Burkina Faso declares un coordinator persona non grata after critical report

This week, Burkina Faso’s military junta took the drastic step of declaring the United Nations’ top representative in the country, Carol Flore-Smereczniak, persona non grata. The move followed the release of a critical UN report documenting grave violations against children amid the country’s ongoing conflict.

Flore-Smereczniak joins another high-ranking UN official, Barbara Manzi, who was expelled in 2022. The expulsions underscore the junta’s growing intolerance for independent oversight, particularly when it challenges the government’s narrative.

The junta’s spokesperson accused Flore-Smereczniak of contributing to the April report, which highlights the devastating impact of Burkina Faso’s armed conflict on children. The government dismissed the report’s findings, which implicated state forces, pro-junta militias, and Islamist armed groups in widespread abuses.

According to the report, 2,483 grave violations were committed against 2,255 children between July 2022 and June 2024. These included killings, abductions, and the recruitment or use of children by armed groups and security forces. Islamist armed groups accounted for 65% of these abuses, while the remaining violations were attributed to Burkina Faso’s security forces and the Volunteers for the Defense of the Homeland (VDP)—civilian auxiliaries supporting the military.

The report also highlighted a surge in attacks on schools and raised serious concerns about the detention of children based on alleged ties to armed groups. Human Rights Watch has extensively documented abuses against boys and girls by all conflict parties since 2016, including targeted attacks on students, teachers, and educational institutions.

The junta has repeatedly criticized the UN in recent months. In March, the foreign minister condemned what he called the UN’s “inappropriate” use of terms like ‘non-state armed groups’ to describe terrorists “plaguing our nation” and referred to the VDP as ‘militias.’ In July, the minister urged the UN to ‘refocus’ its interventions in Burkina Faso to align with the government’s ‘vision.’

Since seizing power in a 2022 coup, Burkina Faso’s military leaders have systematically suppressed media outlets, political opposition, and dissidents. Rather than concealing abuses, the junta should collaborate with the UN to implement a comprehensive action plan to address these violations and protect children in conflict zones.