The United Nations High Commissioner, Volker Turk, has called on Burkina Faso’s coup authorities to speed up their investigations into the killing of at least 28 people whose lifeless bodies were found between December 30 and 31 in the town of Nouna, in the northwestern province of Kossi, at the hands of the paramilitary force of the Volunteers for the Defense of the Fatherland (VDP).
The VDP were created almost exactly two years ago by the then Burkinabe president, Roch Marc Christian Kaboré, to fight terrorist activities. What started as a volunteer force has become a paramilitary group accused of committing several massacres in the country.
According to United Nations information, the WTP committed the massacre in apparent retaliation against an attack by the jihadist organization of the Group for the Support of Islam and Muslims against a base of the WTP itself.
A military junta spokesman said on January 2 that the authorities had launched an investigation and that the so-called transitional government was «fundamentally opposed to any form of abuse or violation of human rights for any reason» before reiterating its commitment to protect all civilians without distinction.
«I am encouraged that the authorities have announced an investigation into the incident, but I call on them to ensure that it is prompt, thorough, impartial and transparent and that they hold all those responsible to account, regardless of their position or rank,» Turk warned.
The High Commissioner had previously raised concerns directly with the authorities regarding potential human rights risks related to the recruitment, arming and deployment of «auxiliary forces» in Burkina Faso.
«There is an urgent need to strengthen vetting procedures and pre-deployment training on international human rights and humanitarian law, as well as their effective monitoring by security and defense forces, and to ensure inclusiveness and transparency during their recruitment,» the High Commissioner added.
Source: (EUROPA PRESS)
