STAGED OR SOVEREIGN?: Paris protests against Ibrahim Traoré spark claims of French interference
Sitha Maliwa
Burkina Faso’s President Ibrahim Traore (Image: Facebook)
Many believe the protests against Burkina Faso’s President Ibrahim Traoré, held in Paris this week, were not a spontaneous act of dissent, but rather a coordinated attempt backed or staged by France to undermine a leader increasingly seen as a threat to Western influence in West Africa.
In footage that quickly went viral, hundreds of demonstrators, allegedly from the Burkinabè diaspora, marched through the streets of Paris calling for Traoré’s resignation and arrest. Clad in red ribbons symbolising resistance and holding placards denouncing authoritarianism, the protesters accused the 36-year-old leader of clinging to power through undemocratic means. But behind the chants and signs, many in Africa and beyo...