At the end of April, the self-defense force of Burkina Faso entered the village of Karma and killed 136 civilians. The human rights group CISC also claims that they have found several children among those killed. The Self-Defense Force was created to make life safer for civilians. But why then do they attack other civilians? – It is an unforeseeable conflict. The civilian population does not know what will happen in the next hour. The one who decides is the one with a weapon then and there, says senior researcher at Nupi, Morten Bøås. Civilians became soldiers in 14 days Burkina Faso has struggled with Islamist militant groups for several years. To ensure the safety of the people, President Roch Marc Christian Kaboré launched a new strategy in 2020: Kaboré created a self-defense force, which was named Volunteers for the Defense of the Fatherland, better known as the VDP. Civilians could enlist, receive 14 days of training and be given weapons. VDP’s purpose was to crack down on the jihadist groups, mainly JNIM and ISGS. Both of these aim to win territory, and win more and more. But power in the country did not decline with the establishment of the VDP. On the contrary. Volunteers are queuing up to join the VDP. Photo: OLYMPIA DE MAISMONT / AFP The violence has increased And the extensive violence has created political unrest. Burkina Faso has been through two coups d’état since Kaboré founded the VDP. Now it is junta leader Ibrahim Traore who is president. A number of changes have been made, but the focus on the “civilian soldiers” in the VDP has continued. Nevertheless, violence and terror have increased. – A force like the VDP only makes it worse. There will be a further turning of the spiral of power, says Bøås. Witnesses say that the attackers in Karma at the end of April were wearing VDP uniforms. – VDP operates with a loose and poor definition of who the enemy is. Often with stereotypes of potential terrorists, such as young male Fulanis, says Bøås. The Fulani are a people group in West Africa, mainly nomads. It’s about soil and land Burkina Faso is close to a famine, and is struggling with drought and food shortages. There are scarce resources in the country, and this is part of the core of the conflict. Much of the conflict concerns access to land. The nomadic people, the Fulani, want to use the land in Burkina Faso for grazing, while the farmers want to cultivate the land. – With scarce resources, it’s all about survival. If the farmer misses his crop, he starves. If the nomad with cattle is not allowed to graze, the cattle die, says Bøås. But the rights of the Fulani have not been well looked after by the state. It is difficult to regulate a people who are not permanent residents. – The Fulani like to enlist in militias other than the government force VDP. One finds Fulanis in both of the two major jihadist organizations in the country, says Bøås. Burkina Faso has no coastline and is largely dependent on agriculture. Photo: N16426 Pattern in the recruitment of the VDP and the jihadist organizations – It looks like a pattern. It is more likely that farmers will join a militia loyal to the government, such as the VDP, says Bøås. This has led to a lot of ethnic violence. Massacres are avenged by new massacres. It becomes an eternal spiral of power. – Under Damiba and Traore, the VDP strength has grown. There is a connection between the increase in the VDP and the government in the country. The VDP thus attacked villages where Fulanis live. Even if only a few people in the village are terrorists, everyone who lives there becomes the target of the attack. Also civilians and children. This was also the case when the VDP entered the village of Karma. Burkina Faso has seen an increase in desertification, which has led to less arable land. Photo: AFP Self-defence at both state and ground level In addition, there is a tradition of self-defence in the village. There are many weapons in circulation, and people live in great uncertainty about what the future will bring. The Burkinabe organization CISC is working to map the massacres, to understand why they are happening and at the same time mobilize for resistance. After the massacre in Karma, they came up with a new encouragement to the Burkinabe people to stand up against the development which is harmful to Burkina Faso’s reputation, but also to the cohesion between the various ethnic groups in the country. Morten Bøås believes that there is now only one solution: negotiations between the state and the terrorist group JNIM. But for now there is no signal that either party wants to negotiate.
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– The one who decides is the one with the weapon – news Urix – Foreign news and documentaries
