial Western countries, particularly France. Sankara strongly criticized the external debts imposed on African countries, viewing them as a form of neo-colonialism and a tool for colonial dominance over Africa and economic dependency. He also believed in the necessity of African unity to confront the colonial powers eyeing Africa’s resources, often repeating to African leaders: “Either we succeed together or we fail together.”<\/p>\n
Assassination of Sankara<\/b><\/p>\n
On October 15, 1987, Thomas Sankara and 12 of his comrades were assassinated by “Commando” forces at the headquarters of the National Revolutionary Council in the capital Ouagadougou, following a coup led by his former comrade-in-arms Blaise Compaore\u0301.<\/p>\n
Motives Behind the Coup and the Determination to Assassinate Him<\/b><\/p>\n
The aim of Thomas Sankara’s assassination was to eliminate a man who disturbed colonial interests, bury the gains of the revolution he achieved, and return Burkina Faso to being part of the France-Africa system (the informal French influence network in Africa post-colonization). This was accomplished by the coup leader, Blaise Compaore\u0301, who exploited several internal and external reasons for his coup:<\/p>\n
Internal reasons: Despite the successes of Sankara’s policies on multiple fronts, the economic reforms he implemented put him at odds with the affected forces and unions. These confrontations were marked by violence from the revolutionary defense committees operating under the National Revolutionary Council, which ultimately distanced themselves from him and turned against him. His strict austerity policies and frugality angered some officers, senior officials, and the political elite who were accustomed to privileges. His revolutionary policies against corruption and traditional elites led him into conflict with tribal leaders and some businessmen.<\/p>\n
External reasons: In his famous speech before the Organization of African Unity in 1987, Sankara challenged the global economic system by urging African countries to refuse to repay their debts, alarming international financial institutions that provided loans, particularly the World Bank, and the countries dominating these institutions.<\/p>\n
Thomas Sankara, the revolutionary anti-imperialist, was assassinated because he sought to eliminate the “enslaving misery” that colonial power had entrenched in his country and in Africa, and because he laid the foundations for his country’s independence from the shackles of dependency on France, which he did not hesitate to criticize for its policies in Burkina Faso and Africa.<\/p>\n
Sankara was assassinated because colonial powers led by France saw him as a threat to their influence and interests in Africa, as he dared to strengthen his country’s ties with Fidel Castro in Cuba and Muammar Gaddafi in Libya, and contributed to improving his country’s relations with the Soviet Union.<\/p>\n
Regionally, many observers believe that Sankara disturbed African rulers involved in what was then called “Franc\u0327afrique,” particularly Fe\u0301lix Houphoue\u0308t-Boigny, the president of Ivory Coast, due to the impact of his revolutionary rhetoric on their populations and the potential for his ideas to inspire their peoples, posing a threat to their regimes.<\/p>\n
After the Assassination: The Trial and French Involvement<\/b><\/p>\n
After 34 years following the assassination of Thomas Sankara and 12 of his comrades, a trial was opened regarding the circumstances of his assassination, revealing that the coup was not solely local, led by Blaise Compaore\u0301 against his comrade Sankara, but also involved Fe\u0301lix Houphoue\u0308t-Boigny, the president of Ivory Coast and a pillar of France-Africa, with France being implicated through the involvement of some French individuals in the conspiracy against Sankara.<\/p>\n
Due to Burkina Faso’s political ties with France before and after the coup against Sankara, his family demanded in 2017 that French President Emmanuel Macron, during his visit to the capital Ouagadougou, disclose the French secret documents related to Thomas Sankara’s assassination. Macron agreed, pledging to provide “all documents issued by French administrations during Sankara’s regime that are covered by national defense secrecy.” However, Ouagadougou received only ordinary diplomatic archives, as the French administration did not lift the secrecy on any documents or archives related to this case, especially those issued by the offices of President Franc\u0327ois Mitterrand or Prime Minister Jacques Chirac during the period of the “first political cohabitation” in France between 1986 and 1988.<\/p>\n
A Symbol of Africa… Present to This Day<\/b><\/p>\n
Although Thomas Sankara’s rule was short, it left a mark on Burkinabe and African political memory. The coup did not erase the memory of Sankara, who was rehabilitated as a national hero and has become a symbol of the black continent for many Africans. His speeches and ideas are still cited today.<\/p>\n
Nearly four decades after the departure of Africa’s Che Guevara, Mali, Niger, and Burkina Faso established the Sahel Alliance, the first bloc to challenge the entrenched imperial structures of “Franc\u0327afrique.” If this alliance can achieve true political, economic, and cultural sovereignty and overcome all the obstacles posed by regional and international powers, it will be a tangible realization of Sankara’s dream that neo-colonialism sought to thwart.<\/p>\n
Find more news and analyses on Rwanda<\/span> on the Africa Press<\/span> website<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"By Mustafa Al-Mu’tasim Africa-Press – Rwanda. Thomas Sankara, an African leader and anti-imperialist, was born in December 1949. He first attended the military academy in Antananarivo (Madagascar) and then the military academy in Morocco. Sankara is considered the “father of the Burkina Faso revolution” and an African icon. He was a socialist opposed to imperialism, […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":84,"featured_media":122950,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[24,17],"tags":[758],"class_list":["post-122951","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-all-news","category-culture-and-art","tag-rwanda"],"yoast_head":"\n
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