Burkina Faso: Crisis of confidence between the government and the French ambassador Luc Hallade.
In Ouagadougou for a fortnight, the transitional government had said “no longer have confidence in the French ambassador Luc Hallade” and demanded from the French authorities, his replacement. On Wednesday 4 January 2023, a diplomatic source contacted by our editorial staff in Ouagadougou, said that the Burkinabe authorities have sent since 20 December 2022, an official letter to Paris to demand the replacement of its diplomat.
Indeed, Luc Hallade represents an obstacle to the development of the fight that the government is leading. A few months ago, thousands of young Burkinabe demanded the dismantling of the French base in Kamboinsin and the departure of the French ambassador to Burkina Faso. On 12 December last year, the same ambassador had sent a letter calling on French nationals living in the town of Koudougou (100 km from Ouagadougou) to leave the town for security reasons.
In July 2022, the Burkinabe government protested against Luc Hallade’s comments, which described the security situation in Burkina Faso as a civil war and minimised the efforts of the Burkinabe defence and security forces in the fight against terrorism, during a hearing of the France-West Africa friendship group in the French Senate. Based on the actions of this ambassador, the choice of the Burkinabe government is high. Luc Hallade must necessarily represent an obstacle for this country.
As a reminder, on 23 December 2022, the transitional government of Burkina Faso declared the UN Resident Coordinator/Humanitarian Coordinator and designated official in the country, Barbara Manzi, “persona non grata”. The Burkinabe Minister of Foreign Affairs, Olivia Rouamba, explained that “it is the individual who is not in phase with the vision of the moment in Burkina Faso”, adding that the Burkinabe government blames Barbara Manzi for having taken the “unilateral decision” to evacuate the families of the staff of the UN system agencies under the pretext that the security situation in Ouagadougou was threatened.
Consequently, before the expulsion of the UN official, two French citizens had been arrested for spying on the Defence and Security Forces (FDS) and expelled from Burkina Faso on the night of 17-18 December 2022. Burkina Faso is currently in a phase of territorial reconquest and all obstacles should be removed.
Miss OLY
