Muhamad Yehia
Thousands of people gathered to celebrate one year since Burkina Faso’s withdrawal from ECOWAS in Ouagadougou and across the country. The official launching of the Alliance of Sahel States was marked in Ouagadougou by a meeting attended by Prime Minister Jean Emmanuel Ouédraogo and other personalities.
Proposer Simporé, mobilization officer for the citizen watch coalition, said, “in Burkina Faso, people are mobilizing everywhere to show their commitment, their determination and their attachment to the three Presidents of the AES, who have fought night and day for the well-being of these peoples”.
With a chorus of vuvuzelas, whistles and placards reading “down with ECOWAS”, “down with France”, “ Long live AES”, the demonstrators came to celebrate the departure of the AES states from ECOWAS.
Barnbé Somda, a member of the citizen’s watch coalition, said, “we’re open to everyone, but to say that we’re going to return to ECOWAS to lead a march, they should really think again. Because we really have decided, and we’re proud of this decision, and we’re going to pursue it to the end”.
In addition to demonstrations throughout the country, a ceremony to raise the colors of Burkina Faso, Mali and Niger was organized at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Regional Cooperation and Burkinabè Abroad.
Jean Emmanuel Ouédraogo, Prime Minister of Burkina Faso, said, “the aim was to weaken us and frighten us, but everywhere they tried they suffered a crushing defeat. ECOWAS is one of the strings of our enslavement, which was cut short on January 28, 2024. We know there are other strings left, but our three Heads of State are still holding the rope tightly, which is to say that all strings will be cut with no qualms”.
On January 28, 2024, Burkina Faso, Mali and Niger announced their definitive departure from the Economic Community of West African States. This was followed by the creation of the AES Confederation on July 6, 2024.