Burkina Faso junta secretly detained journalist and others, advocacy group says • FRANCE 24

Key Concepts

• Enforced Disappearance: The abduction and secret detention of an individual by state actors, often denied by authorities.
• Conscription as a Pretext: The practice of using mandatory military service as a cover to silence or detain political dissidents and journalists.
• Secret Detention Centers: Makeshift prisons, often in residential areas, used by the state to hold individuals outside of the legal system.
• Journalistic Repression: The systematic targeting of media professionals who investigate government corruption, embezzlement, or military failures.

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1. The Case of Atiana Serge Ulong

Atiana Serge Ulong, a prominent Burkinabé investigative journalist, was abducted from his home in June 2024. While the Burkinabé Ministry of Justice officially claimed that Ulong and other journalists had been conscripted into the army and deployed to the front lines, Reporters Without Borders (RSF) has gathered evidence contradicting this narrative.

2. Investigation Findings and Methodology

Arno Froger, head of the RSF investigations desk, detailed the methodology used to uncover the truth:

• Corroborating Testimonies: RSF relied on multiple accounts from former detainees who were held in the same facilities.
• Geospatial Intelligence: Evidence places Ulong in a secret prison located in a villa near the U.S. Embassy in Ouagadougou.
• Refutation of Military Deployment: RSF confirmed that Ulong was never deployed to the front lines at any point through the end of 2025.
• Conditions of Detention: Reports indicate that Ulong has been held in "makeshift prisons" where windows are sealed, keeping detainees in total darkness, and that he has been subjected to beatings and ill-treatment for nearly two years.

3. Motivations for Targeting

Ulong was targeted due to his high-profile work for the media outlet L’Événement. His investigative reporting focused on:

• Jihadist attacks within the country.
• Embezzlement cases involving members of the ruling junta.
• General accountability reporting that persisted despite the junta’s rise to power.

4. Involvement of the Junta

RSF’s investigation suggests that the responsibility for Ulong’s detention reaches the highest levels of the junta:

• Direct Oversight: The detention site is under the close surveillance of military personnel directly connected to the junta.
• Inner Circle Involvement: Evidence suggests that a close aide to the junta leader personally debriefs detainees before they are released, indicating that the authorities are not only aware of the situation but are the primary actors behind it.

5. Government Response and Communication

The ruling authorities have maintained a policy of silence regarding Ulong’s status:

• Lack of Transparency: RSF has attempted to contact the Ministry of Communication on multiple occasions without success.
• Contradictory Narratives: The government has only addressed the matter publicly twice, providing an official narrative of military conscription that RSF has now debunked with evidence.

6. Notable Statements

• Arno Froger: "The neighborhood in which he’s kept at the moment is held actually by the junta itself... The implication of the junta in what happened to him so far is very obvious and it’s been widely documented."
• Regarding the conditions: Froger noted that given the two-year duration of the detention and the physical abuse reported, it is impossible that Ulong could have been deployed to the front lines as claimed.

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Synthesis and Conclusion

The case of Atiana Serge Ulong represents a severe escalation in the suppression of press freedom in Burkina Faso. By utilizing the guise of military conscription to mask the enforced disappearance of a prominent journalist, the junta has attempted to bypass legal accountability. RSF’s investigation provides compelling evidence that Ulong is being held in a secret, state-run facility in Ouagadougou, subjected to inhumane conditions, and targeted specifically for his investigative work into government corruption. The findings highlight a systematic effort by the junta to silence dissent through extrajudicial detention.