Former Burkina Faso President Blaise Compaoré and nine other defendants were sentenced to pay more than 800 million CFA francs (1.2 million euros) in damages to the beneficiaries of former head of state Thomas Sankara and his companions assassinated in 1987 by a military court in Ouagadougou on Tuesday.
According to Judge Urbain Méda, damages for “reparation of moral and economic prejudice” total 807.5 million CFA francs, including “a symbolic franc” for Thomas Sankara’s heirs.
Blaise Compaoré, Hyacinthe Kafando, the former commander of his guard, and Gilbert Diendéré, the former head of the army in 1987, were all convicted to life in prison in early April for their roles in the assassination, together with seven other defendants condemned to three to twenty years in jail.
If the convicted persons are unable to pay the amounts, the Burkinabe government will be required to compensate the beneficiaries, according to the court order.
However, a plea for the restitution of Thomas Sankara’s property to his family was denied by the military court.
“We are disappointed by the chamber’s refusal to grant this property return request. We will discuss whether or not to appeal with Thomas Sankara’s family “Benewendé Stanislas Sankara, one of the Sankara family’s lawyers, said:
A commando killed Thomas Sankara and twelve of his friends during a meeting at the National Council of the Revolution (CNR) headquarters in Ouagadougou. He was 37 at the time.
During Mr. Compaoré’s 27 years in power, the death of Thomas Sankara, who wished to “decolonize mentalities,” was a taboo subject. He was thrown out after a popular revolt in 2014.
He has been in exile in Côte d’Ivoire since then, and has been convicted in his absence, as has Hyacinthe Kafando, who has been on the run since 2016.
