This sum should be paid jointly and severally paid by ex-president Blaise Compaoré, the former commander of his Guard Hyacinthe Kafando and the ex-chief of the army Gilbert Diendéré.
Le Monde with AFP
The Ouagadougou military court sentenced the former Burkinabé president Blaise Compaoré on Tuesday, May 10 and nine accused to pay more than 800 million CFA francs (1.2 million euros) of damages to the beneficiaries right of former head of state Thomas Sankara and his companions murdered in 1987.
The amount of damages for “compensation for moral and economic damages” amounts to 807.5 million CFA francs, including “a symbolic franc”, for the beneficiaries of Thomas Sankara, said the urban judge Meda.
This sum should be paid jointly and severally paid by Blaise Compaoré, the former commander of his Guard Hyacinthe Kafando and the former head of the army in 1987 Gilbert Diendéré, all sentenced to life in early April for their involvement in the Assassination, as well as seven other accused sentenced to sentences of three to twenty years in prison.
According to the court decision, the Burkinabé State will have to compensate the beneficiaries if the convicts are unable to pay the sums. The military court, however, rejected a request for restitution of Thomas Sankara’s property to his family.
“We deplore the decision of the Chamber not to access this request for the restitution of goods. With the family of Thomas Sankara, we will notify whether we appeal or not,” reacted M Sup> Benewendé Stanislas Sankara, one of the lawyers for the Sankara family.
Arrived in power by a coup in 1983, Thomas Sankara was killed with twelve of his companions by a commando at a meeting at the headquarters of the National Revolution Council (CNR) in Ouagadougou. He was 37 years old.
The death of Thomas Sankara, who wanted to “decolonize mentalities”, was a taboo subject during the 27 years of power of Mr. Compaoré, forced to leave after a popular insurrection in 2014. He has been living in exile in Côte of ivory and was condemned in absentia, just like Hyacinthe Kafando on the run since 2016.