Plus ça change: trade unions, the military and politics in Burkina Faso, 1966 and 2014

Abstract

This article examines the first and the most recent coups d’état in Burkina Faso, focusing on the pivotal role played by trade unions in both January 1966 and October 2014. Both events reveal the potency of trade unionism in the country, and both illustrate the political bind in which the country finds itself. The political history of Burkina Faso represents an ever-shifting, intractable passion play between a political elite with a strong tendency towards authoritarian rule, a military that sees itself as the bulwark of political stability and a powerful trade union movement capable of toppling governments but incapable of redeeming the nation’s political life. The similarities between the two coups d’état are remarkable and demonstrate the extent to which the politics of the country are locked in a cycle from which it apparently cannot escape. Through its role as the vanguard of civil society, trade unionism has rid the country of political ogres, but it has failed to fundamentally alter the nature of political power. As a result, Burkina Faso remains mired in crushing poverty, riven by high levels of corruption and economic inequality, and under the thrall of neoliberal structural adjustment that has proven unable to promote meaningful growth. Both coups therefore reveal the surprising strength of trade unionism as well as its limitations.

Keywords:

• Burkina Faso
• trade unions
• coup d’état
• Maurice Yaméogo
• Blaise Compaoré
• Confédération Générale du Travail du Burkina (CGT-B)
• Unité d’Action Syndicale (UAS)

Notes

1. Until recently, cotton has been the principal export, accounting for 60% of total exports. Dependence on cotton long stymied economic diversification (Kaminski, “Cotton dependence”). Since 2008, gold has replaced cotton as the principal source of export revenue. Burkina Faso is now the fourth biggest producer of gold in Africa, although foreign multinational ownership of the mines has meant that Burkina Faso has profited very little from the gold boom (Chouli, “Les mouvements sociaux”, 246–8).

2. Ethnic divisions and their political implications are examined in Savonnet-Guyot, État et sociétés au Burkina.

3. Good general histories of Burkina Faso include Englebert, Unsteady Statehood and Lejeal, Le Burkina Faso.

4. UNDP, Human Development Report 2015. The Human Development Index measures and ranks countries by levels of social and economic developments. There are four criteria: life expectancy at birth, mean years of schooling, expected years of schooling and gross national income per capita.

5. See Martens, “French-speaking Africa” and Phelan, “Responsible participation”.

6. See the useful general history of trade unions in Burkina Faso: Kabeya Muase, Syndcalisme et démocratie en Afrique noir.

7. Harsch, “The Legacies of Thomas Sankara”.

8. Sandwidi, “Syndicalisme et pouvoir politique”.

9. Dayo et al., Burkina Faso 2015, 12.

10. The principal trade union organisation among gold miners is SYNTRAGMIH (Syndicat des travailleurs de la géologie, des mines et hydrocarbures), affiliated with the radical confederation CGT-B.

11. US Department of State, 2011 Human Rights Reports: Burkina Faso, 24.

12. Loada, “Réflexion sur la société civile”, 149–50. For excellent discussions of how students perceive themselves to be trade unionists, see Sory, “L’Université de Ouagadougou” and Mazzocchetti, “Entre espoirs et désillusions”.

13. Dayo et al., Burkina Faso 2015, 12.

14. World Bank. World Development Indicators. Washington, DC: World Bank, 2011.

15. Phelan, “West African Trade Unionism Past and Present”.

16. The ideological cleavage between the CGT-B and CNTB reflects that of their institutional forebears in the colonial period, that of the radical and militant French CGT and the moderate Christian CFTC (Confédération française des travailleurs chrétiens). See Sandwidi, “Syndicalisme et pouvoir politique”, 326–34.

17. Education International, Study on the Effects of Structural Adjustment Policies, 7–8. On trade union pluralism in French-speaking West Africa, see Laurijssen, Pluralisme Synodical.

18. On the UAS, see UAS, L’Unite d’action syndicale au Burkina. See also “Burkina Faso: le mouvement syndical en première ligne!”, Le Bulletin International (Solidaires International) 87 (October 2015); “Meilleures conditions de vie et de travail: l’Unité d’action syndicale fait le point de sa rencontre avec le gouvernement”, 12 November 2015, Lefaso.net, available at http://lefaso.net/spip.php?article67967.

19. Berins Collier, Regimes in Tropical Africa, 155.

20. Bassolet, Evolution de la Haute-Volta, 71–8; Lejeal, Le Burkina Faso, 65–73; Englebert, Unsteady Statehood, 32–3.

21. On Sékou Touré, see Camara, “Trade Unions and Politics in Guinea since Independence”.

22. Quoted in Englebert, Unsteady Statehood, 44–5.

23. Cooper, “UGTAN, the Loi-cadre and the Breakup of l’AOF”.

24. Kabeya Muase, Syndcalisme et démocratie en Afrique noir, 55–6. UGTAN in Upper Volta did not adopt the name USTV until 963.

25. Quoted in Sandwidi, “Syndicalisme et pouvoir politique”, 330.

26. Englebert, La révolution burkinabè, 35.

27. Guirma, Comment perdre le pouvoir?, 76–80, 129–30.

28. Martens, “Le syndicalisme en Afrique occidentale d’expression française”, 63.

29. “Résolution du Congres RDA de février 1962”, quoted in Lippens, La République de Haute Volta, 21. Author’s translation.

30. See Phelan, “Responsible Participation”.

31. Sandwidi, “Syndicalisme et pouvoir politique”, 328, Guirma, Comment perdre le pouvoir?, 132–4.

32. Englebert, Unsteady Statehood, 45; Kabeya Muase, Syndcalisme et démocratie en Afrique noir, 68–70.

33. Sennen Adriamirado, “Avec Houphouët et Senghor, difficile ménage à trois”, Jeune Afrique plus 8 (June 1984), p. 63.

34. Guirma, Comment perdre le pouvoir?, 137–8.

35. Ammi-Oz, “L’installation des militaires voltaïque, I”, 69.

36. Englebert, La révolution burkinabè, 36–7.

37. Le Monde, 4 January 1966, 4. Author’s translation.

38. Carrefour Africain, 2–9 January, 1966.

39. Ammi-Oz, “L’installation des militaires voltaïque, I”, 61.

40. Ammi-Oz, “L’installation des militaires voltaïque, I”, 61–2; Kabeya Muase, Syndcalisme et démocratie en Afrique noir, 81–2.

41. Bassolet, Evolution de la Haute-Volta, 125–6; Ammi-Oz, “L’installation des militaires voltaïque, I”, 62; Kabeya Muase, Syndcalisme et démocratie en Afrique noir, 82.

42. “Affaire Sankara: mandat d’arrêt international contre Compaoré”, RFI Afrique, 21 December 2015, available at: http://www.rfi.fr/afrique/20151221-assassinat-sankara-mandat-arret-international-contre-compaore.

43. On the early years and political style of the Compaoré regime, see Lejeal, Le Burkina Faso, 135–56.

44. Sandwidi, “Syndicalisme et pouvoir politique”, 345–52.

45. Coupé, “Les 20 ans de la CGT-B”, 20–1; Sandwidi, “Syndicalisme et pouvoir politique”, 345–6.

46. Coupé, “Les 20 ans de la CGT-B”, 20.

47. CGT-B, “Resolution finale”, Sixième congrès ordinaire de la CGT-B, November 2013, p. 2. Author’s translation.

48. “Situation sociopolitique au Burkina: le Collectif syndical CGT-B condamne les violations des libertés d’expression”, Ouaga.com, 4 June 2014, available at: http://news.aouaga.com/h/28189.html.

49. UNDP, “Gender Inequality Index”, available at http://hdr.undp.org/en/content/gender-inequality-index. The index measures gender inequality on the basis of reproductive health, empowerment and the labour market.

50. CGT-B, “Resolution Finale”, Sixième congrès ordinaire de la CGT-B, November 2013, p. 1.

51. Coupé, “Les 20 ans de la CGT-B”, 21.

52. Amnesty International, Burkina Faso: The Long and Dangerous Fight for Justice; Loada, “Réflexion sur la société civile”; Harsch, “Trop, c’est trop!”.

53. Frère, “Enterrement de première classe”.

54. CCVC, Plate forme d’action de la Coalition nationale Contre la Vie Chère, 12 March 2008; CCVC, Message a l’occasion de la marche-meeting du 14 Mai 2008; Engels, “Contentious Politics of Scale”, 185–6.

55. CCVC, Message à l’occasion de la marche-meeting du 14 Mai 2008. Author’s translation.

56. Fox and Sekkel Gaal, Working Out of Poverty, 52.

57. Paris, “Lutte des classes au Burkina Faso en 2008”. Author’s translation.

58. Education International, Study on the Effects of Structural Adjustment Policies, 4.

59. Chouli, “Les mouvements sociaux”, 241.

60. Sawadogo, “Burkina: Privatization’s Rocky Road”, 12.

61. International Crisis Group, Burkina Faso: avec ou sans Compaoré, 33.

62. Chouli, Burkina Faso 2011: Chronique d’un mouvement social; International Crisis Group, Burkina Faso: avec ou sans Compaoré, 33–9.

63. International Crisis Group, Burkina Faso: avec ou sans Compaoré, 33–4.

64. Chouli, “Les mouvements sociaux”, 254.

65. Touré, “Jeunesse, mobilisations sociales et citoyenneté en Afrique de l’Ouest”.

66. CGT-B, “Resolution Finale”, Sixième congrès ordinaire de la CGT-B, November 2013, p. 6. Author’s translation.

67. UAS, L’Unite d’action syndicale au Burkina, 4; UAS, Lettre ouverte à Monsieur le Président.

68. UAS, Notification de préavis de grève.

69. Engels, “Political Transition in Burkina Faso”, 1; Amnesty International, Just What Were They Thinking, 8–19; Chouli, “L'insurrection populaire”, 148–51.

70. “Burkina: La CCVC Ouaga pour la mise en place de Comités de défense des acquis de l’insurrection populaire”, Burkina 24, 8 October 2015, available at http://www.burkina24.com/2015/10/08/burkina-la-ccvc-ouaga-pour-la-mise-en-place-de-comites-de-defense-des-acquis-de-linsurrection-populaire/.

71. Jaffré, “Comment ce magnifique peuple du Burkina a mis en échec le coup d’Etat”.

72. “Burkina Faso: le président et le premier ministre retenus par des militaires” Le Monde Africain, 17 September 2015; “Burkina Faso: le mouvement syndical en première ligne!”, Le Bulletin International (Solidaires International) 87 (October 2015), p. 1; UAS, Lettre ouverte à Monsieur le Président.

73. Engels, “Trade Unionism in Burkina Faso”; International Crisis Group, Burkina Faso: avec ou sans Compaoré, 33–4.

74. UAS, Lettre ouverte à Monsieur le Président.

75. Mathieu Olivier, “Burkina: ce qu’il faut savoir sur Roch Marc Christian Kaboré”, Jeune Afrique, 1 December 2015.