Burkina Faso's government dissolves all political parties

BAMAKO, Mali

Burkina Faso's military-led government dissolved all political parties and groupings Thursday, saying the move was necessary to preserve national unity and reform political governance.

The decree, adopted during a weekly Cabinet meeting presided over by President Ibrahim Traore, also calls for the assets of the dissolved parties to be transferred to the state. A draft law to repeal texts governing party financing and operations has also been prepared for legislative approval.

Minister of Territorial Administration Emile Zerbo said the decision followed a deep analysis of the partisan system.

"This great and important decision is part of the refoundation of the state and follows a deep diagnosis of the partisan system which revealed numerous deviations in the application of the legal regime of political parties and groupings in our country," Zerbo said.

He added that the related draft laws will be sent to the military government-appointed Transitional Legislative Assembly "as soon as possible."

The government said the proliferation of political parties had fostered division among citizens and weakened the social fabric.

Authorities said the dissolution aims to "preserve national unity, strengthen the coherence of government action, and pave the way for a reform of the political governance model."

Burkina Faso has been under military rule since a coup led by Traore in September 2022, the second that year. The country is grappling with a severe security crisis fueled by insurgents linked to al-Qaeda and ISIS (Daesh).

The transitional government has repeatedly postponed elections, initially promised for July 2024, citing the instability. Political party activities had been largely suspended since the coup, though not formally banned until now.