{"id":23888,"date":"2020-04-17T02:53:23","date_gmt":"2020-04-17T06:53:23","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/theredphoenixapl.org\/?p=23888"},"modified":"2020-04-17T02:53:23","modified_gmt":"2020-04-17T06:53:23","slug":"revolutionary-communist-party-of-volta-burkina-faso-the-evolution-of-the-situation-in-burkina-faso-the-covid-19-pandemic-an-aggravating-element-of-the-crisis-of-the-neocolonial-system","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/redphoenix.news\/es\/2020\/04\/revolutionary-communist-party-of-volta-burkina-faso-the-evolution-of-the-situation-in-burkina-faso-the-covid-19-pandemic-an-aggravating-element-of-the-crisis-of-the-neocolonial-system\/","title":{"rendered":"Revolutionary Communist Party of Volta (Burkina Faso): The Evolution of the Situation in Burkina Faso. The COVID-19 Pandemic, An Aggravating Element of the Crisis of the Neocolonial System"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

The situation remains complex in the context of the strengthening of the imperialist domination,
\nof the deepening of the crisis of the imperialist system, and of their dramatic consequences for the
\nworking class, the working masses in urban and rural areas, and popular youth.<\/p>\n

The people\u2019s daily lot includes the high cost of living, the endemic unemployment, misery, and
\nhealth problems with the persistence of epidemics such as measles and malaria.<\/p>\n

The MPP (People’s Movement for Progress) government is clearly showing its inability to
\nresolve the pressing problems of the masses and to fulfill their expectations, which were strongly
\nexpressed during the popular uprising of October 2014. On all fronts, among which the impunity
\nof blood crimes and of economic crimes, the absence of democratic freedoms, the low purchasing
\npower, the high level of insecurity, the government is carrying out the same reactionary, anti-
\npopular and anti-social policies of the defunct regime of the autocrat Blaise Compaor\u00e9, who was
\ndriven out by the popular insurrection.<\/p>\n

The government continues to apply the roadmap dictated by French imperialism, which consists
\nin guaranteeing the geostrategic interests of France in our country and in the West Africa sub-
\nregion, where it faces the rivalry of other imperialist powers (US, China, Germany, Russia, etc.)
\nand of countries such as India, Turkey and Brazil. The most important element in this roadmap is
\nto stifle the resistance and revolutionary spirit of the people, who have forcefully shown their
\npotential during the popular insurrection and the resistance to the fascist coup d\u2019\u00e9tat of General
\nDiend\u00e9r\u00e9 in September 2015.<\/p>\n

This explains the repressive measures taken against the Democratic and Revolutionary
\nMovement, the attacks against the trade unions by criminalizing their struggles, the arbitrary
\narrests and detentions of citizens, the targeted assassinations of activists such as the two members
\nof the ODJ (Democratic Youth Organization) in Yagha province in the north of the country in
\nMay 2019, the extrajudicial executions of innocent civilians by the Defense and Security Forces
\nunder the pretext of fighting terrorism, which have caused the deaths and wounding of dozens of
\npeople, crimes which have gone totally unpunished.<\/p>\n

The people also face the terrorist attacks from various armed groups, which are components of
\nthe counter-revolution. These include elements linked to the defunct regime of the Fourth
\nRepublic, which was swept away by the popular insurrection. Since 2015, these recurring attacks
\nhave occurred in various regions of the country, causing a real humanitarian catastrophe which
\nhas plunged these populations into a state of great despair. The macabre toll is the following:
\nhundreds of civilians and members of the Defense and Security Forces were killed, tens of
\nthousands were injured, nearly 800,000 persons became internally displaced people, who have
\nbeen crammed into makeshift camps and live in total destitution. Many health centers and schools<\/p>\n

have been destroyed, depriving thousands of children living in areas of great insecurity of
\nschooling.<\/p>\n

Under the pretext of fighting terrorism, the imperialist powers militarily occupy our country and
\nthe entire Sahel Sahara sub-region with their troops, their military bases and the instruments of
\ndomination they control such as the G5 Sahel, Operation Barkhane, MINUSMA (United Nations
\nMultidimensional Integrated Stabilization Mission in Mali).<\/p>\n

The democratic and revolutionary movement is continuing its work of mobilization and
\norganization in this complex situation, in which the counter-revolution is seen at various levels:
\njihadist groups, militias and death squads used by the MPP government and the various fractions
\nof the reactionary bourgeoisie, the repression by the Defense and Security Forces against the
\npeople\u2019s struggles, and the military presence of the imperialist powers in the country.
\nThe neocolonial state has completely given up its role of defending the territorial integrity and the
\nsecurity of goods and people, despite its posturing and declarations against terrorism.
\nThe measures introduced in this context, such as the establishment of a curfew and of a state of
\nemergency in the northern and eastern regions, are in reality directed against the Democratic and
\nRevolutionary Movement. They negatively impact the populations in their daily life and their
\nincome-generating activities. The government is using the lack of security situation as a pretext to
\ncurb the democratic freedoms (bans on demonstrations by the trade union and democratic
\norganizations, threats against freedom of the press, assassinations attempts against investigative
\njournalists, kidnapping and arbitrary detention of activists, etc.).<\/p>\n

But this repression did not bring about the effect expected by the reactionary bourgeoisie, the
\nsowing of fear and resignation among the popular masses.
\nThe fighting spirit is flaring up and developing within the social protest movements that are rising
\nin all the economic and social sectors throughout the national territory. An example of this is the
\nunitary general strike launched by the gigantic March 7 demonstrations. The latter were followed
\nby the general strike of March 16 to 20, 2020, which was widely attended despite the
\ngovernment\u2019s measures of pressure and intimidation against the workers. Among these pressures
\nwere the containment measures aiming at preventing the spread of the COVID-19 pandemic. The
\ntrade unions decided to carry out the general strike but canceled the demonstration that had been
\nset for March 17. The government obviously used the pandemic as a form of blackmail to stop
\nthe strike movement.<\/p>\n

The March 7 demonstrations held throughout the country had already been very successful.
\nHundreds of thousands of protesters had stormed the streets in all of the country’s major cities
\nand even in the small localities. In the capital, Ouagadougou, and in Bobo-Dioulasso, the second
\nlargest city, the parades of demonstrators stretched over several kilometers. The trade unions
\nhave shown their ability for disciplined mobilization and organization. The maneuvers to divide
\nthe workers intended to pit the public servants against the private sector workers have failed
\nmiserably. The reason is that there were, among the demonstrators, hundreds of thousands of
\nworkers in the sectors of telecommunications, banks and financial institutions, the decentralized
\nfinancial systems, commerce, industry, textiles, transportation, etc. The populations also<\/p>\n

expressed their support for these mobilizations. The various trade unions united around a
\nplatform of demands structured around five points:
\n\u2022 the end of measures that reduce purchasing power, and the adoption of measures of
\nimprovement to cope with the rising cost of living;
\n\u2022 the end of attacks on democratic and trade union freedoms;
\n\u2022 the end of the looting of the national resources;
\n\u2022 the guarantee of the population’s right to security;
\n\u2022 the respect and implementation of the various commitments made by the government regarding
\nworkers and trade unions.<\/p>\n

These massive mobilizations organized in a context of rampant war of the counter-revolution in
\nour country clearly confirm that the people remain standing and determined to carry on the
\nstruggles for their immediate demands and for a revolutionary change in their favor. The COVID-
\n19 pandemic comes into play in a national situation that is troubled, very complex and with
\ncontradictory processes.<\/p>\n

The coronavirus pandemic, an aggravating element of the social, economic and political
\ncrisis<\/p>\n

Burkina Faso is the country most affected by the coronavirus in West Africa, with more than 200
\npeople declared positive, 7 dead, and 10 recovered as of March 28,. The government, besides
\ntaking measures of closing schools, secondary and university institutions, markets, bars and
\nrestaurants, has announced confinement rules. It has decreed a curfew for the whole country from
\n7 PM to 5 AM, the state of health alert, and the quarantine of Ouagadougou (the capital), which
\nhas the majority of the infected people, and seven other cities. These measures adopted to curb
\nthe spread of the pandemic are quickly reaching their limits. The public health system is in an
\nadvanced state of disrepair, and for a long time now it has not been able to provide primary care
\nto the population. The Structural Adjustment Plan imposed in the early 1990s on the African neo-
\ncolonies by the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund led the State to disengage from
\nthe Health and Education sectors. In the case of Burkina Faso, these budgetary restrictions have
\nbrought the health facilities to their knees; they are under-equipped and lack trained personnel.
\nThe human and animal health workers\u2019 union has constantly waged multifaceted struggles
\n(strikes, sit-ins, demonstrations) to demand from the government better working conditions, the
\nprovision of equipment and medicines to hospitals and health care centers, and the revaluation
\nand improvement of the status of the caregiver staff. From May 21 to 25, 2019, this well-
\nestablished trade union observed a widely followed strike with a participation rate of 99%
\nthroughout the national territory and of 100% in certain localities. The strike was followed by the
\nimplementation of the watchword to boycott the on-duty and on-call periods from Saturday May
\n25, 2019 to June 3, 2019.<\/p>\n

To deal with Covid-19, Ouagadougou has only one operational center to take care of the infected
\npatients. The health care services that were already overwhelmed lack beds in resuscitation,
\nrespirators and protective equipment for the health workers, who are exhausted by the work
\noverload.<\/p>\n

The pandemic is taking place in a context where the neocolonial system, through the plundering
\nof the agricultural and mineral resources of the country by the imperialist monopolies and their
\nallies of the reactionary bourgeoisie, causes the development of misery, the destruction of the
\nenvironment, especially in the mining areas with the poisoning of the groundwater with toxic
\nproducts such as mercury. Today, in many rural areas, our people have no access to drinking
\nwater. These objective conditions limit considerably the ability to respond that the country’s
\nhealth structures require to curb the Covid-19 pandemic.
\nWhen applying the curfew, certain members of the defense and security forces use violence and
\ntorture on the offenders. These methods have been denounced by magistrates and by the
\nBurkinabe Movement for Human and Peoples’ Rights (MBDHP) in the following terms: “It is
\npertinent for the MBDHP to condemn the acts of torture and other inhuman and degrading
\nmeasures inflicted by certain elements of the defense and security forces (FDS) on those
\napprehended during curfew hours. These acts are unacceptable in a state that is governed by the
\nrule of law, and all the more so since the Public Health Code provides for adequate repression in
\nthe event of non-compliance with a health measure\u201d.
\nFaced with Covid-19, the democratic and revolutionary organizations, while advocating the
\nrespect for measures aimed at preventing the spread of the pandemic, question the Government
\non certain immediate decisions to be implemented on the health, economic and social levels. The
\nTrade Union Action Unity (UAS) which brings together the six trade union federations in the
\ncountry (including the General Confederation of Labor of Burkina), and the independent trade
\nunions expressed the concerns of the workers and of the populations:<\/p>\n

We call on the government to:<\/p>\n

\u2022 strengthen the capacities of frontline combat agents and provide them with the necessary
\nequipment;
\n\u2022 facilitate the access to free screening for the virus and provide effective care to the infected
\npersons;
\n\u2022 develop and strengthen public awareness;
\n\u2022 support all public and private health structures by installing hand-washing devices and by using
\nhydro-alcoholic gel;
\n\u2022 take the necessary measures to control the sale prices of articles and products necessary to
\nprevent the COVID 19 and of products of broad consumption to put an end to speculation and
\noverpricing.
\nWe invite the government to consider medium and long-term measures such as:
\n\u2022 the suspension of certain taxes, water and electricity bills and rents to help the most vulnerable
\nsectors of society, etc.
\n\u2022 the postponement of the deadlines for reimbursement of bank loans for the affected population;
\n\u2022 the reduction of prices of basic necessities;
\n\u2022 the public responsibility for primary health care;
\n\u2022 the increase of the capacity of health facilities to attend people.
\nThe UAS particularly requests the workers to:<\/p>\n

\u2022 respect the measures to prevent the disease;
\n\u2022 commit everyone to break the chain of spread of the disease.
\nThis coronavirus health crisis is an aggravating element of the many-sided crisis of the
\nimperialist system. It exposes the bankruptcy of the neoliberal policies of the imperialist powers
\nand the financial agencies in their pay, the International Monetary Fund, the World Bank and the
\nWorld Trade Organization, that have always imposed the dismantling of public services and
\nprivatization in the health sector. Today people realize with dismay the lack of resources in the
\nhospitals to deal with the pandemic, to the point where healthcare workers in the developed
\ncapitalist countries such as France, Italy and Spain lack protective equipment such as masks and
\ngloves. And in our backward agricultural neocolonial country, the situation is even more<\/p>\n

At the same time, the sales figures of the monopolies are mounting, the national resources are
\nbeing sold off to mining companies that are exempt from paying taxes, the reactionary
\nbourgeoisie is getting richer through the misappropriation of public funds and economic crimes
\nthat go unpunished.<\/p>\n

In this chaotic situation, our party calls on the working class, the people in its various
\ncomponents, not to give in to panic, to comply with the preventive measures in order to stem the
\npandemic. It calls for developing popular solidarity with those infected, with the vulnerable
\nsectors of society, notably with the internally displaced populations due to terrorist attacks, and to
\nsupport the urgent demands expressed by the Trade Union Action Unity.<\/p>\n

To continue the popular struggles for democratic and social rights, notably the Right to Public
\nHealth.<\/p>\n

To work to develop the unity of the fighting forces, which is the only condition for greater
\nvictories.<\/p>\n

To unite around the PCRV to carry out the National Democratic and Popular Revolution by the
\ngeneral armed insurrection to drive out French imperialism and its local allies, to constitute a
\nProvisional Revolutionary Government, to convene a Constituent Assembly and to establish a
\nModern Democratic Republic in order to implement its minimum program of transition to
\nscientific socialism.<\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The situation remains complex in the context of the strengthening of the imperialist domination, of the deepening of the crisis of the imperialist system, and..<\/p>","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":37412,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"nf_dc_page":"","_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[],"tags":[310],"class_list":["post-23888","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","tag-burkina-faso"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/redphoenix.news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/pcrv.jpg?fit=313%2C260&ssl=1","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/redphoenix.news\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/23888","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/redphoenix.news\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/redphoenix.news\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/redphoenix.news\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/redphoenix.news\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=23888"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/redphoenix.news\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/23888\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/redphoenix.news\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/37412"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/redphoenix.news\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=23888"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/redphoenix.news\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=23888"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/redphoenix.news\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=23888"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}