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The military government in Burkina Faso has shut down one of the country's most popular radio stations for broadcasting what it described as an "insulting" interview against the military leaders in the Niger Republic.
The affected station, Radio Omega, is part of the Omega media group owned by journalist and former foreign minister Alpha Barry.
The station was immediately suspended on Thursday “until further notice,” Communications Minister Rimtalba Jean Emmanuel Ouedraogo said in a statement.
The broadcaster had run an interview with Ousmane Abdoul Moumouni, the spokesman of a newly established Nigerien group campaigning to reinstate deposed President Mohamed Bazoum.
Bazoum, the country's democratically elected president, was ousted from office in a July 26 coup by members of the Presidential Guard led by Gen Abdourahmane Tchiani.
Displeased with the tone of the interview, the Burkina Faso junta accused Moumouni of making “insulting comments with regard to the new Nigerien authorities.”
Ouedraogo, who is also a government spokesman, alleged in his statement that Moumouni's organisation “is clearly campaigning for violence and war against the sovereign people of Niger” and seeks to restore Bazoum “by every means.”
However, Radio Omega said on Friday, August 11, 2023, that it would explore “every means of recourse” to fight the suspension.
The media company described the government's action as a “blatant violation of current laws and an unacceptable attack on freedom of expression and freedom of the press.”
It added that the order came after numerous death threats had been made against the station's managers and journalists “from people describing themselves as supporters of the government.”
Burkina Faso experienced a coup on 24 January 2022, when mutinying soldiers arrested and deposed President Roch Marc Christian Kaboré following gunfire.
Eight months later, a counter-coup led by Capt. Ibrahim Traoré occurred, leading to the ouster of Lieutenant Colonel Paul-Henri Sandaogo Damiba.
Burkina Faso swiftly threw its weight behind the leaders of the Niger junta and joined Mali in warning that any military intervention to restore Bazoum would be considered a declaration of war against them.
The Burkinabe authorities have clamped down on French broadcasters in recent months, including the TVOU outlets LCI and France24 as well as Radio France Internationale (RFI) and expelled the correspondents of the French newspapers Liberation and Le Monde.