ECOWAS and the defence of human rights, democracy

Recently, Human Rights Watch released a report that shows how Burkina Faso’s military executed more than 220 civilians, among them 56 children. These people were killed by soldiers without any trial, and the murder happened just in one day.

When this report surfaced, the Burkina Faso military junta mobilized kangaroo civil society organizations to stage a protest in front of the office of the US Embassy in denial of the barbaric episode.

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Today, we have an ECOWAS that is suffering from cardiac arrest. It is sad that ECOWAS or any of its specialized departments couldn’t not comment on that report. AU or any of its specialised committees or departments did not comment on the extra-judicial killings. These 220 civilians were murdered by the soldiers of their own country. Not by jihadists. They were executed like animals. Nobody cares, no one gives a damn. And that is the end of the matter.

I warned several times that authoritarian rule is a harbinger of injustice. You can’t reap anything from a system that came into existence through the barrel of a gun and violence. A system that is disorganized is an anathema to planning and conventional framework of governance.

Comrade Bishir Dauda wrote from Sabuwar Unguwa in Katsina State