In Mali, Guinea, Burkina Faso and Niger, military regimes are increasingly silencing dissent through forced disappearances and illegal detentions. These tactics, highlighted in recent reports, aim to crush opposition voices and instill fear across civil society.
Since July 9, 2024, two activists from Guinea’s Front National pour la Défense de la Constitution—Mamadou Billo Bah and Oumar Sylla (alias Foniké Menguè)—have been forcibly disappeared. They were abducted from Oumar Sylla’s home the day before a protest against rising living costs and the demand for a return to civilian rule. According to Mohamed Cissé, another activist arrested and later released with severe injuries, the two men were taken by security forces to a detention site on the Loos Islands near Conakry. Authorities deny holding them, and their whereabouts remain unknown.
Once removed from legal oversight, victims of forced disappearances face unimaginable risks.
How forced disappearances terrorize civil society
Military-backed governments in West Africa are systematically targeting journalists, lawyers, activists and human rights defenders perceived as threats. These individuals are frequently abducted in public spaces, homes or workplaces by armed men—sometimes in plain clothes, sometimes posing as state agents. Blindfolded and forced into unmarked vehicles, they are taken to undisclosed locations where they endure prolonged interrogations without legal recourse.
This pattern operates entirely outside judicial norms: no arrest warrants are issued, no charges are filed, and authorities either deny involvement or remain silent. Families and lawyers receive no updates, and victims are often held in informal detention centers like security service offices. The goal is clear—spread fear across civil society by making dissent a life-threatening act.
The growing list of victims
In Burkina Faso, human rights lawyer Guy Hervé Kam, co-founder of Balai Citoyen and coordinator of the political movement Sens, was illegally detained for five months in 2024. Five other Sens members who had spoken out against civilian massacres were abducted in March 2025 by armed men claiming to be security personnel. Authorities have said nothing about their fate despite public outcry. Four journalists—Serge Oulon, Adama Bayala, Kalifara Séré and Alain Traoré—were taken in June and July 2024. In October 2024, authorities announced that the first three had been conscripted into the military under a general mobilization decree, while the fourth remains missing.
In Niger, journalist and blogger Samira Sabou went missing for a week in September 2023 after her arrest at home. Lawyers for Moussa Tchangari, secretary-general of Alternatives Espaces Citoyens, only learned of his detention location two days after his arrest, once he was transferred to police custody.
In Mali, Ibrahim Nabi Togola, president of the opposition party Nouvelle Vision pour le Mali, was abducted in December 2024 by suspected state security agents and held for 45 days before being released without explanation. In Guinea, journalist Habib Marouane Camara was taken on December 3, 2024, by armed men identified as gendarmes; his family has had no news since.
Many victims of forced disappearances are later transferred to police custody under fabricated charges.
Why the justice system must act
Many victims of forced disappearances eventually resurface—transferred to police custody to face sham legal proceedings. In Burkina Faso, some have been forcibly conscripted into the military and sent to the front lines against armed groups. This happened to journalists Guézouma Sanogo and Boukari Ouoba, president and vice-president of the Association des journalistes du Burkina Faso, who had criticized press freedom violations, and to Luc Pagbelguem of private channel BF1, who had amplified their concerns. Their families received no news for a week after their March 24, 2025 arrests—until a video surfaced showing them in military uniforms.
Justice systems across the region are under intense pressure. In Burkina Faso, courageous judges ordered the immediate release of lawyer Guy Hervé Kam. In Guinea, the bar association boycotted court sessions for days in July 2024, demanding the release of Oumar Sylla and Mamadou Billo Bah. Courts in Mali and Niger have also ruled against arbitrary detentions—actions that have drawn retaliation. At least five Burkinabè judges were forcibly conscripted into the military in 2024 after presiding over cases involving authorities or their allies.
Despite mounting intimidation, the judiciary must continue to resist illegal detentions and authoritarian overreach. Stronger international support for justice systems in these countries is essential to uphold the rule of law and protect the lives of those still missing.
